Human Rights Program & Women's Program

United Nations Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

(Held on March 21, 2001)

The Forum started with introductory comments from the co-sponsors of this event: Cynthia Torrico, Chair, Racially Visible Action Committee of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, National Capital Region (RVAC - NCR, PSAC); John Baglow, Regional Executive Vice President - National Capital Region, Public Service Alliance of Canada (REVP - NCR, PSAC; Steve Hindle, President, Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC); Shiv Chopra, President, Federation of Race Relations Organizations of Ontario (FRROO); and George Neville, Secretary of the Board, National Capital Alliance for Race Relations (NCARR).

Cynthia Torrico welcomed the participants and mentioned that the first forum gave people a place to express their pain and suffering caused by racial discrimination; this follow-up forum is a conversation, where people are gathered to see what progress, if any, has been made since the first forum, towards the elimination of racism in the federal public service.

John Baglow reminded us that despite progress we have a long way to go, that we have a struggle on many fronts to achieve a truly representative, competent and non-partisan public service. He encouraged us to stand firm on our principles, to keep agitating, and to maintain our vigilance.

Steve Hindle said that the public service is exclusive, not inclusive, of the rich diversity of our Canadian society. The employer is not nurturing the skills and talents of its entire workforce; sadly the best and brightest are no longer being drawn to public service. Mr. Hindle then went on to say that, when referring to a representative, competent and non-partisan Public Service: ‘Two out of three ain’t bad’ isn’t good enough.

Shiv Chopra stated that if the competencies of visible minorities are not recognized, we cannot speak of a competent public service ("I won't be good to fit in, I am good!"). Dr. Chopra emphasized that we need the perspective of the victims of racism to truly understand discrimination, that racism is a terrible disease, and that it is impossible to fight it alone.

George Neville noted the emphasis on youth involvement in fighting racism. We must continue to hang in there and keep at, it for it is the next generation that will be the real beneficiaries of our efforts.

Our first speaker, Ranjit Perera gave an assessment on the progress made since the first Forum on Racial Discrimination by saying, that although there has been some progress, there is yet a long way to go to eliminate the personal and systemic discrimination prevalent within the federal public service. One of the main issues that Dr. Perera spoke about, is the racial biases inherent in the systems and processes used to assess merit in recruitment and promotions within the federal public service. He mentioned that unless this issue is addressed, Canada will not have a "representative, competent and a non- Partisan" federal public service.

Dr. Perera expressed that Visible Minorities are not asking for any privileges, but only for a levelled playing field to compete for positions of public trust here in Canada. He noted that what Visible Minorities are looking for is the opportunity to make the contribution they can make and wish to make, to Canada. He mentioned the vision reflected in a button he had designed and used throughout his struggle with Racism within the federal public service, a vision shared by many Visible Minorities in the federal public service - "I hate Racism, I love Canada".

Dr. Perera pointed out that in a pluralistic, multiracial, multicultural society as we have in Canada, diversity is an asset, and an asset that will help Canada to play a leadership role in the world. Consequently, respect for diversity should be an integral part in any assessment of merit for recruitment and promotions for positions of public trust.

Finally, he mentioned that we have indeed put in place appropriate laws and policies aimed at valuing diversity, and fostering a representative, competent and a non Partisan Public Service - but that there is an urgent need to "Walk the Talk", and that in this respect it seems that there is a real lack of government-wide leadership and accountability at the top. Finally, he urged the government to demonstrate more leadership, take more care of "the asset of diversity" and give us, the Visible Minorities, a chance to make our own contribution to Canada, rather than excluding competent people just on the basis of the colour of their skin.

The keynote speaker, Senator Kinsella, started by reminding us that, under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, access to the Public Service is a human right; that "intent is irrelevant"; that "the structures are present and in place; but he "is not convinced that the end results have been achieved" because "the measures have not worked to the level of effect." Senator Kinsella also said that resolving these problems is a work of art in process, that slippage must be resisted, that progress must be accelerated, and that we must use all the tools available, at the bargaining table and in litigation. Resolution will not happen by embracing change; rather it will happen by enforcing change.

Senator Kinsella underscored his conclusion that Deputy Ministers who are not meeting their organization's objectives are not doing their job, and raised an important point when he referred to the erosion of democracy in this country, as a result of the concentration of power in the Prime Minister's Office, and "Henry VIII type bills" that give a lot of discretionary authority to hierarchical power structures, without the constraining influence of appropriate accountability instruments. In this respect he also mentioned the "Whistle Blowers Bill" he has introduced in the Senate to partly address this issue.

