Pay equity urged for private sector

New Brunswick women's groups are demanding the Liberal government force private-sector companies to adhere to pay equity rules.

The organizations say a new Pay Equity Act that took effectThursday is a step forward for female workers in the public sector.

The law means there will be a re-evaluation of pay among female-dominated public-sector jobs, suchas cleaners and nurses.

The province will then raise any salaries that are lower than thosepaid for the same value of work in male-dominated fields.

Johanne Perron, the executive director of the New Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equity, said the provincial government is on the right track with its new legislation, but it must go further and force the private sector to do the same.

"The government doesn't have as much influence on them without legislation, as far as we can see," Perron said.

Voluntary deadline up in June

In 2005, the provincial government gave the private sector five years to introduce pay equity on a voluntary basis, a deadline thatexpires inJune.

Perron said she's seen little movement to reduce the wage gap between men and women in the last five years.

"That's why we feel legislation has to be adopted for that sector as well, because pay equity being a human right, it should apply to every New Brunswicker," she said.

Rosella Melanson, the executive director of the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women, said the private sector has done nothing on its own over those five years.

Only through legislation will pay equity become a reality in New Brunswick, according to Melanson.

"The reason we have minimum wages is because if we didn't have minimum wage, people would be paid less than minimum wage. So we think it would be the same regarding pay equity," Melanson said.

Over the past five years the government has been monitoring how many private sector companies have followed the public service's pay equity standards. Melanson and Perron want to see those findings made public beforeSeptember's provincial election.

In November, Perron's coalition said it wanted private-sector pay equity to become an election issue.

At the time, the coalition gave both the Liberal government and the Opposition Progressive Conservatives failing grades for their positions on private-sector pay equity. The Green Party received a B and the New Democratic Party received an A-plus.