Starting Tuesday, the Quebec Superior Court is expected to hear the merits of a challenge to certain provisions of the Pay Equity Act, a law enacted by Quebec to comply with a 2018 Supreme Court of Canada ruling. Seven labour organizations are involved in the challenge — the Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec (SFPQ), Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec (FTQ), Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ), Fédération autonome de l’enseignement (FAE), Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) and Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux (APTS). The unions are primarily contesting the method used to calculate amounts owed to affected female workers, specifically for retroactive pay, as part of an assessment of ongoing pay equity. The Quebec Ministry of Labour and the Attorney General had previously attempted to convince the Superior Court to dismiss the union’s motions, arguing that pay equity was instead the jurisdiction of the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). After the Superior Court dismissed their case in 2020, they unsuccessfully appealed before the Court of Appeal. The case is set to return to the Superior Court, where the union’s challenges are expected to be heard on their merits. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 5, 2026.
