The Pay Equity Commission. Annual Report

Transcription

1 The Pay Equity Commission Annual Report

2 The Pay Equity Office Annual Report

3 Table Of Contents Commissioner s Message... 1 Our Legal Mandate... 2 The Pay Equity Commission... 3 Vision of the Pay Equity Office:... 3 Mission of the Pay Equity Office:... 3 The Pay Equity Office... 3 The Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal... 4 How Pay Equity Is Achieved Annual Financial Report... 5 Organizational Chart The Pay Equity Office... 7 Commissioner s Office... 7 Director s Office... 7 Pay Equity Programs... 7 Education and Communication... 8 Review Services... 8 Staff... 8 Pay Equity Advisory Council... 9 PEO Members Key Achievements Review Services Service Delivery Improvements PEO - Core Business Report PEO Core Activity Reports Case Disposition File Activity Active Case Status Educational Activities... 18

4 Commissioner s Message This has been a year of transition at the Pay Equity Office. Following a staff retreat in May of 2005, we identified the need to re-align our priorities so that our limited resources were focused on the areas which would have the biggest impact in meeting our mandate to ensure that workplace compensation practices were free of systemic gender discrimination. Our internal review of files, both current and closed, revealed that public sector and large employers, together with their unions, have substantially instituted pay equity practices but continue to experience problems in the maintenance of these practices. Our review also showed that a significant percentage of smaller employers are not in compliance with the legislation mainly due to lack of knowledge about the pay equity legislation and lack of internal human resource capabilities. As a result of these findings, the PEO has concentrated its efforts on exploring constructive ways to reach out to this segment of the business community. As part of our outreach program, I have established links to the HRPAO, Chambers of Commerce, Ontario Business & Professional Women s Club, and have partnered with each of these organizations to promote pay equity practices to their members and to educate their membership about employers obligations/employees rights in this regard. These efforts have proven fruitful and we will continue to work with them on a regular basis by providing ongoing information and tools to assist businesses in achieving pay equity in their workplaces in a timely fashion. PEO is also producing an on-line learning program, scheduled to be launched in the fall of 2006, which will allow a business owner to construct an appropriate pay equity process for his/her enterprise by working through 10 inter-active modules. This tool, once it becomes available, will be of significant benefit to those businesses, which do not have access to human resource personnel. Finally, we are in the process of piloting an intake process, the purpose of which will be to better identify at an early stage what the needs of the parties are and to better allocate education and review services to the parties so that applications are processed in a more timely and consistent fashion. Hand in hand with this initiative has been the transition from a strictly paper-based file process to an electronic file management system. This has meant a complete transformation in the way staff members operate. I am pleased to report that great strides have been made by all staff in this regard. The new case management system will allow for better reporting on the work of the PEO. It has been a successful year and I look forward to continuing our transformation agenda. Emanuela P. Heyninck Commissioner May Pay Equity Office

5 Our Legal Mandate The Pay Equity Commission was established by section 27 of the Pay Equity Act, 1987, S.O c.34 and is continued by subsection 27(1) of the Pay Equity Act, R.S.O, 1990, c.p.7 as amended (the Act). The Commission is an Adjudicative Agency consisting of two separate, independent parts: the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal (the Tribunal), and the Pay Equity Office. The Tribunal is the formal adjudicative arm of the Commission and the Pay Equity Office is responsible for the enforcement of the Act. The Minister of Labour is accountable for the PEO to the government and is responsible for representing the PEO in Cabinet and its Committees, in the Legislative Assembly and before Committees of the Legislature. The Minister is accountable to the Legislature for the PEO s fulfillment of its mandate and compliance with government administrative policies. The Minister is also responsible for the review and approval of the business plan, and Annual Report and for submitting them to Management Board of Cabinet. The head of the PEO, the Commissioner, is the Chief Administrative Officer (the CAO) appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council on the advice of the Premier. The CAO is accountable to the Minister for ensuring that the PEO carries out the responsibilities assigned to it under the Act. Pay Equity Act - Purpose The purpose of the Act is to redress the systemic gender discrimination in compensation for work traditionally done by women. The Act requires employers, and bargaining agents where employees are represented by a union, to identify systemic discrimination by comparing female job classes to male job classes in terms of the value of the work and the pay. Where a female job class is paid less than a direct male comparator, or an indirect group of male jobs, then the employer is required to adjust the rate of the female job class so that it is at least equal to the male comparator, or similar to the pattern of pay for male jobs. Studies show that up to a quarter to a third of the 31%* gap in salaries between men and women can be attributed to the fact that work principally done by women is undervalued. *Sources: Income Statistics Division, Statistics Canada 2 Pay Equity Office

