National Research Council of Canada
Letter on Implementation of the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion

Summer 2021 update

Madame Charette,

Thank you for your letter dated 28 June 2021. This past year has brought unprecedented attention to the need to address persisting inequities that pervade all aspects of Canadian society and the federal public service. At the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), we recognize that diversity fuels innovation and endeavour to be a workforce that is representative and inclusive of the people we serve. As we strive to contribute to a more inclusive Canadian innovation system, we have approached the actions outlined in the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion with the utmost seriousness.

The NRC has many initiatives and activities ongoing that support the actions outlined in the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion. Indeed, over the past year, the NRC has made progress in the areas of committing, enabling, and including through measures such as: a senior leadership Commitment to Action towards a Diverse, Inclusive and Anti-Racist NRC; a focus on learning and engagement encouraging open conversation about representation, accessibility, racism, and allyship; and an employment systems review to identify barriers to the recruitment, advancement and retention of equity-deserving groups.

Our recently approved 2021-2024 Workforce and Workplace Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy supports the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion and incorporates lessons learned from our consultations with employees. This strategy sets out the path for the NRC for the next three years.

We recognize we have much work to do to increase the recruitment of Indigenous Employees and Black and other racialized employees, including appointments to the executive group. Our strategies in recent years have led to steady progress in improving representation across designated Employment Equity groups. Our work ahead will include establishing representation and hiring goals as well as enhancing our practices to support leadership and career development.

Attached to this letter is a report outlining key actions and early impacts observed to date, as well as a copy of our Commitment to Action towards a Diverse, Inclusive and Anti-Racist NRC (Annex A), requested data and supplementary data which may be of interest (Annex B).

Regards,

Mitch Davies
President
National Research Council Canada

Report on the implementation of the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion

Over the past year, the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) has made much progress in advancing several of the elements included in the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion particularly in the areas of committing and learning, enabling, and inclusion.

We began to refocus our efforts in anti-racism, equity, and inclusion in spring 2020 with the significant rise in acts of aggression, hate, racism, and discrimination, particularly toward Black and Indigenous people, and people of Asian descent, highlighting the inequities that persist in our society.

In June 2020, the NRC reaffirmed to its commitment to these efforts through an unequivocal declaration that there is no place for racism at the NRC, and communicating resources to support our employees and their families. We continue to engage in regular communication with staff, calling for vocal allyship, encouraging learning and celebrating the contributions of our diverse workforce.

Over the past year, a number of key initiatives have been launched toward a diverse, inclusive and anti-racist NRC including those highlighted as follows.

Employment Systems Reviews

Late summer 2020, the Vice-President, Human Resources and the Chief Science Officer were directed to conduct an employment systems review to identify barriers to the hiring, promotion and retention of equity-deserving groups.

• Work commenced in fall 2020 to engage the assistance of an external consultant. The review was conducted from January to March 2021.
• The review focused on the NRC’s hiring, promotion and retention practices.
• We also conducted a simultaneous review to assess the organization’s state of readiness for the implementation of the Accessible Canada Act.

Each review included individual interviews where employees from diverse backgrounds could share their lived experiences as well as data analyses related to representation, hiring (e.g., representation levels at each stage of the hiring process), and promotion. Additionally, group consultations were held with employee committees such as the NRC Committee on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (CEDI) and Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) committee.

The final reports for these exercises concretely identify areas for improvement as well as recommendations for action that are tailored to our unique research and innovation context. Several of the recommended actions have been incorporated in the NRC’s Workforce and Workplace Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Strategy for 2021-2024 recently approved in July 2021.

Senior Leadership Commitment to Action

In December 2020, the Human Resources Council issued an anti-racism statement which encouraged all Heads of HR to sign and act upon. Inspired by this initiative and recognizing that organizational leaders have the influence and decision-making power to act in dismantling systemic racism, bias, and discrimination, the NRC developed a senior leadership Commitment to Action toward a Diverse, Inclusive and Anti-racist NRC (see Annex A).

In April 2021, each member of our Senior Executive Committee signed the commitment in acknowledgement of their personal and professional responsibility to lead by example. Further, each senior executive member personally invited the senior leadership in their research centres, corporate branches, and other divisions to also sign it. The commitment was communicated to all employees and remains accessible to the organization through the NRC’s intranet platform.

Learning and engagement

With the introduction of the Accessible Canada Act, we added further initiatives in summer 2020 to increase awareness of disability inclusion across the organization.

