Employment Equity Act

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Sections336

• 1Short title

  This Act may be cited as the Employment Equity Act.

• 2Purpose of Act

  The purpose of this Act is to achieve equality in the workplace so that no person shall be denied employment opportunities or benefits for reasons unrelated to ability and, in the fulfilment of that goal, to correct the conditions of disadvantage in employment experienced by women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities by giving effect to the principle that employment equity means more than treating persons in the same way but also requires special measures and the accommodation of differences.

• 3Definitions

  In this Act,

• 3[p3]

  Aboriginal peoples means persons who are Indians, Inuit or Métis; (autochtones)

• 3[p4]

  Canadian workforce means all persons in Canada of working age who are willing and able to work; (population apte au travail)

• 3[p5]

  Chairperson means the chairperson of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal; (président)

• 3[p6]

  Commission means the Canadian Human Rights Commission established under section 26 of the Canadian Human Rights Act; (Commission)

• 3[p7]

  compliance officer means a person designated as an employment equity compliance review officer pursuant to subsection 22(3); (agent d’application)

• 3[p8]

  designated groups means women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities; (groupes désignés)

• 3[p9]

  members of visible minorities means persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour; (minorités visibles)

• 3[p10]

  Minister means such member of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada as is designated by the Governor in Council as the Minister for the purposes of this Act; (ministre)

• 3[p11]Repealed

  Panel[Repealed, 1998, c. 9, s. 37]

• 3[p12]

  persons with disabilities means persons who have a long-term or recurring physical, mental, sensory, psychiatric or learning impairment and who and includes persons whose functional limitations owing to their impairment have been accommodated in their current job or workplace; (personnes handicapées)

• 3[p12](a)

  consider themselves to be disadvantaged in employment by reason of that impairment, or

• 3[p12](b)

  believe that a employer or potential employer is likely to consider them to be disadvantaged in employment by reason of that impairment,

• 3[p15]

  prescribed means prescribed by the regulations; (Version anglaise seulement)

• 3[p16]

  private sector employer means any person who employs one hundred or more employees on or in connection with a federal work, undertaking or business as defined in section 2 of the Canada Labour Code and includes any corporation established to perform any function or duty on behalf of the Government of Canada that employs one hundred or more employees, but does not include

• 3[p16](a)

  a person who employs employees on or in connection with a work, undertaking or business of a local or private nature in Yukon, the Northwest Territories or Nunavut, or

• 3[p16](b)

  a departmental corporation as defined in section 2 of the Financial Administration Act; (employeur du secteur privé)

• 3[p19]

  representatives means

• 3[p19](a)

  those persons who have been designated by employees to act as their representatives, or

• 3[p19](b)

  bargaining agents, where bargaining agents represent the employees; (représentants)

• 3[p22]

  Tribunal means an Employment Equity Review Tribunal established by subsection 28(1). (tribunal)

• 4Application
• 4(1)

  This Act applies to

• 4(1)(a)

  private sector employers;

• 4(1)(b)

  the portions of the federal public administration set out in Schedule I or IV to the Financial Administration Act;

• 4(1)(c)

  the portions of the federal public administration set out in of Schedule V to the Financial Administration Act that employ one hundred or more employees; and

• 4(1)(d)

  such other portion of the public sector employing one hundred or more employees, including the Canadian Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as may be specified by order of the Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Treasury Board, in consultation with the minister responsible for the specified portion.

• 4(2)Royal Canadian Mounted Police

  For the purposes of this Act,

• 4(2)(a)

  the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is deemed to consist only of its members within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act;

• 4(2)(b)

  the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is deemed not to be included in Schedule IV to the Financial Administration Act; and

• 4(2)(c)

  civilian employees appointed or employed in accordance with section 10 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act are deemed to be included in Schedule IV to the Financial Administration Act.

• 4(3)Canadian Forces and Royal Canadian Mounted Police

  Members of the Canadian Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are deemed to be employees for the purposes of this Act.

• 4(4)Responsibilities of Treasury Board and Public Service Commission

  The Treasury Board and the Public Service Commission, each acting within the scope of its powers, duties and functions under the Financial Administration Act and the Public Service Employment Act, are responsible for carrying out the obligations of an employer under this Act in relation to employees employed in those portions of the federal public administration referred to in paragraph (1)(b).