6 The Pay Equity Commission Vision of the Pay Equity Office: Safe, fair, healthy, productive, and high performing workplaces, free of systemic discrimination in the value and compensation of work performed primarily by women that result in widespread social and economic benefits for all. Mission of the Pay Equity Office: To contribute to the social justice and economic prosperity of Ontario by advancing fair compensation practices for work performed primarily by women, which foster more productive relationships in the workplace and in the broader community. The Pay Equity Office The Pay Equity Office (PEO) is responsible for enforcing the Pay Equity Act through the investigation, resolution of complaints through alternative dispute resolution and if necessary the issuing of orders for compliance. The PEO also provides the following programs and services: Conducts educational programs and provides information to the public and to the workplace parties; Investigates complaints and provides dispute resolution assistance to the workplace parties if they are unable to reach agreement on aspects of a pay equity plan; Initiates monitoring of compliance of employers with the provisions of the Act; Refers orders made by Review Officers to the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal (PEHT) for enforcement, when required; Produces reports and makes recommendations to the Minister, as required. 3 Pay Equity Office

7 The Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal The Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal is the adjudicative arm of the Commission. It has the exclusive authority, under the Act to determine all questions of law or facts that arise. The actions and decisions of the Hearings Tribunal are final and conclusive for all purposes and create jurisprudence for administering the Act by the Pay Equity Office. How Pay Equity Is Achieved There are three methods to achieve pay equity under the Act. The job-to-job and proportional value comparison methods are used in all organizations where there are female and male jobs of comparable value. Public sector organizations with few or no male jobs are required to use the proxy method of comparison. The job-to-job comparison method directly compares female job classes with male job classes of equal or comparable value in the same organization. The proportional value comparison method indirectly compares unmatched female job classes (those that did not find direct comparisons) with male job classes in the same organization. The proxy comparison method allows public sector organizations to compare its female job classes with female job classes that have achieved pay equity in another broader public sector organization with similar services. For more information on these methods, publications (such as A Matter of Fairness ) may be ordered. 4 Pay Equity Office

8 Annual Financial Report All figures in $ thousand. Expenditure Category Variance $ (Difference Variance Explanation Final Budget Actual Expenditures Between Budget & Actual) Salary & Wages 2, , Surplus due to early retirements, extended illness and vacancy management. Employee Benefits Same as above. Operating Expenses (Lease costs inclusive) Surplus impact by decrease in Total 3, , Recoveries Nil Nil Nil travel expenditures, due to early retirements, extended illness and vacancy management. Revenues Generated From: Nil Amount 5 Pay Equity Office

9 Organizational Chart Organizational Structure Comm issioner (1) Secretary (1) Legal Counsel (1) Director Pay Equity Office (1) Executive Assistant (1) Administrative Assistant (1) M anager Pay Equity Programs (1) Program Specialist (1) Program Assistant (1) C ase M anagement Co-ordinator (1) Senior Review Officers (16) Client Services Representatives (3) Education Officers (2) Program Assistant (1) Total FTEs 35 Note: There were 32 FTEs at the end of Plus 3 additional temporary BPS funding 6 Pay Equity Office

