Wage gap for women no surprise to students
Students at Trent University weren’t surprised to hear that women earned about 12 cents less on the dollar than men last year.
On average, for every dollar a man earned in 2017, a woman earned about 88 cents.
“It’s always been in the back of my mind that there’s a large wage gap.… I don’t think it’s surprising,” said Madeline Porter, a graduate student at Trent.
That figure was shared by Status of Women Minister and Peterborough-Kawartha MP Maryam Monsef during conversation with Trent students Wednesday.
Monsef met with students studying politics and gender studies, along with some community members, to talk about Bill C-86.
The small group gathered at in Kerr House at Catharine Parr Traill College.
Bill C-86 includes a series of measures meant to grow the economy and address inequalities, Monsef said.
One of the provisions in the bill is the transition of the Status of Women Canada agency into a full-fledged federal department called Women and Gender Equal-
ity (WAGE).
The agency was established by a six-person team 42 years ago. It’s now on its way to becoming a department that will address gender inequality, for example.
As for the discrepancy in wages between men and women, and the government’s desire to rectify it, Porter said it’s important to consider the motivation for the legislation.
“Only as people are realizing there’s a benefit to capital and to the accumulation of capital that it’s being put forward to cabinet,” Porter said.
Meanwhile, student Brendan Becker was pleased to hear the government is making steps to address the issue.
“I think it’s good that they’re trying to do something about it,” Becker said, adding he wasn’t surprised to hear of the wage differential.
Becker is in his first year of political studies but decided to sit in on Monsef’s discussion because he feels it’s important to be involved in the political process.
“To be here to actually speak to (a minister) and hear what they have to say and give input for your ideas, is a good thing. It’s important,” he said.
Monsef also touched on the federal government’s upcoming parental sharing benefit.
Canadians will be entitled to an additional five weeks of Employment Insurance parental benefits when parents agree to share them to take time off work. It’ll be available to two-parent families and will be implemented in March.
The goal is to see parents equally share the responsibility of raising childing to boost gender equality in the workplace. That means, if a woman wants to head back to work earlier than her year off, she can.
“It’s valuing women and the work of women,” Monsef said.
The MP said Canada has come a long way to advance gender equality over the past few decades, thanks to leaders and advocates, and it’s important to recognize their efforts.
Yet she also realizes, Canada still has a way to go.
“The work is, by no means, complete,” Monsef said.