As part of the 2023-2027 Collective Agreement, effective July 1, 2024, all Assistant Professors who have disclosed they are not male and who were hired on or after July 1, 2017, will receive one Career Development Increase (CDI), which counts toward the CDI ceiling.
For this round we looked at starting salaries from 2015–16 through to 2023–24.
We are aware that no solution will be perfect in resolving salary inequities —unless, indeed, all starting salaries are exactly the same, and there is no merit system and no possibility for expedited procedures. However, when units hire new faculty, they determine whether the salary should be at the floor, or how many CDI’s above the floor is appropriate given the incumbent’s CV and the unit’s recruiting pressures. However, starting salary is only one issue in terms of lifetime earnings and pension plans: we do know that women are 3 years older on average than men when they are appointed here, and this age difference at the point of hiring does not translate into higher starting salaries. Also, in the past we have seen more women getting stuck at the ceiling of Associate (though in recent years that has not been an issue). As well, in the past, women’s salaries/pensions have been negatively affected because they tended to be the primary caregivers for children and parents.
It’s a thorny problem and we continue to monitor it. The employer agreed to continue monitoring and assessing salaries so we will certainly be looking at the issue of gender equity in the next round. We have signed a Memorandum of Agreement that will appear at the back of the new Collective Agreement. We also have signed a MoA to study and assess the salary review (“merit”) process with the intention to recommend changes in the next collective agreement. This assessment will include analysis of merit awards in terms of gender.