HSA Celebrates International Women's Day: March 8, 2025

First celebrated in 1911, International Women's Day (IWD) was initiated by the labour movement in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. Over one million people attended those first events, campaigning for women's rights to work, vote, and hold public office.

International Women’s Day was widely acknowledged in Canada by the 1980s, and many feminist organizations organized rallies, public forums, and cultural events to mark the occasion. In 2009, the Canadian government officially recognized March 8 as a day to celebrate women’s achievements and continue to push for gender equity. Today, International Women's Day is a day of unity, celebration, reflection, advocacy, and action celebrated in many countries worldwide.

As of 2025, the gender pay gap in British Columbia shows that women earn, on average, 15 per cent less than men. The gender pay gap disproportionately impacts women and gender diverse workers, particularly those who are Indigenous, Black, racialized, newcomer, young, disabled, and 2SLGBTQIA+. Though the gap is narrowing, more must be done to achieve equity and gender justice.

Gender Justice means addressing the social and economic barriers faced by women and gender diverse people in our society today. These barriers include disproportionately higher rates of poverty and housing insecurity compared to men.

Gender justice at work means addressing workplace issues including:

• Violence and harassment at work that disproportionately targets women and gender diverse workers;
• Overrepresentation of women in undervalued sectors of the job market, such as care jobs, with lower wage employment and;
• A national child care crisis that continues to be a major barrier to women’s workforce participation

Unions help create a more equitable society by bargaining for improved wages and benefits for members and advocating at the local, provincial, and national levels to promote workplace protections and benefits for all workers. These include hard earned wins championed by unions:  pharmacare, affordable child care, pay equity, expanded parental leave, and paid domestic violence leave.

Together, we recognize our ongoing challenges and envision a future where gender equity is at the forefront of our collective efforts. As we honour this important day, HSA encourages you to learn from and about women from diverse backgrounds and to advocate for gender justice and equity in the workplace and in the caring services you provide.