• 4(5)Deemed employer

  Every portion of the public sector referred to in paragraphs (1)(c) and (d) is deemed to be an employer for the purposes of this Act in relation to employees employed in that portion except that, with respect to any of those portions for which the Public Service Commission exercises any power or performs any function under the Public Service Employment Act, the Public Service Commission and that portion are responsible for carrying out the obligations of an employer under this Act.

• 4(6)References to employer

  In this Act, a reference to an employer is deemed, in relation to those portions of the public sector referred to in

• 4(6)(a)

  paragraph (1)(b), to be a reference to the Treasury Board and the Public Service Commission, each acting within the scope of its powers and functions under the Financial Administration Act and the Public Service Employment Act; and

• 4(6)(b)

  paragraphs (1)(c) and (d) for which the Public Service Commission exercises any power or performs any function under the Public Service Employment Act, to be a reference to the employer and the Public Service Commission.

• 4(7)Delegation by Treasury Board and Public Service Commission

  The Treasury Board and the Public Service Commission may, for the purpose of carrying out their obligations under this Act in relation to a portion of the federal public administration or other portion of the public sector referred to in subsection (1), authorize the chief executive officer or deputy head concerned to exercise, in relation to that portion, any of the powers and perform any of the functions of the Treasury Board or the Public Service Commission, as the case may be, referred to in this section.

• 4(8)Delegation by chief executive officer or deputy head

  Any chief executive officer or deputy head authorized under subsection (7) to exercise any of the powers and perform any of the duties and functions of the Treasury Board or Public Service Commission may, subject to and in accordance with the authorization given to that officer or deputy head, authorize one or more persons to exercise any of those powers and perform any of those duties and functions.

• 5Employer’s duty

  Every employer shall implement employment equity by

• 5(a)

  identifying and eliminating employment barriers against persons in designated groups that result from the employer’s employment systems, policies and practices that are not authorized by law; and

• 5(b)

  instituting such positive policies and practices and making such reasonable accommodations as will ensure that persons in designated groups achieve a degree of representation in each occupational group in the employer’s workforce that reflects their representation in

• 5(b)(i)

  the Canadian workforce, or

• 5(b)(ii)

  those segments of the Canadian workforce that are identifiable by qualification, eligibility or geography and from which the employer may reasonably be expected to draw employees.

• 6Employer not required to take certain measures

  The obligation to implement employment equity does not require an employer

• 6(a)

  to take a particular measure to implement employment equity where the taking of that measure would cause undue hardship to the employer;

• 6(b)

  to hire or promote persons who do not meet the essential qualifications for the work to be performed;

• 6(c)

  with respect to the public sector, to hire or promote persons without basing the hiring or promotion on merit in cases where the Public Service Employment Act requires that hiring or promotion be based on merit; or

• 6(d)

  to create new positions in its workforce.

• 7Employment of Aboriginal peoples

  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, where a private sector employer is engaged primarily in promoting or serving the interests of Aboriginal peoples, the employer may give preference in employment to Aboriginal peoples or employ only Aboriginal peoples, unless that preference or employment would constitute a discriminatory practice under the Canadian Human Rights Act.

• 8Certain rights not employment barriers
• 8(1)

  Employee seniority rights with respect to a layoff or recall under a collective agreement or pursuant to the established practices of an employer are deemed not to be employment barriers within the meaning of this Act.

• 8(2)Other seniority rights

  Unless they are found to constitute a discriminatory practice under the Canadian Human Rights Act, employee seniority rights other than those referred to in subsection (1), including rights acquired under workforce adjustment policies implemented when an employer is downsizing or restructuring, under a collective agreement or pursuant to an established practice, are deemed not to be employment barriers within the meaning of this Act.

• 8(3)Adverse impact on employment opportunities

  Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), where, after a review under paragraph 9(1)(b), it appears that a right referred to in either of those subsections that is provided for under a collective agreement may have an adverse impact on the employment opportunities of persons in designated groups, the employer and its employees’ representatives shall consult with each other concerning measures that may be taken to minimize the adverse impact.

