Hateful incidents
Data categories
A hateful incident is any allegation of hateful conduct that has been reported to, or documented by the Chain of Command.
Hateful conduct can severely damage morale and lead to a negative work environment that affects individual well-being and team effectiveness. It is the collective responsibility of DND/CAF employees and members, at all levels, to continually strive towards fostering a culture of health and safety, where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.
Sentiment towards hateful conduct
These metrics are from the 2022-2023 Views of the CAF Tracking Study and the 2022 Your Say Matters: Defence Team Well-being Survey.
Canadian public
The Canadian Armed Forces does a good job of addressing misconduct such as racist, sexist, or hateful conduct:
| category | subcategory | Year | %Agree | %Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Overall | 2022 | 32% | 68% |
| Overall | Overall | 2023 | 36% | 64% |
| Age | 18-24 | 2022 | 41% | 59% |
| Age | 18-24 | 2023 | 43% | 57% |
| Age | 25-34 | 2022 | 41% | 59% |
| Age | 25-34 | 2023 | 42% | 58% |
| Age | 35-44 | 2022 | 26% | 74% |
| Age | 35-44 | 2023 | 39% | 61% |
| Age | 45-54 | 2022 | 33% | 67% |
| Age | 45-54 | 2023 | 35% | 65% |
| Age | 55-64 | 2022 | 31% | 69% |
| Age | 55-64 | 2023 | 29% | 71% |
| Age | 65+ | 2022 | 23% | 77% |
| Age | 65+ | 2023 | 31% | 69% |
| Education | College/CEGEP | 2022 | 31% | 69% |
| Education | College/CEGEP | 2023 | 36% | 64% |
| Education | Currently a student | 2022 | 22% | 78% |
| Education | High School | 2022 | 41% | 59% |
| Education | High School | 2023 | 46% | 54% |
| Education | University | 2022 | 28% | 72% |
| Education | University | 2023 | 32% | 68% |
| Gender | Another gender | 2022 | 0% | 100% |
| Gender | Another gender | 2023 | 9% | 91% |
| Gender | Men | 2022 | 38% | 62% |
| Gender | Men | 2023 | 44% | 56% |
| Gender | Women | 2022 | 26% | 74% |
| Gender | Women | 2023 | 28% | 72% |
| Race | Asian | 2022 | 53% | 47% |
| Race | Asian | 2023 | 49% | 51% |
| Race | Black | 2022 | 55% | 45% |
| Race | Black | 2023 | 59% | 41% |
| Race | Chinese | 2022 | 33% | 67% |
| Race | Chinese | 2023 | 22% | 78% |
| Race | Indigenous | 2022 | 32% | 68% |
| Race | Indigenous | 2023 | 48% | 52% |
| Race | Other | 2022 | 36% | 64% |
| Race | Other | 2023 | 54% | 46% |
| Race | White | 2022 | 28% | 72% |
| Race | White | 2023 | 33% | 67% |
| Region | Alberta/Northwest Territories | 2022 | 31% | 69% |
| Region | Alberta/Northwest Territories | 2023 | 40% | 60% |
| Region | Atlantic Canada | 2022 | 32% | 68% |
| Region | Atlantic Canada | 2023 | 42% | 58% |
| Region | British Columbia/Yukon | 2022 | 27% | 73% |
| Region | British Columbia/Yukon | 2023 | 29% | 71% |
| Region | Manitoba/Saskatchewan | 2022 | 35% | 65% |
| Region | Manitoba/Saskatchewan | 2023 | 38% | 62% |
| Region | Ontario/Nunavut | 2022 | 29% | 71% |
| Region | Ontario/Nunavut | 2023 | 33% | 67% |
| Region | Quebec | 2022 | 38% | 62% |
| Region | Quebec | 2023 | 41% | 59% |
Data Source: Views of the CAF Tracking Study (2022-2023)
Defence Team
In my unit, there are supervisors who tolerate negative comments about someone's group identity:
| category | subcategory | Year | %Agree | %Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Overall | 2022 | 8% | 93% |
| Gender | All Men | 2022 | 7% | 93% |
| Gender | All Women | 2022 | 8% | 92% |
| Gender | DND public service employees Men | 2022 | 7% | 93% |
| Gender | DND public service employees Women | 2022 | 5% | 95% |
| Gender | Primary Reserve Men | 2022 | 8% | 92% |
| Gender | Primary Reserve Women | 2022 | 15% | 85% |
| Gender | Regular Force Men | 2022 | 7% | 93% |
| Gender | Regular Force Women | 2022 | 9% | 91% |
| Component | DND public service employees | 2022 | 7% | 93% |
| Component | Primary Reserve | 2022 | 9% | 91% |
| Component | Regular Force | 2022 | 7% | 93% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 10% | 90% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Junior Officer | 2022 | 5% | 95% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 4% | 96% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Senior Officer | 2022 | 12% | 88% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 11% | 89% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Junior Officer | 2022 | 4% | 97% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 2% | 98% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Senior Officer | 2022 | 27% | 73% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 9% | 91% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Junior Officer | 2022 | 6% | 94% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 5% | 95% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Senior Officer | 2022 | 3% | 97% |
Data Source: Your Say Matters: Defence Team Well-Being Survey (2022)
CAF members
Incidents by case status (2022)
This data is from the Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (HCITS) and shows the breakdown of hateful incidents in 2022 by case status (i.e., opened, reopened, or closed). Note that the HCITS system is only used for CAF members.
