Quebec Pay Equity - Frequently Asked Questions
Does my company really have to do this?
Probably you have to do something. If you have six or more employees, each year you must complete an on line form called the DEMES (Déclaration de l'employeur en matière d'équité salariale). It must be completed on line (no paper version exists). It is, however, very simple. It consists of a very few questions that are easy to answer – all matters of fact.
If you have an average of 10 or more employees, you must complete an analysis exercise to demonstrate that you comply with the criteria for achieving pay equity according to the law. This is not terribly onerous, but it must be done by (almost) all companies with employees working in Québec.
Exempt employers are those with fewer than 10 employees, and those who are not regulated by Québec law – e.g. Banks, transportation companies, communications companies (radio, TV stations) and a very few others.
If we do this once, is that it?
No – employers have to do a maintenance exercise every five years, from the date the original exercise was due. The maintenance exercise is an update to assure that equity still holds. It should not be as extensive as the first exercise, but it is impossible to predict accurately.
What are the deadlines?
That depends on when you went into business and when you achieved an average of 10 or more employees. For many employers, the deadline was 31 December 2010. For newer companies, the deadline is often 48 months after the end of the year in which your average employee population is 10 or more.
I heard that some employees are not included in the count.
That is right. Executives are excluded – an executive usually means a position that influences company decisions. Think CEO, CFO etc. Someone with a VP title that is a “courtesy” or used for sales and marketing purposes would not normally be excluded.
Can I do the analysis work myself?
Yes. La Commission de L’équité Salariale offers good documentation (mostly in French only), and an excellent software tool. They also have a telephone help service that is useful, and staffed by knowledgeable and friendly people (who speak no English).
Should I do the work myself?
Yes, if you are familiar with job evaluation principles, and you have some modest understanding of statistical mathematics. This is somewhat like doing your corporate taxes without professional assistance. You can do it, but professional assistance will help you utilize the flexibility the law and regulations provide. If you are not confident in these matters, professional help is money well spent. Better, in our opinion, to pay a modest professional fee rather than unnecessary retroactive salary adjustment.
Consider this – if you have an employee of 10 years, and you find that she has been underpaid by $1.00 per hour for the whole period with you, your extra salary bill could exceed $20,000. For one person. Professional assistance might be worth considering.
Do I have to reveal salaries or other confidential information?
Definitely No. You must post a report for all employees to see. It explains the basics of the Pay Equity exercise, who is included, and what adjustments will be made (if any). You must also allow people to ask questions, and tell them what recourse they have if they are dissatisfied.
What are the risks?
If you don’t comply with the law, you risk substantial fines. In practice fines seem to be a last resort for the most recalcitrant employers. Eliminate these risks by doing the required exercise.
Risks associated with complying with the law are few. In our experience, no company expressly discriminates based on gender (at least as defined in the law). There are a wide variety of normal and perfectly legal reasons why people are paid differently – length of service, performance level, size of job, market rates etc. This law is looking specifically for pay discrimination based on gender, which is quite rare in our experience. We work hard to determine that pay differences we see are related to issues that are not gender-based.
Is this going to turn into an employee-relations nightmare?
Not in our experience. If you are practicing gender discrimination in your pay policy, you and your employees know it already. If – like most employers – you are paying your staff fairly, this exercise will probably be a non-issue. In our experience, questions about this law are rare. When the occasional question arises, often it is not actually a pay equity question – it is a compensation (or other) question. “Why is my brother-in-law over at the XXX company being paid $$ more than me?” Well, the question has nothing to do with pay equity – probably the brother-in-law is doing a different job, he works at a different company, and likely is inflating the facts to boost his ego.
Probably you have to do something. If you have six or more employees, each year you must complete an on line form called the DEMES (Déclaration de l'employeur en matière d'équité salariale). It must be completed on line (no paper version exists). It is, however, very simple. It consists of a very few questions that are easy to answer – all matters of fact.
If you have an average of 10 or more employees, you must complete an analysis exercise to demonstrate that you comply with the criteria for achieving pay equity according to the law. This is not terribly onerous, but it must be done by (almost) all companies with employees working in Québec.
Exempt employers are those with fewer than 10 employees, and those who are not regulated by Québec law – e.g. Banks, transportation companies, communications companies (radio, TV stations) and a very few others.
If we do this once, is that it?
No – employers have to do a maintenance exercise every five years, from the date the original exercise was due. The maintenance exercise is an update to assure that equity still holds. It should not be as extensive as the first exercise, but it is impossible to predict accurately.
What are the deadlines?
That depends on when you went into business and when you achieved an average of 10 or more employees. For many employers, the deadline was 31 December 2010. For newer companies, the deadline is often 48 months after the end of the year in which your average employee population is 10 or more.
I heard that some employees are not included in the count.
That is right. Executives are excluded – an executive usually means a position that influences company decisions. Think CEO, CFO etc. Someone with a VP title that is a “courtesy” or used for sales and marketing purposes would not normally be excluded.
Can I do the analysis work myself?
Yes. La Commission de L’équité Salariale offers good documentation (mostly in French only), and an excellent software tool. They also have a telephone help service that is useful, and staffed by knowledgeable and friendly people (who speak no English).
Should I do the work myself?
Yes, if you are familiar with job evaluation principles, and you have some modest understanding of statistical mathematics. This is somewhat like doing your corporate taxes without professional assistance. You can do it, but professional assistance will help you utilize the flexibility the law and regulations provide. If you are not confident in these matters, professional help is money well spent. Better, in our opinion, to pay a modest professional fee rather than unnecessary retroactive salary adjustment.
Consider this – if you have an employee of 10 years, and you find that she has been underpaid by $1.00 per hour for the whole period with you, your extra salary bill could exceed $20,000. For one person. Professional assistance might be worth considering.
Do I have to reveal salaries or other confidential information?
Definitely No. You must post a report for all employees to see. It explains the basics of the Pay Equity exercise, who is included, and what adjustments will be made (if any). You must also allow people to ask questions, and tell them what recourse they have if they are dissatisfied.
What are the risks?
If you don’t comply with the law, you risk substantial fines. In practice fines seem to be a last resort for the most recalcitrant employers. Eliminate these risks by doing the required exercise.
Risks associated with complying with the law are few. In our experience, no company expressly discriminates based on gender (at least as defined in the law). There are a wide variety of normal and perfectly legal reasons why people are paid differently – length of service, performance level, size of job, market rates etc. This law is looking specifically for pay discrimination based on gender, which is quite rare in our experience. We work hard to determine that pay differences we see are related to issues that are not gender-based.
Is this going to turn into an employee-relations nightmare?
Not in our experience. If you are practicing gender discrimination in your pay policy, you and your employees know it already. If – like most employers – you are paying your staff fairly, this exercise will probably be a non-issue. In our experience, questions about this law are rare. When the occasional question arises, often it is not actually a pay equity question – it is a compensation (or other) question. “Why is my brother-in-law over at the XXX company being paid $$ more than me?” Well, the question has nothing to do with pay equity – probably the brother-in-law is doing a different job, he works at a different company, and likely is inflating the facts to boost his ego.
