Legislation and target groups

There are two levels of legislation covering equity: a federal and a provincial one. These laws and their related reporting requirements allow the governing bodies to ensure equal access to employment and to monitor the situation experienced by certain groups.

Provincial legislation

• As of April 1, 2001, the province of Quebec implemented a new Employment Equity legislation.
• Compliance and monitoring fall under the jurisdiction of La Commission des Droits de la Personne et des Droits de la Jeunesse (CDPDJ).
• It applies to public bodies that employ 100 or more persons such as colleges, universities, school boards, etc.
• In this initial phase, the employers are to provide the Commission with numbers of persons in the various positions within the targeted groups. 

Federal legislation

• The Federal Contractors Program (FCP) applies to provincially regulated employers with a workforce of 100 or more employees. It was initiated by a Cabinet decision in 1986.
• Specifically, FCP applies to contractors that receive federal government contracts of $200,000 or more.
• The obligation is to conduct a workforce analysis to identify any under-representation for the four designated groups compared to the total population.
• Data on the hiring, promotions and terminations must also be provided and analyzed.

Target groups