Pay Equity Coalition has a new chair

Vallie Stearns was elected Chair of the New Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equity during its annual general meeting on Saturday, June 11. The theme of this year’s annual general meeting was “Making Pay Equity Work”.

“I am both honoured and excited to take on this position with the Coalition,” said Vallie Stearns, who formerly worked in a women’s transition shelter, one of the sectors targeted for pay equity.  “I believe that its high time that women receive fair pay.”

During the annual meeting, coalition members were invited to think about renewing their strategies to move forward. Keynote speaker, Leah Levac, talked about shared leadership and forging a collective impact.

“There are important challenges ahead but I am sure we can take them on together. Pay equity legislation for the private sector is seriously needed in New Brunswick.  The fact that home support workers and early childhood educators are being told they will have to wait at least another year before recommendations for pay equity adjustments are presented to government departments indicates that ‘voluntary measures’ are not working,” said Vallie Stearns. “We were told that pay equity adjustments would be rolled out by this fiscal year.”

The new Chair also wants the Coalition to monitor the implementation of the 2009 Pay Equity Act, which applies to the public sector, so that job evaluations and pay equity calculations are completed properly during the time prescribed by the Act – by the end of March 2012 – after which the necessary adjustments should begin.

The 2011-2012 board of the N.B. Coalition for Equity:
Chair: Vallie Stearns
Past Chair: Marilyn MacCormack
Anglophone Vice-Chair: Elizabeth Blaney
Francophone Vice-Chair: Huberte Gautreau
Secretary-Treasurer: Elizabeth LeBlanc
Aboriginal Representative: Elizabeth Coburn
Centre Representative: Linda Richardson
Kent-Miramichi Representative: Roberte Léger
Northeast Representative: Thérèse Duguay
Northwest Representative: Anne Roussel
Southeast Representative: Lydia Jaillet
Southwest Representative: Gail Taylor