| Case Status | % of incidents |
|---|---|
| Closed | 24% |
| Open | 75% |
Data Source: Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/13)
CAF members
Incidents by nature of incidents and targeted group (2022)
This table shows the number of reported hateful conduct incidents in 2022, and the relationship between the nature of the incident and the targeted group of the incident (e.g., sexual orientation, religion, etc.). Each number is a percentage, which represents each combination of nature of incident and targeted group, as a percentage of total incidents. The sum of all the percentages is 100%.
| Type of hateful conduct | Age | Colour | Gender identity or expression | Genetic characteristics or disability | National or ethnic origin | Race | Religion | Sex | Sexual Orientation | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | 0% | 2% | 2% | 4% | 4% | 22% | 2% | 2% | 0% | 37% |
| Tattoo(s) | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Recruitment | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Membership or known participation | 0% | 0% | 2% | 0% | 0% | 6% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 8% |
| Inappropriate use defence IT infrastructure | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - sharing information | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 8% | 12% | 2% | 4% | 0% | 25% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - promotion or display of hateful material | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 8% | 10% | 4% | 4% | 0% | 27% |
| Donating or raising funds | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Acts of violence | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2% |
| Total | 2% | 2% | 4% | 4% | 22% | 49% | 8% | 6% | 4% | 100% |
Data Source: Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/13)
Time between incident and reporting
This table outlines the average number of days between when an incident occurs and when it is reported, between 2019 and 2023. DND/CAF acknowledges that there can be a lag between when a hateful incident occurs and when someone is ready to report it. DND/CAF culture change efforts aim to increase psychological safety. This may mean that over time, more personnel will feel comfortable reporting cases, which could cause the number of reported incidents to increase. At this time, incident numbers should be interpreted with caution.
CAF members
| Initial incident date | Average # of days between incident and reporting |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 169 |
| 2020 | 33 |
| 2021 | 29 |
| 2022 | 34 |
| 2023 | 3 |
Data Source: Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/13)
CAF members
Administrative action taken by type (2022)
These statistics outline the percentage of closed cases in 2022, broken down by the type of administrative action. Any blank values in the Action Taken fields are considered to be 'Unknown.'
| Admin actions taken | % of closed cases |
|---|---|
| None | 25% |
| Recorded Warning (RW) | 25% |
| Unknown | 17% |
| Counselling and Probation (C&P) | 8% |
| Initial Counselling (IC) | 8% |
| Other | 8% |
| Removed from Command | 8% |
Data Source: Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/13)
CAF members
Respondents removed from any position
This graph outlines the percentage of hateful conduct case respondents that were removed from their position, such as command, instructional duties, and/or supervisory duties. Note that these represent only the closed cases, where those respondents were removed from their position at any point in the investigation.
| Type of hateful conduct | Seniority Level | Reported Date | Respondents removed % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2020 | 27% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 14% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Junior Officer | 2020 | 100% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Junior Officer | 2021 | 100% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2020 | 67% |
| Engaging in hate propaganda - Sharing Information | Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 100% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2019 | 22% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2020 | 32% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 29% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2022 | 25% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Officer | 2018 | 100% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Officer | 2020 | 20% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Junior Officer | 2022 | 50% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2020 | 33% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 40% |
| Uttering threats/ Intimidation | Senior Officer | 2020 | 50% |
Data Source: Hateful Conduct Incidents Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/13)
Data sources
For details on the methodology of data analysis, including descriptions of each data source, please visit the List of data sources page.
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