By Brenda Clark, CHRE
HR professionals are uniquely positioned to help ensure pay equity between men and women because they can spot potential biases and can educate managers about the issue and advise effective solutions, according to Closing the Gender Wage Gap: A Review and Recommendations by the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA).
And regulated HR professionals – CHRPs, CHRLs and CHREs – have a duty to protect the public by helping close the wage gap under their professional obligations to HRPA, the regulator of the HR profession in Ontario.
Authored by Scott Allinson, HRPA’s vice president of public affairs, the report examined existing pay equity research, as well as the results of a survey of 912 HRPA members, to provide a series of recommendations for both government and business on ending a problem that is costing the Canadian economy $168 billion per year in lost income.
The report looks at factors (often the result of unconscious biases) associated with the gender wage gap at various stages of a woman’s life, from childhood education to the workplace. They include education and choosing a career path; negotiating; getting hired; wage transparency; performance evaluations; and workplace flexibility.
For example, in early life, many young women may segregate themselves from higher paid careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields because of a “stereotype threat” in math and science, making them less likely to express interest in these fields for fear of being judged by negative stereotypes. It’s also a problem that follows women that do pursue STEM careers, with studies showing male faculty can have an unconscious bias that men are more competent and hirable than women.
In the workplace, one study examined in the report looked at gender differences when evaluating job applications and found negative gender biases at play when interviewers rated women and men with identical qualifications – especially in male-dominated occupations.
And regarding workplace flexibility and balancing work and child or elder care (which is still primarily done by women), other research has shown that women with children may be penalized compared to those without. Biases may cause mothers to be seen as less competent, and offered lower starting salaries.
HR’s role in closing the gap
HR professionals can play an important role in helping to reduce the gender wage gap because they are uniquely positioned to be able to spot the influence of potential stereotypes and biases in others, and also educate managers and supervisors about the issue and effective solutions – but only if they are equipped with the proper resources.
When asked whether Ontario’s online gender wage gap resources were sufficient, 66 per cent of HRPA survey respondents said that a combination of improved labour market research, improved career guidance and promotion of sectors targeted towards young women were the best steps that could be taken to encourage more women to pursue employment in jobs that tend to be male-dominated.
The report recommends government expand its training on pay equity issues and solutions – similar to the mandatory Supervisor Awareness Training that the Ministry of Labour requires for the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Sixty-eight per cent of survey respondents felt government should develop a similar online module for managers that focuses on the issues of cultural sensitivity, the gender wage gap and pay equity to help raise awareness of these issues.
Other ways HR professionals could help close the wage gap include:
- Changing hiring practices to include group evaluations of job applicants (instead of just one manager making the decision)
- Reviewing language used in job postings and evaluations to ensure gender neutrality
- Educating management on the gender gap issue and techniques to avoid it
- Reminding managers annually about the issue before employee evaluations occur
Creating policies and procedures to help shrink the gap
The gender wage gap in Ontario remains a serious issue – most recent data from Statistics Canada estimates the gap to be anywhere between 12 per cent to 31.5 per cent. While “equal pay for work of equal value” is enshrined in law under Ontario’s Pay Equity Act, clearly a gap remains. As regulated HR professionals, CHRPs, CHRLs and CHREs have a duty to protect the public and work to correct these imbalances by staying current on pay equity techniques and approaches and helping their organizations implement effective solutions.
If HR professionals are empowered to address this critical issue, they are well suited to help bring about positive change.
Brenda Clark, CHRE is chair of the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA).