Canada Pay Equity Act: laws and regulations supporting your request for a Fair Pay Increase

The federal government has put in place mechanisms to help reduce the gender wage gap in workplaces across Canada. One of these proactive mechanisms is the Pay Equity Act and Regulations. Join members of the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner to learn about the Act, with a focus on employer obligations and employee rights.

Bios

Eric Diotte, Director and Head of Compliance, Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner, Canadian Human Rights Commission

Eric started his career in the public service in 2006 at the Office for Disability Issues (ODI). He was the main statistician who worked on the development of the Registered Disability Saving Plan legislation. He was also responsible for producing and publishing the annual Federal Disability Report and research focused on a wide range of disability-related topics such as pay gaps, housing needs, transportation, employment, discouraged workers, and caregiving. Eric joined the Canadian Human Rights Commission in 2010 as a senior statistician and researcher. He was responsible for the development of a framework to measure equality rights in Canada and published reports on the four protected groups under the Employment Equity Act: Women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous people and racialized people. His research on mental health continued resulting in two reports on mood disorders and substance use disorders. In 2018, Eric became the Director of Program Integrity and Employment Equity Division. He was responsible for developing a reporting tool for the Commission as well as managing the corporate and strategic planning cycle. Eric was responsible in developing in implanting the new employment equity horizontal audit model across the federal jurisdiction. In 2020, Eric Became the Director of Proactive Compliance within the Accessibility Unit of the Commission. Since 2021, he is now the Director and Head of Compliance of the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner. Eric has a Bachelor degree in Sociology and a Masters in Social Work with a specialization in public health. Eric also did PhD studies in Epidemiology and Bio-statistics.

Amanda Popowicz-Soni, A/Manager – Policy, Research and Engagement Team, Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner, Canadian Human Rights Commission

Amanda joined the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner in 2020 and has been working on advancing pay equity in federally regulated workplace since then. Prior, she worked at the Labour Program in various roles, including doing research and crafting policy concerning workplace violence and harassment. Her focus has always been on matters pertaining to gender equality. She was a joint lead during her time at the Labour Program’s Innovation Unit for the 2019 Symposium on Women in the Workplace. She also worked at the Gender Based Analysis Centre of Expertise and coordinated ESDCs first submission on Gender Budgeting. Amanda has a Bachelor Degree in Political Science and Human Rights and a Master’s in Legal Studies. She also did PhD studies in Sociology with a focus on reproductive rights.