Pay equity means equal pay for work of equal value. It is a concept that bases wages on the value of work performed ... regardless of whether a man or a woman is doing the job.
In 1988, Nova Scotia passed the Pay Equity Act. This legislation set out a process and schedule for achieving pay equity in the public sector. The legislation covers the provincial civil service, crown corporations, hospitals, school boards, universities, municipalities and municipal enterprises. The Pay Equity Commission was responsible for administrating the Pay Equity Act. In addition to monitoring the pay equity process, the Commission had the power to resolve disputes when employers and employees could not agree, conduct research, maintain statistics, and advise the Minister of Labour on matters relating to pay equity.
Wage adjustments required to achieve pay equity were completed in 1996 for all eligible public sector employees. As the Pay Equity Commission's work was completed, no further appointments were made after 1999.
Barb Jones Gordon
Executive Director, Labour Services Branch
5151 Terminal Road, 6th floor
Halifax, Nova Scotia B3J 2T8
Tel: (902) 424-8466
Fax: (902) 424-0575