10 The Pay Equity Office Commissioner s Office The Commissioner s Office includes the Commissioner, Legal Counsel and Secretary. The Commissioner is the Chief Administrative Officer and is responsible for setting the strategic direction of the office. She liaises with the government agency community through participation with the Circle of Chairs. She chairs the Executive Committee and the Advisory Council, liaises with the stakeholder community and other government Ministries, speaks on pay equity issues in public settings and represents the Commission at public gatherings. The Commissioner is also responsible for all media relations. Legal Counsel provides ongoing legal advice to the staff of PEO on pay equity and related matters, and represents the PEO before the Tribunal and other adjudicative bodies. Legal Counsel also speaks to groups about the Pay Equity Act and jurisprudence, serves as the Freedom of Information Co-ordinator and provides advice on policy development. Director s Office The Director s Office includes the Director of the Pay Equity Office, the Program Specialist, and administrative and support staff. The Director provides leadership in implementing the PEO Business Plan, the Annual Report and, oversees the operations of the Office including program delivery and administration. The Program Specialist monitors policy and program development within the Pay Equity Office, responds to policy questions that are directed to the PEO, and maintains contact with other jurisdictions in Canada and abroad to exchange pay equity research and expertise. Pay Equity Programs The Manager, Pay Equity Programs, reports to the Director and is responsible for affecting an appropriate balance among outreach, education and review, to make the best use of resources in fulfilling the PEO mandate. 7 Pay Equity Office

11 Education and Communication Reporting to the Manager of Pay Equity Programs, Education Officers provide employers, employees, bargaining agents and the general public with information on implementing and maintaining pay equity. They deliver free seminars throughout the province and produce all educational and support materials developed in the Commission. As well as hard copy, all publications are now available in CD format or by . This provides the public with extensive, easily transported information that does not require a large amount of physical storage space. The publications are aimed at encouraging workplace selfreliance and include manuals, pamphlets, fact sheets and guidelines. They are all designed to assist the workplace parties in all aspects of achieving and maintaining pay equity. The Education Officers maintain a web site, which houses all information about the workings of the Office, the pay equity process and supporting publications. Monthly updates are made to the site, and the learning process about pay equity is now supported with the use of interactive How to case studies. Employers and employees can also make use of an interactive Regression Analysis Program when doing a proportional value job comparison. Interactive Job Evaluation worksheets, quizzes, and an subscription service add to the user s support network. The website is an important teaching and communication tool and continues to be well used by stakeholders and other interested parties. Review Services Reporting to the Manager of Pay Equity Programs, Review Officers and the Case Management Co-ordinator is the enforcement arm of the Pay Equity Office. Review Officers investigate complaints of contravention of the act and assist the parties in attempting to settle the wide variety of issues, which arise during the implementation and achievement process of Pay Equity. This approach reflects the self-managed intent of the Act. When the parties are unable to resolve problems, Review Officers may provide first level adjudication by issuing clearly reasoned orders. Any party to an order may request a hearing before the Tribunal. Where an order is not implemented, a Review Officer may refer the matter to the Tribunal for enforcement. In addition to responding to these applications, the unit has a monitoring function to ensure that employers comply with the Act. This function is consistent with the Ministry s strategies to aim a strong enforcement program at helping the most vulnerable, and to shift from a solely complaintdriven enforcement program to one that includes planned investigations. Staff There were FTEs at the end of The Commissioner, Emanuela Heyninck is the only Order In Council appointee. 8 Pay Equity Office

12 Pay Equity Advisory Council Membership List Carrol Anne Sceviour Human Rights Director, Women s Issues Ontario Federation of Labour 15 Gervais Drive, Suite 202 Don Mills, ON M3C 1Y8 Sue Milling Staff Representative Research Department United Steelworkers of America 234 Eglinton Avenue East, 7 th Floor Toronto, ON M4P 1K7 Diane Sawatzky Senior Consultant Hay Management Consultants Ltd. 121 King Street West, Suite 700 Toronto, ON M5H 3X7 Hal Rolph, Partner McMillan, Binch 200 Bay Street, Suite 3800, Royal Bank Plaza South Tower, Toronto, ON M5J 2J7 Parbudyal Singh School of Administrative Studies York University 4700 Keele Street Toronto, ON M3J 1P3 Ann Wallace Representative of Equal Pay Coalition C/o OPSEU 100 Lesmill Road Toronto, ON M3B 3P8 Anne Didier-Floyd Equality Representative Canadian Union of Public Employees 305 Milner Avenue, Suite 901 Scarborough, ON M1B 3V4 9 Pay Equity Office

