ACFO files pay equity claim on behalf of public service Financial Officers

Pay Equity

Mar 27, 2009

After an extensive process of research and evaluation, ACFO filed a pay equity claim on behalf of public service Financial Officers on International Women’s Day, March 8.

It is our hope that the filing, which cites inequitable treatment of those levels within the group that are currently female dominated, will finally bring about long overdue classification reforms that will result in better treatment of the entire FI Community.

The FI Community has long been treated as a female-dominated group by the employer. By categorizing the Financial Management (FI) Group as part of the primarily female-dominated Program and Administrative Services group for so many years, Financial Officers were subject to an inadequate classification and pay structure that did not reflect the professional and specialized nature of the field. Even as the role of the Financial Officer evolved, the classification and pay structures did not.

We are proceeding in the sincere hope that this claim will, ultimately, right an historic wrong. The decision to file was not made lightly but we have exhausted other options. Promises have been made but no action has occurred; the classification system remains fundamentally flawed.

As many of you know, the government recently introduced changes to the pay equity regime for federal public servants. Our complaint was made in advance of the changes coming into force and it is our understanding, based on the wording of the legislation, that we will fall under the old system. As such, our complaint was sent to the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

We are in the process of preparing a series of backgrounders and fact sheets that will help explain our case and how the process should unfold. In the meantime, if you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Vivian Gates at 613-728-0695 ext. 226.

ACFO Pay Equity Filing (547 kb .pdf)