• 8(4)Public sector

  The following are not, in relation to the public sector, employment barriers within the meaning of the Act, namely,

• 8(4)(a)

  priorities for appointment under the Public Service Employment Act or regulations made by the Public Service Commission; and

• 8(4)(b)

  workforce adjustment measures established by the Treasury Board, including measures set out in agreements relating to workforce adjustment, or by the Public Service Commission or any other portion of the public sector referred to in paragraphs 4(1)(c) and (d).

• 9Analysis and review
• 9(1)

  For the purpose of implementing employment equity, every employer shall

• 9(1)(a)

  collect information and conduct an analysis of the employer’s workforce, in accordance with the regulations, in order to determine the degree of the underrepresentation of persons in designated groups in each occupational group in that workforce; and

• 9(1)(b)

  conduct a review of the employer’s employment systems, policies and practices, in accordance with the regulations, in order to identify employment barriers against persons in designated groups that result from those systems, policies and practices.

• 9(2)Self-identification

  Only those employees who identify themselves to an employer, or agree to be identified by an employer, as Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minorities or persons with disabilities are to be counted as members of those designated groups for the purposes of implementing employment equity.

• 9(3)Confidentiality of information

  Information collected by an employer under paragraph (1)(a) is confidential and shall be used only for the purpose of implementing the employer’s obligations under this Act.

• 10Employment equity plan
• 10(1)

  The employer shall prepare an employment equity plan that

• 10(1)(a)

  specifies the positive policies and practices that are to be instituted by the employer in the short term for the hiring, training, promotion and retention of persons in designated groups and for the making of reasonable accommodations for those persons, to correct the underrepresentation of those persons identified by the analysis under paragraph 9(1)(a);

• 10(1)(b)

  specifies the measures to be taken by the employer in the short term for the elimination of any employment barriers identified by the review under paragraph 9(1)(b);

• 10(1)(c)

  establishes a timetable for the implementation of the matters referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b);

• 10(1)(d)

  where underrepresentation has been identified by the analysis, establishes short term numerical goals for the hiring and promotion of persons in designated groups in order to increase their representation in each occupational group in the workforce in which underrepresentation has been identified and sets out measures to be taken in each year to meet those goals;

• 10(1)(e)

  sets out the employer’s longer term goals for increasing the representation of persons in designated groups in the employer’s workforce and the employer’s strategy for achieving those goals; and

• 10(1)(f)

  provides for any other matter that may be prescribed.

• 10(2)Establishment of numerical goals

  In establishing the short term numerical goals referred to in paragraph (1)(d), every employer shall consider

• 10(2)(a)

  the degree of underrepresentation of persons in each designated group in each occupational group within the employer’s workforce;

• 10(2)(b)

  the availability of qualified persons in designated groups within the employer’s workforce and in the Canadian workforce;

• 10(2)(c)

  the anticipated growth or reduction of the employer’s workforce during the period in respect of which the numerical goals apply;

• 10(2)(d)

  the anticipated turnover of employees within the employer’s workforce during the period in respect of which the numerical goals apply; and

• 10(2)(e)

  any other factor that may be prescribed.

• 10(3)Definitions

  In this section, “short term” means a period of not less than one year and not more than three years, and “longer term” means a period of more than three years.

• 11Reasonable progress

  Every employer shall ensure that its employment equity plan would, if implemented, constitute reasonable progress toward implementing employment equity as required by this Act.

• 12Implementation and monitoring of plan

  Every employer shall

• 12(a)

  make all reasonable efforts to implement its employment equity plan; and

• 12(b)

  monitor implementation of its plan on a regular basis to assess whether reasonable progress toward implementing employment equity is being made.

• 13Periodic review and revision of plan

  Every employer shall, at least once during the period in respect of which the short term numerical goals referred to in paragraph 10(1)(d) are established, review its employment equity plan and revise it by

• 13(a)

  updating the numerical goals, taking into account the factors referred to in subsection 10(2); and

• 13(b)

  making any other changes that are necessary as a result of an assessment made pursuant to paragraph 12(b) or as a result of changing circumstances.

• 14Information about employment equity

  Every employer shall provide information to its employees explaining the purpose of employment equity and shall keep its employees informed about measures the employer has undertaken or is planning to undertake to implement employment equity and the progress the employer has made in implementing employment equity.

