In the Canadian province of Ontario, the Pay Equity Act required that companies with 100 or more employees as of January 1, 1988 post a pay equity plan between 1990-1994, depending on the size and type of employer the methodology utilized. All private sector employers that started business after January 1, 1988, must achieve pay equity on the day they hire their tenth employee.
Ontario Gender Pay Gap Reporting: What You Need to Know
LAST MODIFIED: January 10, 2025
At a glance
Who:
10+ employees
What:
Pay Gap Report
When:
Rolling
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2025 gender pay gap reporting requirements in Ontario
When is Ontario’s gender pay gap report due?
The Ontario law is unique because of pay gap reporting requirements that only apply to certain companies and governmental entities that existed on January 1, 1988. These are often called “Part II” employers.
- Pay reports for “Part II” employers: The Ontario law required that companies with 100 or more employees as of January 1, 1988, smaller employers that employed 10-99 employees on January 1, 1988 who voluntarily chose to post a pay equity plan, and all public-sector (governmental) employers with any employees as of January 1, 1988 or who came into existence by July 1, 1993 to prepare and post a pay equity plans. These employers are often referred to as “Part II” employers, as they were subject to the “Part II” requirements in the regulations. The Part II employers had to post pay reports between 1990-1994. The deadline depended on whether you were a public employer or a company and the employee headcount. The prior deadlines are outlined in this guidance document.
- Pay reports for “Part I” employers: Employers who were not required to prepare and post a pay equity plan from 1990-1994, either because they did not have operations in Ontario as of January 1, 1988 or because they were a company with fewer than 100 employees that was not required to or chose not to create a pay equity plan are not required to post a pay equity plan. However, these employers must “immediately” come into compliance with the “Part I” requirements after crossing the 10 employee threshold.
- Amended reports: If a Part II employer has posted and implemented a pay equity plan in accordance with the Pay Equity Act, they do not need to negotiate an amended plan or re-post plans to maintain pay equity. That said, all employers subject to the Act ( both Part I and Part II employers) are required to maintain pay equity for the employees in female-dominated job classes, ensure that workplace changes do not introduce pay gaps, review pay gaps, and make adjustments. The Act allows employers to decide when to conduct subsequent reviews. The Act does not stipulate specific procedures or schedules to follow for maintaining pay equity. Employers are instead instructed to review job classes for changes in job rate, job value, duties and responsibilities as positions are added or eliminated.
Syndio provides Global Pay Reports customers with detailed guidance on reporting deadlines and requirements.
Who needs to report on pay gaps in Ontario?
Different parts of the Pay Equity Act in Ontario, Canada have different thresholds for private employers.
- Companies that had fewer than 10+ employees as of January 1, 1988 are required to comply with the less onerous “Part I” requirements, which require establishing a pay equity plan and closing pay gaps, but not posting that plan.
- Companies that had 100+ employees on January 1, 1988 were required to comply with the more onerous “Part II” requirements, which included preparing a pay equity plan, posting this plan, and closing pay gaps. For companies with 10-99 employees as of January 1, 1988, Part II was voluntary.
What pay gap metrics do I need to report in Ontario?
The law in Canada’s Ontario province requires that all covered employers — both those covered by Part I of the law and those covered by both Parts I and II — establish a pay equity plan. To do so, employers must:
- Identify the different job classes made up of positions in their workplace and determine the value of the work performed;
- Determine whether each job class is predominantly male, predominantly female or gender neutral;
- Calculate the compensation of each predominantly female or male job class;
- Compare the compensation between predominantly female and male job classes doing work of equal or comparable value;
- Adjust the wages of underpaid female job classes.
Employers that employed 100+ employees (or “Part II” employers) must also remediate any pay inequities by increasing the compensation of employees in jobs that are not receiving equal pay for work of equal value and post plan activities. These Part II employers must:
- Spend a minimum of 1% of the previous year’s payroll for pay equity adjustments until pay equity is achieved;
- Prepare and post the report;
- Negotiate all aspects of the pay equity plan with their existing unions in establishments with bargaining agents, and follow the process for accessing the Commission to resolve impasses in the negotiation process prior to the deemed approval of pay equity plans.
Where do I need to share the pay gap report in Ontario?
Part I employers are not required to post or submit the pay gap report. However, the report is subject to review by Review Officers from Ontario’s Pay Equity Office.
Syndio’s Global Pay Reports help you centralize and automate reporting for 48 jurisdictions across 43 countries. Our software makes reporting easy, fast, and accurate so you can report with confidence, even as requirements change. And our services team can answer all your detailed questions — we’re experts so you don’t have to be.
Request a demo of Syndio's Global Pay Reports software.
Employers in Ontario and the EU Pay Transparency Directive
The most significant piece of pay equity, pay transparency, and pay reporting legislation was recently adopted in the European Union: the EU Pay Transparency Directive.
While this Directive will not directly impact employees in Ontario, employers headquartered in Ontario will be impacted if they have employees in any EU Member State. Many of the Directive’s pay equity and pay transparency obligations will apply to employers with any employees in the EU. Some obligations, like pay gap reporting, will apply to employers with more employees in the EU.
There’s also a growing trend of countries learning from and adopting elements of pay gap reporting laws from around the world so the EU Pay Transparency Directive may be a roadmap for future developments in Canada.
Syndio provides a comprehensive solution for the EU Pay Transparency Directive with everything you need to plan, prepare, and comply. Learn more ->
How Syndio helps with global pay equity, pay reporting, and pay transparency
Syndio provides the technology and expert partnership you need to comply with the growing pay equity, pay reporting, and pay transparency demands around the globe.
- Report your pay data and pay gaps — with Syndio’s Global Pay Reports. Our software supports fast, easy, and accurate compliance with pay reporting in 48 jurisdictions across 43 countries, including Ontario and for the EU Pay Transparency Directive. Syndio also supports the EU’s CSRD reporting.
- Identify, explain, and fix pay gaps — with Syndio’s PayEQ and OppEQ. Our suite of solutions give you the tools and legally compliant methodologies to analyze, explain, and make progress to close pay and career advancement gaps.
- Keep your pay gaps closed — with Syndio’s Pay Finder. On-demand pay recommendations help managers and recruiters make equitable, explainable pay decisions that don’t exacerbate pay gaps.
- Create a customized action plan — with Syndio’s EU Readiness Strategy Package. Syndio’s team of experts help you build a custom strategy and support project management. This includes a change management strategy session for senior leaders, communications strategy session on pay gap and Right to Information, and ongoing support on best practices and trends.
- Craft tailored communications strategies — with Syndio’s Communications Package. Leverage best practices to build a communications plan that builds your brand while aligning to your values and objectives.
Syndio takes data privacy and security seriously. Syndio is GDPR compliant, SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 2022 certified, and has completed the Cloud Security Alliance CAIQv.4.02 security self-assessment for STAR Level One. Learn more in our Trust Center under “Security Reports.”
The most asked questions about Ontario's gender pay gap reporting
Syndio helps customers all over the world with their global pay reporting needs. Here are some common questions we get about the reporting requirements under Ontario's pay gap law.
The information provided on this resource does not and is not intended to be legal advice. All information, content, and materials are provided for general informational purposes only. The links to third-party or government websites are offered for the convenience of the reader; Syndio is not responsible for the contents on linked pages.
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