The panel on Remedial Measures was very dynamic, with full participation of the audience. Some highlights:

Our friends from the legal profession expressed dismay that the full array of laws and policies often do not work in unison; that issues get bounced about; that much time and money are wasted seeking appropriate avenues for redress. According to Mr. Engelmann, in the end, issues are so compartmentalized that tackling the whole picture becomes very difficult. So while we may end up with many small victories, and we often win the battles, we do not necessarily win the war on racial discrimination!

The warning was issued that the fight is not for the faint of heart. Individuals need all the help they can get, through unions, advocacy groups and other means to combat a public service that pulls out all the stops when challenged. Indeed we must seek the highest and most powerful ways of demonstrating our abhorrence for practices of racial discrimination in the federal public service.

One of the most fascinating parts of the Forum was the specific challenges that were directed at the Public Service Commission (PSC), the watchdog of the "merit principle", together with TBS, and the agency responsible for the massive task of measuring results and imposing an accountability framework on government departments and agencies that fail to reach their employment equity objectives.

Ms. Armit, Vice President of the Public Service Commission, acknowledged that commitment from the top is essential, and that accountability is the key to real change. In her view, these elements were already in place with the commitment from the Speech from the Throne and the Clerk.

The PSC is identifying barriers to EE through the Employment Systems Review. For example, she said that in a recent study on 10 most commonly used test instruments to assess merit in staffing competitions, 4 were found to have potential risk of adverse impact to some EE groups. As a result, corrective measures are now being implemented.

With respect to how well government departments were using the staffing system to achieve government objectives, she mentioned that putting real statistics under the public spotlight and identifying departments who are lagging in their efforts may help put pressure on action.

In the dialogue that followed her presentation, a number of members of the audience pointed out that finely crafted policies and laws sometimes camouflage the real picture. Many participants were very critical of the fact that the PSC does not seem to be performing its role of requiring government departments and agencies to ensure that appointments to and from within the public service are based on merit, and to make certain that the merit principle is not being applied in a racially biased manner.

Ms. Armit found the dialogue and the views expressed to legitimate and requiring a forum for discussion. Obviously, it was uncomfortable for her to be a recipient of that level of frustration, but she and most of the members of the audience never took remarks personally and were conscious of the fact that she was just the messenger. If anything, this Forum just strengthened her resolve to go back to her agency and advise them of the "mood out there in the trenches," and the need for urgent action and more concrete results in the EE area from their end.

Closing remarks were offered by John Baglow (PSAC) and Nita Saville (PIPSC).

Mr. Baglow referred to the statistics given by Senator Kinsella and said that we have other evidence besides the Senator`s sobering figures. The employee survey carried out recently indicated high levels of harassment faced by members belonging to equity groups. So, when Senator Kinsella says we should use all the tools to move forward, we should. By all means, grieve, use other legal avenues, do your political lobbying and so on. But let’s not be complacent. Let’s be aware of the nature of the state.

Those in power like to have it both ways. For example, the Canadian Human Rights Commission provides a recourse mechanism, but getting there is the problem. As Peter Engelmann said. "Now we have Employment Equity Tribunals - more of the same. More and more is being pushed through an ever-narrowing bottleneck. So we seem to have avenues of appropriate recourse - but we don’t".

Let us not leave it to the system to reform itself said Mr. Baglow. Mobilization is the key, working on the ground, direct action… As unions, we’re struggling to be on-side, to work at the ground level for the human rights of every one of us. He closed his remarks by saying, "Let US keep up the pressure."

Nita Saville said that "when competent and talented persons are denied access to the full range of career opportunities and advancement because they are different, because of their race or skin colour, the public service is impoverished and incomplete. Sadly, in today's workplace, far too often, difference is a negative rather than a positive; a division of the visible minority from the invisible majority; a diminishment of human compassion and integrity in the face of the basic principle that we are all born equal. The good news is that we have many tools at our disposal - the Canadian Human Rights Act, the Public Service Employment Act, the Public Service Staff Relations Act among many other legal and ethical avenues. The bad news is we still need these tools! But they are only tools! Only we the people, with purpose and perseverance, can activate the tools. To effect change, we must continue to forcefully articulate our goals to eradicate racial discrimination and to enforce the policies that safeguard these goals".

Ms. Saville ended her closing remarks by saying: "Today, I came to learn. Today, I leave even more committed than before to doing my part towards the achievement of the goals so well articulated today, towards a public service enriched with diversity, and diversity which is pursued, valued, and celebrated!"