Ontario's Pay Equity Commissioner Kadie Ward commemorates International Women's Day

TORONTO,?March 7, 2022?/CNW/ -?Kadie Ward, Commissioner and CAO of?Ontario's?Pay Equity Commission issues a statement to commemorate International Women's Day:

"This year, on International Women's Day (March 8), I join people all over the world in celebrating the achievements of women everywhere while acknowledging the barriers that still need to be dismantled. As we enter the third year of the pandemic, we are reminded of the devastating regression in women's labour market participation and exacerbation of the gender wage gap. In?April 2020, the pandemic knocked Canadian women's participation in the labour force down to?55%, the lowest it had been in over 30 years. While there have been recent indicators of recovery,?growth in employment was slower for women than it was for men and women are experiencing greater unemployment than men. But this is "moment in time" data with the story unfolding in real time.

The pandemic revealed the realities of working women and how they disproportionately bore the brunt of unpaid, domestic work as many women chose or were forced to leave the labour market with rolling lockdowns and closures of childcare centres and schools.?It also revealed how women were over-represented in sectors that were both low-paid and at an increased risk of infection. But we at?Ontario's?Pay Equity Office?remain optimistic. Since the pandemic has forced us to look at the harsh realities of working women, it has also presented us with an opportunity to correct course. We have the necessary tools and resources to re-build an economy and a labour market that are more inclusive and diverse than the ones that came before.

Re-building an economy that includes women turns out to be immensely beneficial. McKinsey's?Global Institute?report?found that narrowing the gender wage gap could add between?$12?and?$28 trillion?to the annual global GDP. In?another report, McKinsey estimated that, by 2026,?Canada?could add?$150 billion?to its annual GDP by supporting women's participation in the workforce. In?Ontario, closing the gender wage gap could bring?$18 billion?of extra income per year for all working women,?$2.6 billion?in increased personal and sales tax revenue to support social and economic programs, and a?$103?million?decrease in government spending on social assistance, tax credits, and child benefits.

International Women's Day not only presents an opportunity for us to celebrate women, it also reminds of the need to address systemic inequalities that persist in the world and explore potential solutions. It is a call to action – a moment to celebrate what has been achieved and to acknowledge what remains to be done. It is a call to all actors in the labour and economic policy spheres to address wage inequities seriously and design an equitable and inclusive global economic recovery."

Visit?https://www.payequity.gov.on.ca?and?https://www.levelthepayingfield.ca?for more information.