Employment Equity

Act: Employment Equity Act, S.C. 1995, c. 44
Regulation: Employment Equity Regulations, SOR/96-470

To Whom Does This Apply?

The Employment Equity Act and Regulations apply to the following groups:

• Federally regulated employers with 100 or more employees, including industries such as:
  • banking;
  • communications; and
  • international and interprovincial transportation.

• Provincially regulated employers with 100 or more employees who have been awarded a federal government contract or standing offer valued at $ 200 000 or more:
  • some private sector employers and Crown Corporations;
  • federal departments, agencies and commissions; and
  • the Canadian Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as may be specified by order of the Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Treasury Board.

Summary

The Employment Equity Act requires employers to identify and eliminate barriers to the employment of women, members of visible minorities, persons with disabilities and Aboriginal peoples. As well, employers must move towards a representative workforce. By law, they are required to develop and implement an employment equity plan, in consultation and collaboration with employee representatives.

If employers under the Legislated Employment Equity Program fail to file an annual report with HRSDC, they may face a monetary penalty. If employers under the Federal Contractors Program do not satisfy the program requirements, they may loose the right to bid on government contracts or standing offers valued at $25 000 or more.

The Act provides for two enforcement procedures under the Legislated Employment Equity Program:

• the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) with the mandate to conduct on-site compliance reviews in order to monitor compliance; and
• the Employment Equity Review Tribunal which can conduct hearings at the request of either the CHRC or the employer.

Compliance with the Federal Contractors Program requirements is verified by Labour Program Workplace Equity Officers through compliance reviews.

The Employment Equity Regulations provide clarity in the following areas:

• collection of workforce information - paragraph 9(1)(a) of the Act;
• workforce analysis - paragraph 9(1)(a) of the Act;
• employment systems review - paragraph 9(1)(b) of the Act;
• employers' reporting requirements - section 18 of the Act.

Guidelines to assist employers in meeting their obligations under the Act are available on the "Workplace Equity: General Information" Web page of the HRSDC's Web site.

DISCLAIMER
Information contained in this section is of a general nature only and is not intended to constitute advice for any specific fact situation. For particular questions, the users are invited to contact their lawyer. For additional information, see contact(s) listed below.

New Brunswick Contact(s):
Workplace Equity Regional Operations
Human Resources and Social Development Canada
West Tower, 4th floor
200 René-Lévesque Boulevard West
Montréal, Quebec  H2Z 1X4
Telephone: 514-982-2553
Fax: 514-283-5748
Toll-free (information): 1-877-592-7653
E-mail: http://www19.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/workplace_equity/contact_form.shtml
Web site: http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/home.shtml

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National Contact(s):
National Headquarters
Labour Program
Human Resources and Social Development Canada
10th Floor
165 Hôtel de Ville Street
Gatineau, Quebec  K1A 0J2
Telephone: 819-953-7536
Fax: 819-953-8768
E-mail: http://www19.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/workplace_equity/contact_form.shtml
Web site: http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/home.shtml