• 15Consultation with employee representatives
• 15(1)

  Every employer shall consult with its employees’ representatives by inviting the representatives to provide their views concerning

• 15(1)(a)

  the assistance that the representatives could provide to the employer to facilitate the implementation of employment equity in its workplace and the communication to its employees of matters relating to employment equity; and

• 15(1)(b)

  the preparation, implementation and revision of the employer’s employment equity plan.

• 15(2)Where employees represented by bargaining agents

  Where employees are represented by a bargaining agent, the bargaining agent shall participate in a consultation under subsection (1).

• 15(3)Collaboration

  Every employer and its employees’ representatives shall collaborate in the preparation, implementation and revision of the employer’s employment equity plan.

• 15(4)Rule of interpretation

  Consultation under subsection (1) and collaboration under subsection (3) are not forms of co-management.

• 16New employers
• 16(1)

  A person who becomes an employer after the day on which this section comes into force shall, within eighteen months after becoming an employer, comply with sections 9 and 10.

• 16(2)Compliance audit

  The Commission may not conduct a compliance audit of the discharge of the obligations of a person referred to in subsection (1) within two years after the day on which that person becomes an employer.

• 17Employment equity records

  Every employer shall, in accordance with the regulations, establish and maintain employment equity records in respect of the employer’s workforce, the employer’s employment equity plan and the implementation of employment equity by the employer.

• 18Reports of private sector employers
• 18(1)

  Every private sector employer shall, on or before June 1 in each year, file with the Minister a report in respect of the immediately preceding calendar year containing information in accordance with prescribed instructions, indicating, in the prescribed manner and form,

• 18(1)(a)

  the industrial sector in which its employees are employed, the location of the employer and its employees, the number of its employees and the number of those employees who are members of designated groups;

• 18(1)(b)

  the occupational groups in which its employees are employed and the degree of representation of persons who are members of designated groups in each occupational group;

• 18(1)(c)

  the salary ranges of its employees and the degree of representation of persons who are members of designated groups in each range and in each prescribed subdivision of the range and any other information in relation to the salary of its employees that may be prescribed; and

• 18(1)(d)

  the number of its employees hired, promoted and terminated and the degree of representation in those numbers of persons who are members of designated groups.

• 18(2)Interpretation

  For the purposes of subsection (1), an employer is the person who or organization that was the employer on December 31 in the immediately preceding year.

• 18(3)Electronic filing

  An employer may file a report using electronic media in a manner specified in writing by the Minister and, in such a case, the report is deemed to have been filed on the day that the Minister acknowledges receipt of it.

• 18(4)Self-identification

  Only those employees who identify themselves to their employer, or agree to be identified by their employer, as Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minorities and persons with disabilities are to be counted as members of those designated groups for the purposes of the report.

• 18(5)Certificate required

  A report shall be certified, in the prescribed manner, as to the accuracy of the information contained in it and shall be signed by the employer or, where the employer is a corporation, by a prescribed person on behalf of the corporation.

• 18(6)Additional information

  An employer shall include in a report a description of

• 18(6)(a)

  the measures taken by the employer during the reporting period to implement employment equity and the results achieved; and

• 18(6)(b)

  the consultations between the employer and its employees’ representatives during the reporting period concerning the implementation of employment equity.

• 18(7)Consolidated reports

  Where, in the opinion of the Minister, associated or related federal works, undertakings or businesses are operated by two or more employers having common control or direction, the Minister may, on the application of the employers, authorize them to file a consolidated report with respect to employees employed by them on or in connection with those works, undertakings or businesses.

• 18(8)Exemption for private sector employers

  The Minister may, on the application of an employer, exempt the employer from any or all of the requirements of this section for a period not exceeding one year if, in the opinion of the Minister, special circumstances warrant the exemption.

• 18(9)Copy to employees’ representatives

  An employer shall, on filing a report with the Minister under this section, provide its employees’ representatives with a copy of the report.

• 18(10)Copy to Commission

  The Minister shall, on receipt of a report, send a copy of it to the Commission.

