Commission Releases Employment Equity Report
After its annual review of employment equity in Saskatchewan, the Commission concluded that 1996-97 was a year of good news/bad news. The bad news is that once again there was little improvement in the representation of designated groups in the workforce. The good news is that four new equity plans were approved. In Saskatchewan, designated groups are women, aboriginal people, people with disabilities and visible minority people. These are the groups which are less likely to receive equal benefits from the workplace. Statistics show they have higher rates of unemployment, lower wages, and are underrepresented in decision-making positions. The bad news is that once again there was little improvement in the representation of designated groups in the workforce. The good news is that four new equity plans were approved. First, the bad news. A statistical review of the 29 workplaces in Saskatchewan with equity programs showed that the four designated groups made only slight or no gains. Aboriginal people The number of Aboriginal people in employment equity workplaces increased by only .l% over last year. Overall, Aboriginal people make up 5.2% of employees in equity workplaces. Those employers are trying to reach a goal of 12.2 percent, the representation of Aboriginal people in the working age population as a whole. Some workforces, such as the Prince Albert Co-operative Health Centre, did very well; they had 5% more Aboriginal employees at the end of the reporting period this year than in the year before.		Other employers, however, had very low percentage increases and still others actually had fewer Aboriginal employees working for them last year than in the previous year. The report noted: "Given the forecast that within 20 years Aboriginal people will comprise 25% of the total provincial population, it is absolutely essential that employers incorporate members of this group into their workforce." The report also noted that Aboriginal people are underrepresented in permanent positions and overrepresented in non-permanent positions. People with disabilities In 1996-97, the workforce representation of people with disabilities in large equity workforces remained at 3.7%, far below the 9.7% goal. In permanent positions, there were actually fewer people with disabilities in equity workplaces than the year before. The report concluded: "For several years now, the Commission has noted that persons with disabilities are not benefitting from employment equity programs in a meaningful way....equity programs are not providing a great deal of assistance for people with disabilities who are not yet in the workforce." Even when people with disabilities are in the workforce, employers often don't understand their obligation under human rights law to provide accommodation. One of the Commission's ongoing goals it to help employers meet their obligation to accommodate employees with disabilities. continued...
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