Pay transparency on the horizon!

Salary transparency is becoming an unavoidable requirement in several Canadian provinces. As of January 2026, Ontario will require employers with 25 or more employees to post salary ranges in their job advertisements. Although Quebec has not yet legislated on this issue, companies need to be prepared if they are to remain competitive and fair.

Pay transparency on the move

Over the past three years, four out of ten Canadian provinces have made a move towards pay transparency. Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and British Columbia have adopted concrete legislative measures. These laws oblige employers to include salary ranges in job postings, while prohibiting them from asking applicants for their previous remuneration. They also protect employees against sanctions or reprisals when they discuss their salary with colleagues. Some organizations are even required to publish salary transparency reports, reinforcing their commitment to fairness.

In Ontario, new legislation inspired by these initiatives will come into force in 2026. It will require companies with 25 or more employees to post salaries in job advertisements, mention the use of artificial intelligence in the selection process, and communicate results to candidates within 45 days.

This dynamic reflects a growing trend in Canada and internationally.

In Quebec, where do we stand ?

In 2023, according to the Ordre des conseillers en ressources humaines agréés (CRHA), 48% of Quebec companies revised their pay transparency practices in anticipation of new obligations, but also to meet the expectations of new generations in this respect.

According to Mercer, 53% of Generation Z members talk to their colleagues about their salary: the salary taboo is no longer a taboo among young employees… Companies are facing new challenges.

Faced with these new employee expectations, the lack of salary transparency can become an obstacle in the search for new talent.

Recruitment: transparency is a must

Today, candidates expect salary transparency. According to Mercer, 40% of candidates are unlikely to apply for a job if the job posting does not include compensation information.

In fact, most recruitment platforms have applied this trend to their tool, whether for legal reasons (tool used in several provinces or countries) or out of concern for guaranteeing a pool of candidates confident of finding the best job at the best price. Perhaps you’ve already noticed that some platforms, such as INDEED, require you to indicate a range or a fixed salary when posting, on pain of not being able to post? You should be aware that this obligation is becoming more widespread across all platforms.

A well-designed salary scale will certainly enable you to produce a quality posting, while not creating inequity among your employees, or to avoid their sharp disappointment should they notice a noticeable discrepancy between the posted salary and their own.

But that’s not the only advantage of a pay scale: it also helps to avoid internal inequities between employees, and of course to meet your commitments under the Pay Equity Act (CNESST).

Making the transition to pay transparency a success, step by step :

1- Evaluate the internal and external equity of pay scales
Before considering any disclosure, it is essential to ensure that internal equity is adequate: check that pay scales are consistent, fair and well documented. This exercise may well be carried out at the time of an initial exercise or a pay equity maintenance exercise required by the CNESST. This is a good starting point.
As for external equity, this involves comparing salaries with those of the market, ensuring that we are competitive and that resources are adequately remunerated.
Finally, a salary scale must remain in line with the cost of living, but also with market trends (for example, when there is a shortage of a particular type of position, salaries usually increase).

2- Define a progressive strategy
Each company will have its own recipe, depending on its limitations and ability to manage salary transparency, while trying to avoid informing competing companies of its salaries to minimize the risk of salary overbidding. It is possible, for example, to :

Inform employees of the existence of salary scales and explain how they work and are updated;
Then circulate the salary structure internally, without circulating the amounts (if necessary). This also enables employees to see their potential for advancement within the company;
And finally, publish salary ranges by job category. It is not compulsory, as in some unionized environments, to provide detailed scales with amounts per year of seniority in the position.

3- Training managers to communicate transparently
Preparing managers to answer questions and explain compensation criteria is essential to avoid misunderstandings and reinforce the credibility of the pay transparency exercise.
Transparency does not mean saying everything, but rather explaining processes, criteria and objectives. Misunderstandings and misinterpretations must be avoided.

4- Use diagnostic tools
Organizational surveys can be used to validate employees’ level of appreciation of their basic compensation, and thus the appropriateness of the pay scale to the company’s realities.
In addition, the company can enlist the services of an external firm to “benchmark” its practices against those of the market, and identify potential improvements.

In conclusion

Strengthening trust between employers and employees is essential for the long-term survival of companies. After job security, pay equity is the second most important reason why employees choose to stay. Reducing pay gaps and improving pay equity are therefore essential levers for attracting and retaining talent, particularly among the younger generation.

Employee transparency is not a passing fad, but a cultural and strategic transformation.

By adopting a structured, step-by-step approach, Quebec companies can not only anticipate legislative changes, but also strengthen their employer brand and build a lasting climate of trust. Is your organization ready to take up this challenge? Contact our Human Capital team to get started, whether as part of your mandatory pay equity exercise or to begin your pay transparency!

An article by our Human Capital team