Employment equity

Employment equity is a federal approach to removing hiring and workplace barriers for designated groups. Most small private employers aren't covered.

Also called: Employment Equity Act, designated groups, equity hiring, special program

What employment equity means

Employment equity is a set of rules and practices meant to make sure that people are not kept out of jobs, or held back at work, for reasons that have nothing to do with their ability. In Canada, the term mainly refers to the federal Employment Equity Act and related federal programs, which require certain employers to find and remove barriers for designated groups of people who have faced disadvantage in employment.

It is different from human rights law. Human rights law applies to every employer and says you must not discriminate. Employment equity goes further for the employers it covers: they must study their workforce, find gaps, and make a plan to close them.

Most small private businesses are not covered by the federal Employment Equity Act. Still, the ideas behind it, such as clear job requirements, wide recruiting and consistent interviews, are useful for any employer that wants to hire from the widest pool of people.

How it works

Employers covered by employment equity rules usually do four things: collect information about who is in their workforce (through a voluntary self-identification survey), compare that with who is available in the labour market, review their policies and practices for barriers, and set a plan with goals and timelines. They report on their progress to the federal government.

Employment equity is not a quota system and does not mean hiring someone who cannot do the job. It is about removing barriers so qualified people get a fair chance, and sometimes about taking active steps, such as targeted outreach, to reach groups that are under-represented.

For a small business that is not covered, you can still apply the same thinking. Post jobs in more than one place, including community organizations. Write requirements that are tied to the job, not to background. Use structured interviews with the same questions and a scoring guide. Make it easy to ask for accommodation during hiring.

Human rights laws in Canada generally allow employers to run programs designed to help disadvantaged groups. If you want to give preference to a particular group in hiring, check your human rights commission's guidance first, because these programs need to be set up properly.

Is it the same in every province?

Employment equity in the formal sense is mainly a federal requirement for federally regulated employers and federal contractors. Provinces deal with the same issues mostly through human rights law, and pay equity and pay transparency rules differ by province.

Example: A small IT company widens its search

Aisha runs a 14-person IT support company in Saskatoon. She is not covered by the federal Employment Equity Act, but she notices all her applicants come from the same two job boards and look alike on paper.

For her next technician job, she drops a degree requirement the job does not need, posts with a local newcomer employment centre and a disability employment organization, and uses the same five scored interview questions for everyone. She also adds a line to the posting saying applicants can ask for accommodation during the interview.

Scored interview guides in Staffkin

Staffkin's interview guides give every candidate the same questions with 1 to 5 scoring guides, and let you compare candidates side by side.

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Questions about employment equity

Does the Employment Equity Act apply to my small business?

Usually not. It applies mainly to federally regulated employers above a size threshold and to the federal public sector. Check the federal Labour Program if you are federally regulated.

Is employment equity the same as a quota?

No. It is about finding and removing barriers so qualified people get a fair chance, and setting goals, not requiring a set number of hires.

Can I give preference to a disadvantaged group when hiring?

Human rights laws generally allow properly designed programs that help disadvantaged groups, but the rules differ by province. Check your human rights commission's guidance first.

What can a small business do without being covered?

Recruit widely, tie requirements to the job, use structured interviews and offer accommodation during hiring.

Official sources

General information for Canadian employers, not legal advice. Rules differ by province and territory and change over time, so check with your provincial employment standards office (or the federal Labour Program if you are federally regulated) before you rely on it. See employment standards by province.

Checked against official sources on 4 November 2026.