Pay equity does not cover 65 to 70 per cent of women who work in New Brunswick according to the Coalition for Pay Equity.
Chair Vallie Stearns-Anderson is expressing frustration, saying some progress has been made but it’s been slow and there’s still a long way to go. She’s calling for the 2009 Pay Equity Act to be fully implemented.
Stearns-Anderson claims the lack of pay equity is bad for the provincial economy because women earning low wages don’t have any spending power to fuel economic growth. She also argues higher wages for working women would result in higher tax revenue for the province.
In its Family Plan to alleviate poverty, the provincial government says it recognises the importance of pay equity. In the past year, education support staff and court stenographers have been given pay equity adjustments.
