New government report shows 'hard evidence' of racial wage disparities in B.C.

Johna Baylon · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 28, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

A caller authorities report has recovered "hard evidence" of wage disparities betwixt racialized and achromatic workers successful B.C.

Released by the B.C. Anti-Racism Data Committee, the recent report found that successful galore occupations, "significant gaps" beryllium betwixt the 2 groups' earnings.

"We recovered robust grounds of earning gaps oregon differences betwixt racialized and achromatic workers successful 11 of 26 occupational groups," it reads. "In 9 of 11 groups, racialized workers had little earnings."

The findings are not astonishing to many.

"What the study is showing is that the wage gap, which we cognize exists, continues to exist," says Humera Jabir, a unit lawyer and wage equity advocator with West Coast LEAF who wasn't progressive successful the report.

The survey looked astatine information from Statistics Canada's 2021 census, and focused connected B.C.'s full-time workers property 15 to 65 successful 2020. It looked astatine the yearly net of racialized workers — without specifying their ethnicity — and achromatic ones.

After adjusting for factors similar age, gender, acquisition and procreation successful Canada, the occupation groups wherever racialized workers made little than achromatic workers were: retail and work supervisors; processing and manufacturing; transport helpers and labourers; method trades and transport officers; mediate management; concern and finance; wide trades; method science; and earthy and applied sciences. 

The spread ranged from seven per cent a twelvemonth successful the earthy and applied sciences group, to 33 per cent in retail, favouring achromatic workers.

Only successful 2 groups, wellness enactment roles and wellness professionals, did racialized workers marque more.

Authors accidental galore factors could beryllium down the gaps — similar information from a peculiar concern including a higher proportionality of younger workers — nevertheless their investigation recovered that statistical differences persisted adjacent aft accounting for variations successful things similar property and gender.

The survey recovered older property did not construe to higher wages for racialized workers arsenic it did for achromatic workers successful immoderate sectors. In concern and finance, for example, workers' wages were akin until their mid-30s. But from property 50 to 54, racialized workers made astir $50,000 little than achromatic workers. 

Education level also made a difference: successful the transport helpers group, which has "no ceremonial acquisition requirements," achromatic workers with a assemblage grade made doubly arsenic overmuch arsenic racialized workers with the aforesaid education. For those successful method science, racialized workers with post-secondary acquisition earned astir the aforesaid arsenic achromatic workers with a precocious schoolhouse diploma oregon less.

Authors besides looked at whether being calved successful oregon extracurricular of Canada made a quality to earnings. 

They recovered that successful immoderate occupations, racialized workers who were first-generation — born extracurricular of Canada — earned less than those who were second-generation oregon calved successful Canada.

Among first-generation workers successful the middle-management group, those who were racialized made nearly $30,000 little than those who were white.

Across occupations, disparities were widest betwixt racialized women and achromatic men. 

Things were reversed successful wellness care: the survey recovered racialized wellness enactment workers earned 22 per cent more than achromatic workers. For wellness professionals, net were akin crossed property groups until age 50 to 54, wherever racialized workers earned astir $31,000 much than achromatic workers.

Authors accidental much probe is needed to recognize wherefore wellness attraction is an outlier. 

"These differences are apt not owed to systemic favoritism and are not considered earning gaps," the survey reads, adding that further investigation is needed to origin successful pandemic-related bonus oregon overtime wage successful 2020.

'Data has to beryllium followed by action'

Authors besides suggest looking astatine data like immigration presumption and much caller information, arsenic 2020 was an "abnormal" year for workers owed to COVID-19.

Nonetheless, they say, the survey lays the foundations for B.C.'s enactment toward economical inclusion.

"It's decidedly not the eventual research," says Zareen Naqvi, enforcement manager of organization probe and readying astatine Simon Fraser University and a subordinate of the Anti-Racism Data Committee.

"You tin deliberation astir it arsenic a 'first cut' into looking astatine this contented and providing immoderate hard grounds of what those differences successful salaries whitethorn beryllium for racialized and non-racialized workers."

Hermender Singh Kailley, caput treasurer of the B.C. Federation of Labour, says the study validates what he's heard anecdotally.

He's a subordinate of the Provincial Committee connected Anti-Racism, formed earlier this twelvemonth to assistance dismantle systemic racism successful the province.

"Data has to beryllium followed by action, and our state needs to enactment promptly to interruption those barriers down," helium said. "That's the enactment we're doing."

B.C. passed the Pay Transparency Act successful 2023, which mandates authorities agencies, the province's largest Crown corporations, and companies with 1,000 employees oregon more to people yearly wage transparency reports. That volition extend to companies with 300 employees oregon much this year, and to those with 50 employees oregon much by 2026.

Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender says the authorities is not arsenic robust as she'd similar it to be because determination are nary penalties for non-compliance.

"We tin cod the data, but if we're not requiring ... employers to really bash thing astir it, past we're not really completing our enactment astir wage equity," she said.

Jabir with West Coast LEAF echoes that, saying stronger wage equity laws would person the "teeth and mechanisms" to mandate employers to adjacent the wage gaps.

B.C.'s Ministry of Labour declined a petition for comment.

Citizens' Services Minister George Chow said successful a connection that the probe provides "useful" accusation for employers and worker groups, and that the study has been shared crossed government.

The Provincial Committee connected Anti-Racism is engaging with communities passim the twelvemonth and is acceptable to marque recommendations based connected the report's findings, with their enactment program owed to beryllium published by June 2026.