Equality Rights and Pay Equity: Déjá Vu in the Supreme Court of Canada

37 Pages Posted: 29 Dec 2018

See all articles by Jonnette Watson Hamilton

Jonnette Watson Hamilton

University of Calgary - Faculty of Law

Jennifer Koshan

University of Calgary

Date Written: December 11, 2018

Abstract

This comment analyzes the Supreme Court of Canada’s most recent decisions under the equality guarantee in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Quebec (Attorney General) v. Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux and Centrale des syndicats du Québec v. Quebec (Attorney General) are companion pay equity decisions examining claims of sex discrimination under section 15(1) of the Charter and the Quebec government’s attempt to defend those claims under section 15(2) and section 1. The Court is badly split in its analysis and the authors discuss the major points of disagreement, as well as the majority’s clarification of the proper approach to sections 15(1) and (2). They also explore the implications of the cases for pay equity laws in Canada and for the future of equality rights claims.

Keywords: Pay Equity, Equality Rights, Section 15 Charter Rights

JEL Classification: K10, K30

Suggested Citation

Hamilton, Jonnette Watson and Koshan, Jennifer, Equality Rights and Pay Equity: Déjá Vu in the Supreme Court of Canada (December 11, 2018). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3300351 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3300351

Jonnette Watson Hamilton (Contact Author)

University of Calgary - Faculty of Law ( email )

Murray Fraser Hall
2500 University Dr. N.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4
Canada

Jennifer Koshan

University of Calgary ( email )

Murray Fraser Hall
2500 University Drive NW
Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4
Canada

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