MEDIA RELEASE: Endorsement of Newfoundland and Labrador Needs an Equality Reset report by the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour on Bill 3
April 12, 2023
St. John’s, NL - The Workers’ Action Network of Newfoundland and Labrador (hereafter “Workers’ Action Network”) endorses the new report by the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour (hereafter “Federation of Labour”), ‘Newfoundland and Labrador Needs an Equality Reset’, the Federation of Labour’s call to redesign Bill 3, and its proposed amendments to Bill 3.
“Bill 3 as it stands right now needs to be completely redesigned to ensure that the rights of all women in our workforce are prioritized, and that women in low-wage and precarious jobs are not left behind any more than we already are,” said Sara Moriarity, Virtual Organizer. “This very much includes women who are overrepresented in unstable jobs with low pay: Indigenous women, Black women, racialized women, migrant women, disabled women, trans women, and other marginalized genders including non-binary people.”
The Workers’ Action Network represents the more than 68,000 low wage workers Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in the workforce. The Newfoundland and Labrador Statistics agency reports that 60 percent of workers who made less than $20 an hour in 2022 were women. This indicates that women are vastly over-represented in the lowest-paid jobs in our province. These jobs are also the most unsafe and precarious in nature.
Bill 3, as it stands, leaves out the vast majority of workers in these jobs:
Bill 3 does not does not recognize that Indigenous women, Black women, racialized women, migrant women, disabled women and members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community face worse wage discrimination than cisgendered white women who do not live with disabilities.
Bill 3 does not protect contract workers at all, which goes against provisions for contract workers in the Human Rights Act.
The pay equity component of Bill 3 only applies to women in the public sector – and to workplaces with at least 10 employees. A majority of women work in the private sector, and many work for small businesses with less than 10 employees – meaning this Bill does virtually nothing for most of our province workers – especially those in low-wage and precarious employment.
Bill 3 does not acknowledge pay equity and pay transparency as fundamental human rights, as they are deemed to be in the Human Rights Act. Pay equity and pay transparency aren’t new-found privileges, they are basic human rights that all workers are entitled to.
This bill does not include any support for women who do not have a union to enforce their rights to pay equity and pay transparency.
The Workers’ Action Network says that one of the most alarming aspects of Bill 3, as it stands, is it does not include any proactive enforcement measures.
“Women cannot be left to rely on their employer’s willingness to cooperate with the law,” said Moriarity. “We see workers having their basic rights compromised on a daily basis because the Labour Standards Division does not proactively enforce the Labour Standards Act. Most workers are understandably afraid of losing their jobs when reporting significant infringements on their rights, such as wage theft.
The Workers’ Action Network contends that the provincial government has a responsibility to proactively enforce Bill 3 with an independent and adequately staffed oversight agency, as it should be doing with the Labour Standards Division.
“Pay equity and transparency aren’t big topics of conversation among low-wage and precarious workers right now,” said Moriarity. “Most women and non-binary people in low-wage work have not seen the government engage in any meaningful efforts to consult with and include them when tabling legislation that directly impacts them – to put their basic human rights on equal footing with the interests of employers.”
The Workers Action Network acknowledges that the vast majority of workers of all genders in these jobs are living in poverty, because many low-wage and precarious jobs have been stereotyped as “women’s work” and undervalued by society. Redesigning Bill 3 according to the Federation of Labour’s report is a good first step to ensure women’s fundamental human rights to pay equity and pay transparency are prioritized, and that the staggering 66 percent wage gap between men and women will begin to close.
The Workers’ Action Network stands with the Federation of Labour, the St. John’s Status of Women Council, the Decent Work and Health Network, workers, and other organizations in collective call for the government to redesign Bill 3, put an end to gendered wage discrimination in the workplace, and play a proactive role in lifting all women, gender diverse, and other marginalized workers in the workforce out of poverty.
Media Contact
Sara Moriarity
Virtual Organizer
contact@workersactionnl.ca
(709) 771-0024