Today, women make up the majority of the Canadian population and of the paid workforce. Yet women are disproportionately represented in the low-wage, unstable and part-time categories of employment, and are thus least likely to have a workplace pension plan. Women working full-time on average earn only 72 per cent of what men working full-time earn.
The need to fix Canada’s pension system is now high on the agenda, but not all of the proposed solutions will help women, who are more likely to face poverty in retirement.
To level the field for women workers, CUPE is calling for measures to raise women’s wages, such as pay equity legislation; an increased minimum wage; ensuring more access to full-time and permanent jobs; and employment equity legislation to ensure women have access to a wider range of careers.