Equal Pay Day 2026

Toronto – April 14, 2026 – For 2026, April 14 is Equal Pay Day. Equal Pay Day marks how far into 2026 the average woman must work just to earn what the average man earned in 2025.

What is the gender pay gap? The gender pay gap measures sex discrimination in pay and reflects women’s poverty compared to men. It is evidence of how sex and race discrimination undermine women’s economic security.

Canada is ranked as having the 7th highest gender pay gap out of a list of 35 countries examined by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It also has the second largest pay gap among the G7 countries.

Women in Canada earn nearly 30% less than men—a gap that's even wider for racialized, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+, and disabled women. Women are paid less than men in 469 of 500 occupations across every sector of the economy.

The solutions to the gender pay gap are well-researched and well-known. It can be closed by:

• Affordable, accessible public childcare with decent wages for childcare workers
• Build the economy by building the care economy – and fully fund public services
• Implement real pay transparency and increased funding for pay equity enforcement
• Manadated paid sick days for all workers
• Raise the minimum wages to a living wage

Pay equity is not a privilege or a frill. It is the law. Discriminatory pay gaps are a violation of human rights, and human rights enforcement is not a partisan issue.

Learn more about the movement for equal pay at EqualPayCoalition.org.