13 Bob Williams Ontario Public School Boards Association 439 University Avenue, 18 th Floor Toronto, ON M5G 1Y8 Leslie Dizgun Cooper, Blustein & Pearlstein Barristers & Solicitors 121 King Street West Suite 1100, Toronto, ON M5H 3T9 Lenore Alexander Executive Assistant O.S.S.T.F. 60 Mobile Drive Toronto, ON M4A 2P3 Ian Howcroft HR Policy Advisor Canadian Alliance of Manufacturers & Exporters 5995 Avebury Road, Suite 900 Mississauga, ON L5R 3P9 Penelope Smiley Director of Employee Relations Region of Waterloo 150 Frederick Street Kitchener, ON N2G 4J3 Remo Cigagna Provincial Pay Equity Consultants 3800 Steeles Avenue West Suite 400 Woodbridge, ON L4L 4G9 Cindy Wilkey Income Security Legal Aid Clinic 425 Adelaide Street West, 5 th Floor Toronto, ON M5V 3C1 Ruben Benmergui Breakthrough Human Resources Management 4167 Canyon Walk Drive Ottawa, ON K1V 1R3 10 Pay Equity Office

14 PEO Members Emanuela P. Heyninck Commissioner Senka Dukovich Legal Counsel Beverly. Rosser Director, Pay Equity Office Mary Chrisanthus Manager, Pay Equity Programs 11 Pay Equity Office

15 Key Achievements Fiscal Year Education and Outreach Education: The Executive and staff in the Education Department were successful in accessing the Innovation Fund for $80, in order to embark on developing an e-learning tool for our stakeholders using Macromedia Breeze. The tool uses training modules featuring voiceovers, media clips, notes to assist users in both understanding the process and developing a system for pay equity for use in their particular enterprise. Launch of this product is scheduled for the fall of The Education Department is moving from live seminars to teleconferencing in order to maximize audiences and to assist stakeholders in learning about their obligations without incurring undue cost. During the period of October 11, 2005 to March 31, 2006 the Education Officers have developed and delivered 17 new seminars by teleconference to 113 attendees with very positive reviews. In addition, these Officers provided our Pay Equity Basics, Proxy and Maintenance live seminars to 230 attendees (in Toronto only) during this period for a total savings of $7, The Education Department, with assistance from other staff, continues to develop tools and fictional case studies for employers, unions and committees to facilitate implementation and maintenance as well as enhance voluntary compliance of Pay Equity in worksites across Ontario. The Education Department maintains and upgrades the Pay Equity website as well as monitors the womensinfo.ca website for functionality and integrity of content. Outreach: To raise awareness of Pay Equity and increase our visibility, the Commissioner and the Executive, with the assistance of the Program Specialist, have: Developed linkages with the OFL to explore training of its members and to set up best practices training and roundtable Delivered speeches on pay equity issues to 5 regional clubs of BPW Ontario Attended as a guest speaker to the AGM of the Human Resources Professional Association of Ontario Expanded the Advisory Council to provide linkages to the university and Human Resource community. Developed linkages with HRPAO, BPW, Chambers of Commerce, Equity Advisory Group and Human Rights Lawyers Breakfast Club. Conducted regular and ongoing communications with MOL. Established contacts within other Ministries. Explored partnership opportunities with the Federal Government and other Provinces. 12 Pay Equity Office

