Saskatchewan is one of the few provinces that does not have pay equity legislation. So it's not surprising that we have one of the highest gender wage gaps in Canada. This is the result of systemic gender discrimination that can and should be fixed with pay equity legislation. Pay equity primarily seeks to address gender-based wage discrimination but we must also be mindful of ability-, age-, identity- and race-based wage discrimination. Pay equity legislation has been recommended by The Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission but the government hasn't acted on this recommendation.
In April 2021, Jennifer Bowes, NDP MLA for Saskatoon University, and Opposition Critic for the Status of Women launched a petition calling on the Sask Party government to enact pay equity legislation. Are pay equity and gender equality issues that are important to you? On August 17th at 7:00 p.m., join Jennifer Bowes, and our esteemed panellists for a discussion about the importance of pay equity. Panellists include:
Aina Kagis: Chair of the Saskatchewan Pay Equity Coalition from 1994 to 2003. Aina also worked for CUPE as a National Representative from 1993 to 2011 and as Saskatchewan Regional Director from 2011 until she retired in 2017.
Dr. Manuela Valle-Castro: Manuela is an advocate for social justice. She holds a Ph.D. in Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice from the University of British Columbia. She has worked as a Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies and is the Director of the Division of Social Accountability for the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan.
Erica Violet Lee: Erica is a poet, essayist, political theorist, and Indigenous activist from Saskatoon’s inner city. She is a strong advocate for racial and gender equality.
It's time for pay equity legislation!
If you haven't already, click here to sign our pay equity petition. Or, text "EQUITY" to (306) 988-1780 to sign!
For more information on the event, please email Lisa at [email protected] or Madison at [email protected]!