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Try answering these ten questions about women at work in the union, and then check out our answer sheet.

1. In 1976, 37% of women whose youngest child was aged three to five were in the paid labour force. By 2004, what had this increased to?

  1. a. 70%
  2. b. 42%
  3. c. 56%


2. The number of women in unions has been rising over the years. In 1966, only 16% of Canadian women workers were unionized. What percentage of women is unionized today (2004)?

  1. a. 27%
  2. b. 23%
  3. c. 32%


3. What was the percentage of unionized male workers in 2004?

  1. a. 32%
  2. b. 28%
  3. c. 40%


4. In 2004, women accounted for what proportion of part-time workers in Canada?

  1. a. one-half
  2. b. two-thirds
  3. c. 7 out of every ten


5. The average earnings of women working full-time, full-year in 2003 compared to men working full-time/full-year was:

  1. a. 71%
  2. b. 78%
  3. c. 87%


6. Women are more likely to miss work because of family responsibilities. In the mid-1980s, women lost on average 4 days of work per year to attend to family. What was the average number of days of missed work because of family commitments in 2004?

  1. a. 6
  2. b. 3
  3. c. 10


7. In 2004, 11% of all Canadians lived below the LICO – Low Income Cut off Line. What percentage of female lone-parent families lived below the LICO or poverty line in that same year?

  1. a. 38%
  2. b. 24%
  3. c. 15%


8. Belonging to a union raised the wages of women of colour in 1999 by:

  1. a. 21.2%
  2. b. 27.3%
  3. c. 34.3%


9. Today, almost two-thirds of the 550,000 CUPE members are women. What percentage of CUPE members were women in 1968?

  1. a. 33%
  2. b. 52%
  3. c. 47%


10. Forty-nine per cent (49%) of CUPE locals with less than 100 members have a woman president. What percentage of CUPE locals of 1,000 or more members have a woman president?

  1. a. 42%
  2. b. 36%
  3. c. 27%


Done? Check out our answer sheet and find out how you did.