• 19Availability of reports of private sector employers
• 19(1)

  Subject to subsection (2), every report filed under subsection 18(1) shall be available for public inspection at such places as may be designated, and in such form as may be determined, by the Minister, and any person may, on payment of a prescribed fee, not to exceed the costs of furnishing a copy, obtain from the Minister a copy of any of the reports.

• 19(2)Withholding of report

  The Minister may, on the application of an employer, withhold the employer’s report from public inspection for a period not exceeding one year if, in the opinion of the Minister, special circumstances warrant the withholding.

• 20Consolidation to be tabled

  The Minister shall in each year prepare a report consisting of a consolidation of the reports filed under subsection 18(1) together with an analysis of those reports and shall cause the report to be laid before each House of Parliament not later than the fifteenth sitting day that that House of Parliament is sitting after the report is completed.

• 21Report of Treasury Board
• 21(1)

  The President of the Treasury Board shall, in each fiscal year, cause to be laid before each House of Parliament a report in respect of the state of employment equity in the portions of the federal public administration referred to in paragraph 4(1)(b) during the immediately preceding fiscal year.

• 21(2)Contents of report

  The report referred to in subsection (1) shall consist of

• 21(2)(a)

  a consolidation and analysis of

• 21(2)(a)(i)

  the number of employees employed in each portion of the federal public administration referred to in paragraph 4(1)(b) and the number of persons who are members of each designated group so employed,

• 21(2)(a)(ii)

  the total number of employees employed in all portions of the federal public administration referred to in paragraph 4(1)(b) in each province and in the National Capital Region and the number of persons who are members of each designated group so employed,

• 21(2)(a)(iii)

  the occupational groups of employees and the degree of representation of persons who are members of each designated group in each occupational group,

• 21(2)(a)(iv)

  the salary ranges of employees and the degree of representation of persons who are members of each designated group in each range and in any subdivision of the range, and

• 21(2)(a)(v)

  the numbers of employees hired, promoted and terminated and the degree of representation, in those numbers, of persons who are members of each designated group;

• 21(2)(b)

  a description of the principal measures taken by the Treasury Board during the reporting period to implement employment equity and the results achieved;

• 21(2)(c)

  a description of the consultations between the Treasury Board and its employees’ representatives during the reporting period concerning the implementation of employment equity; and

• 21(2)(d)

  any other information that the President of the Treasury Board considers relevant.

• 21(3)Requirement to provide information

  Each portion of the public sector referred to in paragraphs 4(1)(c) and (d), other than the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, shall, within six months after the end of each fiscal year, provide to the President of the Treasury Board a report containing the information referred to in subsection (4) in relation to that portion during that fiscal year and the President shall cause the reports, together with the report referred to in subsection (1), to be laid before each House of Parliament.

• 21(4)Contents of report

  A report referred to in subsection (3) shall consist of

• 21(4)(a)

  the information referred to in subparagraphs (2)(a)(i) to (v) in relation to that portion;

• 21(4)(b)

  an analysis of the information referred to in paragraph (a); and

• 21(4)(c)

  the information referred to in paragraphs (2)(b) to (d) in relation to that portion.

• 21(5)Requirement to provide information

  The Canadian Security Intelligence Service shall, within six months after the end of each fiscal year, provide to the President of the Treasury Board a report containing the information referred to in subsection (6) in relation to that portion during that fiscal year and the President shall cause the report, together with the report referred to in subsection (1), to be laid before each House of Parliament.

• 21(6)Contents of report

  A report referred to in subsection (5) shall consist of

• 21(6)(a)

  the percentage of employees employed in that portion who are members of each designated group;

• 21(6)(b)

  the occupational groups of employees in that portion and the percentage of persons who are members of each designated group in each occupational group;

• 21(6)(c)

  the salary ranges of employees in that portion and the percentage of persons who are members of each designated group in each range and in any subdivision of the range;

• 21(6)(d)

  the percentage of employees hired, promoted and terminated in that portion who are members of each designated group;

• 21(6)(e)

  an analysis of the information referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d); and

• 21(6)(f)

  the information referred to in paragraphs (2)(b) to (d) in relation to that portion.

• 21(7)Copy to Commission

  The President of the Treasury Board shall, as soon as possible after a report referred to in any of subsections (1), (3) and (5) is laid before each House of Parliament, send a copy of the report to the Commission.

