Clocking In. (CA)

The difference between men's and women's employment rates shrank almost every year for half a century. It closed fastest in the late 1970s and 1980s, when it fell by more than a point a year, then kept narrowing more slowly. Part of the change came from men: their rate drifted down from 90.8% to 86.5%.

In 1976, 42.3% of Quebec women aged 25 to 54 had a job, eighth among the ten provinces. Ontario was second at 53.5%. By 2025, the last full year, Quebec was first at 84.7%, the top province every year since 2016, and Ontario was ninth at 78.6%; it has been eighth, ninth or tenth every year since 2009. So far in 2026 (January to August), Prince Edward Island has edged ahead of Quebec, and Ontario is last. Newfoundland and Labrador made the biggest jump of all, from 31.3% to 79.6% in 2025.

Quebec's climb sped up after it launched $5-a-day childcare in September 1997 and opened it to every preschooler by September 2000. Quebec overtook Ontario for good in 2008. Researchers have linked the two, but a chart like this shows timing, not cause.

In April 1983, a quarter of employed women aged 25 to 54 worked part time (25.4%). Today it's 15.3%. Men moved the other way, from 1.4% in 1976 to 6.9% now, the highest on record. Women are still more than twice as likely to work part time.

In 1997, the first year the survey asked about pay, women earned an average of $13.94 an hour and men $17.09: 81.6 cents on the dollar. In 2025 it was $34.04 against $38.64, or 88.1 cents. Comparing like with like narrows the gap a little. Among full-time workers aged 25 to 54, women earned 89.7 cents on the dollar. The biggest change came among workers 55 and over, from 74.2 to 84.0 cents.

These are average hourly wages for all employees. They don't adjust for occupation, experience or hours, which explain part of the gap.