The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives published The widening gap: Gender segregation and job polarization in the post-pandemic labour market report. Despite the progress women in Canada have made over the past half century, major gender inequalities persist. According to the report, although women’s average wages increased between 2019 and 2024, high inflation wiped out most early progress, and by 2024 women still earned just 87 cents for every dollar earned by men—the same as in 2019. The study emphasizes that persistent occupational segregation is a key contributor to Canada’s large gender pay gap and to rising inequality among women.

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives notes that women—especially mothers of young children, caregivers, women with fewer years of formal schooling, and those facing overlapping forms of discrimination—remain concentrated in lower-paid occupations rooted in traditional gender roles. The employment recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic opened the door to change for some female workers; however, this is not the case for Canada’s largely female and racialized low-waged workforce, according to the research.

For further insights and to access the report, click here.