Indigenous Women and the World of Work

Stories, experiences to help inform how laws can better meet Indigenous women’s needs.

NWAC’s Social Development Unit has been engaging with Indigenous women on four issues related to the world of work: mental health in the workplace, the right to disconnect, protections for workers in the gig economy, and pay equity. The stories and experiences we heard will help NWAC make a case to the federal government on how laws and regulations on these issues can meet the needs of Indigenous women.

The process began in March when we held three 90-minute online engagements on mental health, gig workers, and the right to disconnect. Following these sessions, the team presented draft reports on each topic to Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Each of these reports highlighted key findings and recommendations. In June, we hosted four webinars to gather feedback on federal pay equity legislation. We also sent a short online survey to individuals who were unable to participate in the webinars due to limited space and a high level of interest. The stories shared during these webinars will form the basis of a final report to ESDC on what pay equity means for Indigenous women.

Working with Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre, Truckers Against Trafficking, and Intertek, this project offered NWAC an opportunity to share and explore anti-colonial approaches to violence that centre settler colonialism as the foundation of MMIWG. The Safe Passage project emphasizes the long history of violence experienced by Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people. Through the project, readers may learn about colonialism and thus become better equipped to recognize and respond to systemic violence.

The Indigenous women who participated in these engagements made several thought-provoking points. For example, we heard about how differentiating between psychological wellness inside or outside of the workplace is not culturally appropriate, and how the extra pressure that Indigenous women feel to prove themselves at work makes it hard for them to “switch off” at the end of a work day. We also heard about how the flexibility of gig work—short-term and specific or one-off tasks completed in person or digitally—makes it easier for some Indigenous women to enter and stay in the workforce, but that they continue to be undervalued and underpaid by employers.

It’s also clear that for Indigenous women, pay equity is as much about eliminating pay gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people as it is about eliminating pay gaps between men and women