How to comply with B.C.'s Pay Transparency Act

“BC’s new Pay Transparency Act provides a foundation or a jumping off point for businesses that have a strong interest in pursuing further transparency and a more equitable workplace,” says Victoria Merritt, associate at Dentons Canada LLP in Vancouver.

Merritt will be speaking alongside Eleni Kassaris, partner at Dentons, at the upcoming virtual event Employment Law Masterclass Vancouver, which will be held on Feb. 22, 2024. Merritt’s session is titled ‘Diversity, equity & inclusion in the workplace: Implications of BC’s new Pay Transparency Act.’

At the event, Merritt and Kassaris will discuss BC’s new Act – including the requirements, how employers can meet those obligations and what reporting obligations will look like.

“The obligation of equal pay for equal work is already something that has existed in BC for a long time. I think this legislation brought it to the front of people's minds but it's not actually a new obligation. So that's where I think the overlap between some of the other legislation in BC will come into place, particularly the Human Rights Code,” says Merritt.

Employer requirements around pay transparency

Requirements under the Act can be split into three categories: pay transparency, job posting requirements and pay transparency reports.

The first category outlines some of the protections now in place for employees in terms of being able to ask questions about pay, share their pay with other employees or job applicants and ask questions about the pay transparency reports employers will have to issue.

The second category outlines requirements for job postings for example the inclusion of salary ranges, and the third category imposes pay transparency reporting requirements.

“Job posting requirements is that category that has a lot of questions surrounding it because the requirements are not as detailed. So, we’ll go through details on what types of job postings are captured, if there are limits on the range of pay and what happens if employers want to pay somebody more or less than the posted range based on their qualifications,” says Merritt about her session at the Employment Law Masterclass Vancouver.

However, there isn’t much of a system when it comes to actually enforcing the act, but Merritt anticipates there will be one, so this something employers should get ahead of, she says.

“The obligations are not actually that onerous, and there's certainly strategies where employers can balance some of the other concerns around pay with meeting the requirements. Then, where there is a desire or culture where there's a push for full transparency within an organization, I think that's where it's a jumping off point. But in terms of maintaining kind of status quo, it’s just a matter of meeting those requirements,” Merritt says.

Employer feedback on pay transparency

Employees can currently make complaints under the Human Rights Code in relation to not receiving equal pay for equal work, but those are infrequent. This raises the question of: ‘Is this going to cause more complaints for HR to hear, especially with the Act providing additional protection around talking about pay?’” Merritt says.

However, with the legislation being in the early stages of its rollout, one thing Merritt highlights for HR professionals is the flexibility and room for providing feedback on the Act.

“To the extent employers have concerns or feedback, it’s a great time for them to share those proactively,” she says. “My intent for this discussion is for HR professionals to leave feeling equipped to help their companies comply with the Pay Transparency Act and understand what the obligations are and how to meet them?”