Indigenous women in Canada continue to face structural barriers to workplace retirement plans and benefits programs, driven by employment instability, eligibility rules and traditional benefits design that often don’t reflect Indigenous realities, according to leaders at Aboriginal Community Career Employment Services.

National labour data highlights the disparity. A Statistics Canada report found the employment rate among Indigenous adults is about 61.2 per cent compared to 74.1 per cent for non-Indigenous Canadians, and these gaps can impact access to benefits, notes Lynn White, chief executive officer at Access.

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“Differences show up in job quality and stability. Employment rates for Indigenous women are lower than Indigenous men by about eight per cent — roughly 64 per cent compared to 72.8 per cent.”

Indigenous women are also more likely to work part time due to caregiving........

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