• In October 2020, we marked National Disability Employment Awareness Month (DEAM) with a social media campaign highlighting the positive contributions that people with disabilities make to our workplaces and to Canada.
• As part of DEAM, we collaborated with Canadian Heritage on a virtual panel for public servants on the importance of employment inclusion for persons with disabilities.
• We further built on these efforts by partnering with other federal departments and agencies as well as community organizations to host events for International Day of Persons with Disabilities and National AccessAbility Week.

In fall 2020, we commenced planning for Black History Month to be commemorated in February 2021.

• We celebrated Black History Month in a meaningful and engaged way with a full communications and social media campaign highlighting NRC employees.
• A series of panels were held throughout February 2021 focusing on four key areas: Black representation in STEM and leadership; allyship and collaboration; intersectionality; and Black mental health.
• Our three panels were hosted by members of senior leadership, researchers, and organizations working to advance positive change for equity-deserving groups.
• The panels were attended by NRC employees as well as colleagues from over 25 federal institutions and 12 universities across Canada.

These events gave us the opportunity to form ongoing collaborative relationships within government and expand our partnering and outreach activities with grassroots organizations.

In parallel, to further support learning within the NRC, in February 2021 we launched an anti-racism resource portal on the NRC’s intranet to provide employees with reading suggestions, relevant research and data, as well as multimedia resources such as videos and podcasts. 

Support through mentoring

In April 2021, to support professional and career development, we launched an informal mentoring program for NRC employees at all levels, across all functions, and from all locations across the country.

• The Mentoring@theNRC program builds upon a successful mentorship pilot program for women in STEM.
• The program leverages a specialized software platform that tailors mentor and mentee matches based on several criteria, including region, professional discipline, career progression goals, language, and equity-deserving group (if the user chooses).
• The Mentoring@theNRC program currently has 440 registered users and 230 active pairings. Of these users 46% identified as women, 14% as Black, Indigenous, or other racialized persons, 2.7% as persons with disabilities, and 3.2% with other equity-deserving groups.

Advancing EDI in STEM

Our endeavours to connect our science to the needs of all Canadians are reflected in our efforts to respond to specific Calls to Action set forth by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission regarding research with Indigenous communities, supporting Indigenous businesses, increased cultural safety, and increased Indigenous representation within the NRC’s workforce.

• The Indigenous Languages Technology Project co-designs initiatives with Indigenous communities to develop software tools that assist in language revitalization, machine translation, information retrieval, and tools for biomedicine.
• In May 2021, the NRC established a partnership with Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK), United Kingdom Research and Innovation, POLAR Knowledge Canada, Parks Canada, and Fonds de recherche du Québec to respond to environmental, social, and economic impacts of climate change on Arctic ecosystems and Inuit communities.
• The NRC’s Data Equity Working Group is exploring questions of ethical data collection, management, and sovereignty as they pertain to our partnerships with Indigenous communities and organizations.
• The NRC Engineering Division is leading an Indigenous Student Recruitment Pilot Project to promote co-op opportunities to Indigenous students, engage with Indigenous Student Offices at universities and colleges, and explore dedicated work opportunities for Indigenous students and graduates.
• To facilitate internal knowledge sharing during these major undertakings, we established an Indigenous Engagement Network which brings together employees from a variety of disciplines and research areas on an ongoing basis.

In addition to these efforts, we have also begun communicating externally available opportunities for funding support and employment through grassroots organizations that are working to increase representation of members of equity-deserving groups in the field of STEM. 

Measurement and Results

As noted, the NRC conducted an employment systems review and accessibility assessment which included the voices of employees from diverse backgrounds in identifying systemic barriers. The NRC also regularly measures representation data for the four groups designated under the Employment Equity Act. As part of this reporting process, we also monitor hiring, promotions and termination data. These sources have informed the development of our 2021-2024 Workforce and Workplace EDI Strategy.

While the NRC has made progress in increasing the representation of designated groups at the aggregate level, it is noted that much work remains in increasing the recruitment and appointment of Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees and developing strategies to support career and leadership development. Our refreshed EDI strategy includes a number of initiatives to this end as well as enhancing our measurement practices to better monitor disaggregated data.

Included in Annex B is representation data of Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who were hired, left or were appointed to executive positions in 2020-21 compared with the previous fiscal year as well as aggregate representation data for the Employment Equity (EE) designated groups.

Challenges and Results

While we are fully invested in building a diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist workplace and workforce, we are conscious of the need to make major systemic changes in short periods of time. Our main challenge continues to be balancing these efforts to ensure they produce tangible and meaningful results. We hope to improve and sustain this balance by leveraging interdisciplinary initiatives and through our EDI strategy for 2021-2024, which provides us with a clear roadmap to orient our efforts and determine priorities.

