Quebec Pay Equity Law
The Québec Pay Equity Act was passed into law on November 20, 1996. The Act requires that female employees be paid equally to male employees for doing work of equal value. Most employers with 10 or more employees in Québec had to comply by November 20, 2001.
Companies with six or more employees must EACH YEAR fill in an online form attesting to their compliance. This is a simple process, but it is important to do it.
Companies with 10 or more employees must do a prescribed analysis (a Pay Equity Plan) to determine if they have any pay equity-related problems. The law provides for hefty fines for non-compliance – although this provision is not often used.
The government appears to be flexible and apparently is not looking for opportunities to take a heavy-handed approach – but it is clear that they insist on compliance. The Act and regulations provide lots of flexibility, but that does not extend to ignoring the law. In fact, complying with the law provides an opportunity to update (or implement) a compensation policy that is a good basis for management.
If you have employees in Québec – you should take steps to comply with the law. Complying is much less onerous than is often assumed.
Due dates for completing a compliance exercise depend on a variety of factors – but a good starting point it to assume that the exercise must be finished 48 months after the end of the year in which your company achieves an average of 10 employees on the payroll. Contact us for more details.
Maintaining Equity - any Québec company that has already prepared a Pay Equity Plan must do a maintenance review at least every 5 years from their original due date. Maintenance means reassessing the company’s situation and developing a new plan to fix any problems that have arisen since the original Plan was done.
For readers outside Québec, or those who speak no French, most of the available documentation is in French only, and the help line at La Commission de L'équité Salariale operates only in French. We can assist in this regard.
You may have question as to how the law applies in your situation. Look at our FAQ page, or contact us for a no cost or obligation chat that will clarify matters as they apply to you.
Companies with six or more employees must EACH YEAR fill in an online form attesting to their compliance. This is a simple process, but it is important to do it.
Companies with 10 or more employees must do a prescribed analysis (a Pay Equity Plan) to determine if they have any pay equity-related problems. The law provides for hefty fines for non-compliance – although this provision is not often used.
The government appears to be flexible and apparently is not looking for opportunities to take a heavy-handed approach – but it is clear that they insist on compliance. The Act and regulations provide lots of flexibility, but that does not extend to ignoring the law. In fact, complying with the law provides an opportunity to update (or implement) a compensation policy that is a good basis for management.
If you have employees in Québec – you should take steps to comply with the law. Complying is much less onerous than is often assumed.
Due dates for completing a compliance exercise depend on a variety of factors – but a good starting point it to assume that the exercise must be finished 48 months after the end of the year in which your company achieves an average of 10 employees on the payroll. Contact us for more details.
Maintaining Equity - any Québec company that has already prepared a Pay Equity Plan must do a maintenance review at least every 5 years from their original due date. Maintenance means reassessing the company’s situation and developing a new plan to fix any problems that have arisen since the original Plan was done.
For readers outside Québec, or those who speak no French, most of the available documentation is in French only, and the help line at La Commission de L'équité Salariale operates only in French. We can assist in this regard.
You may have question as to how the law applies in your situation. Look at our FAQ page, or contact us for a no cost or obligation chat that will clarify matters as they apply to you.
