International Women's Day notes of success so far in equity and the strides forward that remain

Today marks the annual occasion of International Women's Day, where the achievements of women are celebrated, the goals of equity declared ongoing and in some cases the lack of equity is pointed out.

Both the Federal and Provincial Government made note of today's day of recognition, with both levels of senior government releasing statements that explored a range of themes to the topic.

The commemoration of the day began with a statement from the Prime Minister, who noted how women and girls shape Canada.

You can review his full commentary here.

Towards some other the Federal themes, Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship offered up the following

“As Canada marks this year’s International Women’s Day 2023 and its theme, Every Woman Counts, we are reminded that all women, from all ages, backgrounds, and walks of life, have a place in every aspect of Canadian society. I am dedicated to supporting the full and equal participation of all women and girls in Canadian society, especially newcomer women who have made and continue to make invaluable contributions to our country.

A stream of other Federal Ministers have also made comments on the day through the Government information page.

For Premier Eby and Kelli Paddon, the Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity, the work of the incredible women of British Columbia was their focus.

“On International Women’s Day, we celebrate all the women, girls, Two-Spirit and non-binary individuals in British Columbia. We recognize women are so often the cornerstone of our communities – and our economy.  

We have a long history of incredible women who have worked hard to make our society better and more welcoming for everyone. We also know that more work is needed to ensure everyone is treated equally in our province, regardless of gender."

The Provincial Government observing of their legislation introduced on Tuesday towards more transparency of pay which received first reading in the Chamber.

For this reason, we are very proud that yesterday our government introduced new pay transparency legislation for first reading in the legislature. This bill recognizes that many women are still paid less than men to do the same job. Pay transparency will help shine a light on B.C.’s gender pay gap and help move us closer to equal pay for equal work. “We are grateful to the many people from the private and public sector, labour unions, non-profits, advocacy groups and Indigenous communities who shared their views on how we can best tackle the gender pay gap in British Columbia.

The full statement from the Province can be reviewed here.

The City of Prince Rupert has long been ahead of the curve when it comes to staffing at City Hall, with a number of women holding posts in Senior Administration positions and in various civic departments. 

And as part of the last municipal election, Prince Rupert voters finally started the path towards a bit more gender balance to the Council chamber sending Councillor Teri Forster to the Chamber to break the hold of the men from recent years.

Among her recent themes at Council sessions has been her commentary towards areas of reconciliation and equity.  

The Councillor who was recently named as one of the City's Reconciliation framework participants,  recently spoke to the city's dedication towards being an equal opportunity employer.

And while they make strides towards those goals, as we have noticed both by way of some recent announcements  and through the comments to some of our recent stories, there is one area where the quest for more equity is still a project in progress it seems.

Over the last few weeks, we've been highlighting the announcements of new hires for the Prince Rupert Fire/Rescue service, which they've relayed through their Social Media stream. 

And as those notes increased, so too have the observations that the city has yet to see a Female Fire fighter on the roster. 

Something which puts the Prince Rupert Department somewhat behind the times from their counterparts at the Volunteer Service in Port Edward, which has seen a number of female firefighters in place in recent years.

One of the most recent Career Postings for the Prince Rupert Department provides for a lengthy list of requirements, which provides a glimpse perhaps into the expectations that the city has for service.

City Council has never taken the topic up with the Fire Chief and the theme is not one that is included in the reports provided to Council.

However with some interest seemingly brewing towards the issue on this International Women's Day. It might be worth some time to have the Fire Chief make a presentation to council to outline the hiring  policies and what factors are in place for the local department that may one day see a break through for what seems the city's final frontier.

With the City's Fire Department currently embarking on a vigorous replacement program for retiring fire fighters a time limited process we imagine;  providing some guidance for would be female applicants, could help towards speaking to the theme of equity at the Fire Hall.

If they want to,  the Council members could even go further and ask for a report on how they are doing on themes of Gender and equity in all positions with the civic workforce, offering up a progress report for the community to review.

As for today's ongoing observation of International Women's Day, the Federal Government has offered up a range of ways to participate and take note of the day. 

You can review those options here.