The NRC is addressing challenges related to disaggregated data as we had not yet collected information on EE sub-groups at the hiring stage. Further, Labour Market Availability (LMA) data is not yet available at the sub-group level posing challenges for benchmarking, monitoring and reporting. Work is underway to identify data requirements and improvements, in alignment with our strategic objectives.

Employee Response

Employee consultations were a key component of the NRC’s employment systems and accessibility review exercises. Additional consultations were held on our EDI strategy with a number of committees and stakeholders including the Committee on EDI and the Recruitment and Retention of Women in STEM Working Group. Several employees also participated in learning panels, social media campaigns and the launch of Mentoring@theNRC.

Recent consultations as well as ongoing communications across the organization have made clear that employees are listening and open to change. Indeed, there has been a notable increase in questions, communications, and requests for guidance and training related to anti-racism, equity, and inclusion. Black employees have expressed interest in establishing an employee network that builds community by bringing together colleagues from locations across the country. Work is underway to ensure that this employee-led network is formally supported by the organization.

Momentum

As noted, the Senior Executive Committee recently approved the NRC’s Workforce and Workplace EDI Strategy for 2021-2024. This strategy sets out the course of action for the organization for the next three years. The strategy’s overall direction and key initiatives also align with and support the Clerk of the Privy Council’s Call to Action, Deputy Minister Commitments, Many Voices One Mind, and the Accessible Canada Act.

Our priorities over the next year include defining clear and measurable representation and hiring goals, supporting career and professional development of diverse talent, as well as developing a comprehensive accessibility strategy. We will also be implementing an intercultural competency framework to enable learning and contribute to a culture shift at all levels of the organization. We have noted that providing forums for dialogue has been of high impact in the past year and intend to continue making space for open conversation at all levels, inclusive of the voices and lived experiences of equity-deserving groups. 

Annex A: Commitment to Action toward a Diverse, Inclusive and Anti-racist NRC

I acknowledge that:

• I am responsible and accountable for my individual decisions, actions and advice, and that I am committed to lead by example.
• Allyship is an active and consistent process of unlearning and commitment to supporting racialized people, even when it is not easy.
• Unlearning means becoming aware of, acknowledging, understanding individual and systemic racism and discrimination, unearthing unconscious bias, and choosing an inclusive and anti-racist path.
• Anti-racism is a continuous process of identifying and eliminating racism within individuals and systems, starting with myself. It is part of my leadership and requires time and patience.

I commit to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist workforce and workplace.

I will lead by example by taking the concrete actions that follow.

To realize and change my behaviour:

• Acknowledge and learn about personal and unconscious biases and privilege within myself, and how they impact my behaviours, decisions and advice.
• Educate myself on the nature of microaggressions and exclusionary practices, and unlearn the actions/inaction/words in my behaviour.
• Educate myself on anti-racism, allyship and inclusive practices, and share with others in my capacity as a leader. This includes speaking up when I notice situations of bias or microaggression.

To create a better workplace:

• Empower managers and employees, first by my own actions, to become aware of their own personal biases and privileges, and how they impact their behaviours and decisions.
• Provide time and space for development and dialogue to managers and employees to unlearn individual and systemic racism, biases and discrimination in their workplaces.
• Support the establishment of and participation in networks for BIPOC and members of equity-seeking groups, and enable mentorship and sponsorship relationships.
• Listen to and value the lived experience of BIPOC and members of equity-seeking groups through safe platforms, decision-making bodies, program and research design, and governance.
• Identify and challenge norms, policies and practices that contribute to systemic racism, bias and discrimination, particularly in the areas of recruitment, assessment, hiring, promotion, and talent management practices.
• Enable equitable participation by all employees by supporting and participating in the review of all organizational people management policies and practices to identify and correct systemic racism and barriers to BIPOC and members of equity-seeking groups.
• Hold managers and employees accountable for their commitments to a diverse, inclusive, and anti-racist workforce and workplace.

Annex B: Data

Requested Data

Table 1 - Employees who joined the NRC in 2020/2021 and 2019/2020

Table 2 - Employees who left the NRC in 2020/2021 and 2019/2020

Table 3 - Employees appointed to executive positions in 2020/2021 and 2019/2020

± In order to adhere to confidentiality rules related to self-identification information, all statistics that include 5 employees or less are suppressed.

Supplementary Data

Table 4 – NRC Representation by EE Designated Group – Aggregate Level

Table 5 – NRC Representation by EE Designated Group – Positions in STEM