The Canadian Federal Government has amended the Public Service Employment Act to address systemic barriers to ethnic minorities.
The amendments reaffirm the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce and strengthen provisions to address potential bias and barriers in staffing processes.
President of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Jean-Yves Duclos said it was “an important step to foster greater diversity, inclusion and accessibility in the Public Service”.
Under the revised rules, permanent residents now have the same preference as Canadian citizens when appointments are made through externally advertised hiring processes.
Also, new or revised qualification standards must be evaluated for bias and barriers against ethnic minorities, and the design and application of assessment methods must include an evaluation of bias and barriers, and reasonable efforts for mitigation.
The amendments also give the Public Service Commission explicit authority to audit for bias and barriers that disadvantage members of ethnic minorities.
The Commission and Deputy Heads of Departments have also been given explicit authority to investigate bias and barriers.
The Government previously committed $C12 million (about the same in Australian dollars) over three years towards increasing ethnic minorities’ representation and leadership development in the Public Service.
Further changes will see the annual Public Service Employee Survey include questions that help to better understand the workforce and workplace at more detailed levels.
More than half (56 per cent) of Canadians say there is evidence of racism within the organisation they work for.
Ottawa, 10 July 2021
