A damning external review into racism in the Ontario Public Service has found that discrimination and harassment are “persistent and unyielding”.
It has led to Secretary of the Cabinet and head of the Canadian Province’s Public Service, Steven Davidson apologising to employees for systemic anti-Black racism within the organisation.
The 175-page investigation by Employment Matters Consulting details how Black Public Service employees work in a “culture of fear” of their white managers and co-workers, who face little to no consequences for bad behaviour.
“The experiences and issues recounted in the report are deeply concerning,” Mr Davidson said in an email to staff.
The leaked report has not officially been made public.
The email was also signed by Ontario’s Deputy Ministers (the equivalent of Permanent Secretaries in Australia) who report to Mr Davidson.
“We apologise for the harm caused to Black employees by the prevalence and severity of anti-Black racism in the workplace,” Mr Davidson said.
He also apologised for discrimination faced by staff for their gender, sexual orientation or ethnicity.
The consulting firm was hired by the Province’s anti-racism taskforce in 2019 to address harassment and discrimination in the Public Service, which includes about 60,000 workers in Ministries, Agencies and Crown Corporations.
The consultants said they were extremely concerned about the wellbeing of the people they spoke to.
“We were astonished by the stories we heard and the emotion and anguish that accompanied them,” the consultants said.
They found instances of blatant harassment and discrimination, as well as systemic racism.
As an example, the report revealed that white members of a leadership team at one office held “secret meetings” that excluded Black managers.
In another, Black Correctional Services staff said they’d been purposefully locked in a secured area by colleagues for several minutes.
Black employees also reported barriers to career development, such as being passed over for promotions in favour of less qualified candidates; they said they had difficulty getting full-time hours, or permanent employment.
Toronto, 9 June 2021