• 21(8)Copies to employees’ representatives

  As soon as possible after a report referred to in this section is laid before each House of Parliament, shall send a copy of the report to its employees’ representatives.

• 21(8)(a)

  in the case of a report referred to in subsection (1), the President of the Treasury Board,

• 21(8)(b)

  in the case of a report referred to in subsection (3), each portion of the public sector referred to in that subsection, and

• 21(8)(c)

  in the case of a report referred to in subsection (5), the Canadian Security Intelligence Service,

• 22Compliance audits
• 22(1)

  The Commission is responsible for the enforcement of the obligations imposed on employers by sections 5, 9 to 15 and 17.

• 22(2)Guiding policy

  The Commission shall, in discharging its responsibility under subsection (1), be guided by the policy that, wherever possible, cases of non-compliance be resolved through persuasion and the negotiation of written undertakings pursuant to subsection 25(1) and that directions be issued under subsection 25(2) or (3) and applications for orders be made under subsection 27(2) only as a last resort.

• 22(3)Compliance officers designated

  The Commission may designate any person or category of persons as employment equity compliance review officers for the purposes of conducting compliance audits of employers.

• 22(4)Where compliance officer may not act

  No person who has been designated as an investigator under section 43 of the Canadian Human Rights Act to investigate a complaint under that Act in respect of an employer may, during the investigation, conduct a compliance audit of that employer.

• 22(5)Delegation by Commission

  The Commission may authorize any officer or employee of the Commission whom the Commission considers appropriate to exercise any power and perform any duty or function of the Commission under this Act and any power so exercised and any duty or function so performed shall be deemed to have been exercised or performed by the Commission.

• 23Powers of compliance officers
• 23(1)

  For the purposes of ensuring compliance with the provisions referred to in subsection 22(1), a compliance officer may conduct a compliance audit of an employer and, for that purpose, may

• 23(1)(a)

  at any reasonable time, enter any place in which the officer believes on reasonable grounds there is any thing relevant to the enforcement of any of those provisions; and

• 23(1)(b)

  require any person to produce for examination or copying any record, book of account or other document that the officer believes on reasonable grounds contains information that is relevant to the enforcement of any of those provisions.

• 23(2)Data processing systems and copying equipment

  In conducting a compliance audit, a compliance officer may

• 23(2)(a)

  reproduce or cause to be reproduced any record from a data processing system in the form of a print-out or other intelligible output and remove the print-out or other output for examination and copying; and

• 23(2)(b)

  use or cause to be used any copying equipment at the place to make copies of any record, book of account or other document.

• 23(3)Certificate to be produced

  Compliance officers shall be furnished with certificates in a form established by the Commission certifying their designation as compliance officers and, on entering a place under paragraph (1)(a), a compliance officer shall show the certificate to the person in charge of the place if the person requests proof of the officer’s designation.

• 23(4)Assistance to compliance officers

  The person in charge of a place entered pursuant to paragraph (1)(a) and every person found in the place shall

• 23(4)(a)

  give the compliance officer all reasonable assistance to enable the officer to exercise the powers conferred on compliance officers by this section; and

• 23(4)(b)

  provide the officer with any information relevant to the enforcement of this Act that the officer may reasonably require.

• 24Security requirements

  Every compliance officer or any other person acting on behalf of or under the direction of the Commission who receives or obtains information relating to a compliance audit under this Act shall, with respect to access to and use of that information by that compliance officer or person, satisfy any security requirements applicable to, and take any oath of secrecy required to be taken by, persons who normally have access to and use of that information.

• 25Employer undertaking
• 25(1)

  Where a compliance officer is of the opinion that an employer the compliance officer shall inform the employer of the non-compliance and shall attempt to negotiate a written undertaking from the employer to take specified measures to remedy the non-compliance.

