Royal Commission on Status of Women - heroines.ca, Women in Canadian History

A Guide to Women in Canadian History

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History

Time Travel in Canadian Women's History

Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada, 1967

In response to lobbying by 32 women's groups in Canada, Prime Minister Lester Pearson announced the creation of the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada on February 16, 1967. The mandate was to investigate all matters related to the status of Canadian women and submit a report. Journalist Florence Bird became chairwoman of the commission. The final report of 488 pages, tabled in 1970, included 167 recommendations on issues such as birth control, day care, equal pay for equal work, maternity leave, pensions, part-time work, and the Indian Act. For more on the commission, consult the The Canadian Encyclopedia.

Watch television and radio coverage of the announcement of the commission, subsequent reports and reactions

Florence Bird (Photographer Harry Palmer. National Archives Canada, PA-182436)

Check out a collection of television and radio clips (1967-2001) from the CBC Archives re the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada. These cover the initial announcement of the commission, the release of the report, reflections years after the commission, etc.