16 Review Services Over the course of , the Commission has undertaken a review of its mandate and is moving to a more enforcement/compliance-oriented organization in order to better administer the provisions of the Act. As part of its review the following changes are being implemented: An intake process that is designed to gather all pertinent facts and provide information and education at the initial stages of the process, enabling Review Services to concentrate on their investigation and enforcement activities. A new Application for Review Services along with a guideline has been developed to assist parties in defining the nature of their application More accurately recording the nature of the services provided in order to capture the work of the Commission Revamping the monitoring programme so as to reach a higher number of non-compliant enterprises. Review Officer Training Manual has been developed. A process for setting compliance targets has begun Briefings are being conducted with staff regarding new and emerging issues/trends, including regular analysis of Orders, Notices of Decisions and best practices. Service Delivery Improvements In May 2005, the Pay Equity Office undertook the following initiatives to improve service delivery: Further upgrades to the case management system to Filemaker 8, which will allow enhanced document management and statistical gathering and analysis. Preliminary statistical analyses undertaken of past work Performance measures redefined to assist staff and management in understanding and communicating the work of the PEO Review of all practices and procedures being undertaken to adapt to new technologies. 13 Pay Equity Office

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18 PEO: Core Business Report PAY EQUITY OFFICE: CORE BUSINESS REPORT Measure Standard / Target 2004/2005 Achievement 2005/2006 Commitment 2005/2006 Elapsed time for first contact. Number of cases under investigation for more than 36 months. Compliance 1 with Orders issued by PEO 80% of first contact with parties to be made within 2 weeks of assignment to Review Officer; 20% within 4 weeks. No cases under investigation for more than 36 months. 100% of files closed result in compliance. 100% of first contact with parties made within 2 weeks of assignment to Review Officer. 96% cases closed within 36 months. Remaining 4% have orders or compliance plans in place. Some before PEHT for final adjudication. 87% of files closed result in compliance. Remaining 13% are being monitored and had have compliance Orders issued, which includes payment plans. A draft prosecution policy is under review. 80% of first contact with parties to be made within 2 weeks of assignment to Review Officer; 20% within 4 weeks. No cases under investigation for more than 36 months. 80% of files closed result compliance. YTD Achievements 100% of first contact with parties made within 2 weeks of file assignment to Review Officer. 82% cases closed within 36 months. Remaining 18% have Orders and compliance plans in place. Some before the PEHT for final adjudication 91% of files closed result in compliance. Remaining 9% have Orders and are before the Tribunal, some have compliance plans in place and have pending/ suspending status. 1 Compliance totals represent files closed by agreement of the parties, by compliance with Orders, and by referrals to Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal for enforcement of orders 14 Pay Equity Office

19 PEO Core Activity Reports Case Disposition PEO - Core Activity Reports Case Disposition PEO - Core Activity Reports Case Disposition Outstanding Cases on April 1, Cases Received Outstanding Cases on April 1, Cases Received Cases Handled Cases Handled Cases Closed Cases in Progress Pending/Suspending 439 Cases Closed Cases in Progress Decided 2 Decided 3 Ineligible for Proxy 4 Ineligible for Proxy 45 Monitor Complied 101Monitor Complied 20 Ordered 12 Ordered 12 Proxy Order 5 Proxy Order 316 Settled 175 Settled 18 Withdrawn 30 Withdrawn 1. Total cases of 831 includes 29 pending cases and 11 cases duplicated in case management due to systems error. 2. As of 2005/06, the new case management system more accurately delineated where the PEO s activity was concentrated. Statistics from previous years were incorporated into the settlement category. 3. Pending cases were not included in the cases in progress in

20 File Activity File Activity as of March % Open Monitoring Cases Open Complaint Cases 71% Total Number of Files:

21 Active Case Status Active Case Status Number of Cases: 831 Union 34% Non Union 66% 17

22 Educational Activities Educational Activities as of March 2006 Total Participants: 1594 Teleconferencing 7% On-Site Specialized Training 22% Live In-House Seminars 14% Speaking Engagements 57% Educational Activities as of March 2006 Total Seminars: 76 24% 29% 25% 22% Live In-House Seminars Teleconferencing On-Site Specialized Training Speaking Engagements 18