• 25(1)(a)

  has not collected information or conducted an analysis referred to in paragraph 9(1)(a) or conducted a review referred to in paragraph 9(1)(b),

• 25(1)(b)

  has not prepared an employment equity plan referred to in section 10,

• 25(1)(c)

  has prepared an employment equity plan that does not meet the requirements of sections 10 and 11,

• 25(1)(d)

  has not made all reasonable efforts to implement its employment equity plan in accordance with section 12,

• 25(1)(e)

  has failed to review and revise its employment equity plan in accordance with section 13,

• 25(1)(f)

  has failed to provide information to its employees in accordance with section 14,

• 25(1)(g)

  has failed to consult with its employees’ representatives in accordance with section 15, or

• 25(1)(h)

  has failed to establish and maintain employment equity records as required by section 17,

• 25(1.1)Information re underrepresentation

  Where the employer may inform the compliance officer of such belief.

• 25(1.1)(a)

  an employer has been informed of a non-compliance by a compliance officer under subsection (1) and the finding of non-compliance is based, in whole or in part, on the apparent underrepresentation of Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minorities or persons with disabilities in the employer’s work force, as reflected in the employer’s work force analysis conducted pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(a), and

• 25(1.1)(b)

  the employer believes that the apparent underrepresentation is attributable to the decision of employees who may be members of the designated groups concerned not to identify themselves as such or not to agree to be identified by the employer as such under subsection 9(2),

• 25(1.2)Reason for underrepresentation to be considered

  Where the employer satisfies the compliance officer that the finding of non-compliance is attributable, in whole or in part, to the reason described in paragraph (1.1)(b) and that the employer has made all reasonable efforts to implement employment equity, the compliance officer shall take the reason into account in exercising any powers under this section.

• 25(1.3)No employer identification of individual employees

  In satisfying the compliance officer under subsection (1.2) that the finding of non-compliance is attributable, in whole or in part, to the reason mentioned in paragraph (1.1)(b), the employer must do so by means other than the identification of individual employees in its work force that the employer believes are members of designated groups who have not identified themselves as such, or agreed to be identified by the employer as such, under subsection 9(2).

• 25(2)Direction

  Where a compliance officer fails to obtain a written undertaking that, in the opinion of the compliance officer, would be sufficient to remedy the non-compliance, the compliance officer shall notify the Commission of the non-compliance and the Commission may issue and send, by registered mail, a direction to the employer

• 25(2)(a)

  setting out the facts on which the officer’s finding of non-compliance is based; and

• 25(2)(b)

  requiring the employer to take such actions as are specified in the direction to remedy the non-compliance.

• 25(3)Breach of undertaking

  Where a compliance officer obtains a written undertaking and the compliance officer is of the opinion that the employer has breached the undertaking, the compliance officer shall notify the Commission of the non-compliance and the Commission may issue and send, by registered mail, a direction to the employer requiring the employer to take such actions as are specified in the direction to remedy the non-compliance.

• 25(4)Amendment of direction

  The Commission may rescind or amend a direction issued by the Commission pursuant to subsection (2) or (3) on the presentation of new facts or on being satisfied that the direction was issued without knowledge of, or was based on a mistake as to, a material fact.

• 26Direction of Commission
• 26(1)

  Where a compliance officer is of the opinion that an employer has failed to give reasonable assistance or to provide information as required by subsection 23(4), the compliance officer shall notify the Commission of the non-compliance and the Commission may issue and send, by registered mail, a direction to the employer

• 26(1)(a)

  setting out the facts on which the officer’s finding of non-compliance is based; and

• 26(1)(b)

  requiring the employer to take such actions as are specified in the direction to remedy the non-compliance.

• 26(2)Amendment of direction

  The Commission may rescind or amend a direction issued pursuant to subsection (1) on the presentation of new facts or on being satisfied that the direction was issued without knowledge of, or was based on a mistake as to, a material fact.

• 27Employer’s request for review
• 27(1)

  An employer to whom a direction is issued under subsection 25(2) or (3) or 26(1) may make a request to the Chairperson for a review of the direction

• 27(1)(a)

  in the case of a direction issued under subsection 25(2) or (3), within sixty days after the day on which it is issued; and

• 27(1)(b)

  in the case of a direction issued under subsection 26(1), within thirty days after the day on which it is issued.

• 27(2)Commission may apply

  If the Commission is of the opinion that an employer has failed to comply with a direction issued by the Commission, the Commission may apply to the Chairperson for an order confirming the direction.

• 27(3)Limitation

  No application may be made pursuant to subsection (2) where the employer has requested a review in accordance with subsection (1).

• 28Establishment of Tribunals