Sexual Misconduct Incidents
Data categories
Responses to the Survey on Sexual Misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (SSMCAF)
CAF members witnessing or experiencing sexualized or discriminatory behaviour
This table shows the 2022 SSMCAF responses. This survey tracks the prevalence and nature of self-reported sexual misconduct within the military workplace and/or involving military members, Department of National Defence (DND) employees, or DND contractors within or outside the military workplace. To access confidential support from the Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre (SMSRC), call 1-844-750-1648.
I have experienced or witnessed sexualized or discriminatory behaviour in the past 12 months:
| Year | % Agree | % Other |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 67% | 33% |
Data Source: Survey on Sexual Misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (2022)
Response to witnessing sexual misconduct
In the SSMCAF survey, CAF Regular Force members were asked to disclose whether they had witnessed: 1) inappropriate verbal or non-verbal communication, 2) sexually explicit materials, physical contact, or suggested sexual relations, and/or 3) discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity. The data below shows the percentage of members who witnessed each behaviour type in the prior 12 months and whether they took action (at least once) or did not take action (at least once).
| Type of Action Taken | Discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity | Inappropriate verbal or non-verbal communication | Sexually explicit materials, physical contact, or suggested sexual relations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Action not taken | 70% | 80% | 70% |
| Action taken | 56% | 54% | 51% |
Data Source: Survey on Sexual Misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (2022)
Sexual misconduct CAF incident reporting
DND/CAF uses the Sexual Misconduct Incident Tracking System (SMITS) to track reported incidents of sexual misconduct in the CAF. This section only includes data after April 1, 2016, which is when internal organizations were directed to begin tracking reports of sexual misconduct incidents. Currently, no similar system exists for DND public service employees.
Sexual misconduct reported cases by incident type
Note: the year indicates the year in which the incident was reported, which may differ from the year the incident occurred. A "completed" status means the case is ready to be reviewed for closure given that the case fields have met the minimum requirements. A "closed" status means the case is closed in the system.
| Status | Compaint Type Themes | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Discriminatory behaviours | 22 | 18 | 13 | N/A | 11 |
| All | Involving minors | 13 | 12 | N/A | 14 | 14 |
| All | Sexual assault | 180 | 144 | 225 | 194 | 134 |
| All | Sexualized behaviours | 245 | 216 | 285 | 224 | 191 |
| Closed | Discriminatory behaviours | 22 | 18 | 13 | N/A | N/A |
| Closed | Involving minors | 13 | 12 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Closed | Sexual assault | 169 | 104 | 111 | 86 | 17 |
| Closed | Sexualized behaviours | 245 | 181 | 197 | 138 | 57 |
| Completed | Sexualized behaviours | N/A | 13 | 11 | N/A | N/A |
| Open | Discriminatory behaviours | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 11 |
| Open | Involving minors | N/A | N/A | N/A | 14 | 14 |
| Open | Sexual assault | 11 | 40 | 114 | 108 | 117 |
| Open | Sexualized behaviours | N/A | 22 | 77 | 86 | 134 |
Data Sources: Sexual Misconduct incident Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/04)
Total incidents (2022) by internal organization
The number of personnel in the internal organization, Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC), is not shown here. While there are incidents that are reported while an individual is with CJOC, this internal organization represents personnel who join temporarily for deployment purposes, having come from another originating team. For this reason, the size of the CJOC is not shown as a fixed number.
Note: only internal organizations with incidents in 2022 are listed in this chart. Counts of less than 10 incidents have been grouped into "Other internal orgs”.
| Internal organizations | Number of CAF members | Incidents |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Army | 40.7K | 195 |
| Chief of Military Personnel | 11.8K | 91 |
| Royal Canadian Navy | 12.3K | 81 |
| Royal Canadian Air Force | 14.9K | 47 |
| Canadian Joint Operations Command | N/A | 21 |
| Other internal orgs. | 5.2K | 12 |
| Vice Chief of Defence Staff | 3.1K | 12 |
Data Sources: Sexual Misconduct Incident Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/04)
Time between incident and reporting
This table illustrates the average number of days between when an incident of sexual misconduct occurred and when the incident was reported. Note that a shorter time may demonstrate that CAF members feel psychologically safe to report the incident right away.
| Complaint type | Incident Date | Average # of days |
|---|---|---|
| All | 2019 | 119 |
| All | 2020 | 118 |
| All | 2021 | 62 |
| All | 2022 | 47 |
| All | 2023 | 16 |
| Discriminatory behaviours | 2019 | 22 |
| Discriminatory behaviours | 2020 | 85 |
| Discriminatory behaviours | 2021 | 26 |
| Discriminatory behaviours | 2022 | 44 |
| Discriminatory behaviours | 2023 | 25 |
| Involving minors | 2019 | 100 |
| Involving minors | 2020 | 221 |
| Involving minors | 2021 | 166 |
| Involving minors | 2022 | 83 |
| Involving minors | 2023 | 9 |
| Sexual assault | 2019 | 182 |
| Sexual assault | 2020 | 128 |
| Sexual assault | 2021 | 70 |
| Sexual assault | 2022 | 39 |
| Sexual assault | 2023 | 14 |
| Sexualized behaviours | 2019 | 84 |
| Sexualized behaviours | 2020 | 106 |
| Sexualized behaviours | 2021 | 56 |
| Sexualized behaviours | 2022 | 51 |
| Sexualized behaviours | 2023 | 16 |
Data Sources: Sexual Misconduct Incident Tracking System (Last Updated: 2023/12/04)
Sexual misconduct training
Sentiment towards sexual misconduct training
This data is from the 2022 Survey on Sexual Misconduct in the CAF. DND/CAF is committed to providing training and educational materials about sexual misconduct, including presentations, discussion material, educational material, and workshops.
CAF members
Information about how to report sexual misconduct is promoted and shared in my unit:
| category | subcategory | Year | % Agree | % Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Overall | 2022 | 81% | 19% |
| Men | Experienced sexualized or discriminatory behaviours | 2022 | 73% | 27% |
| Men | Overall | 2022 | 83% | 17% |
| Men | Victim of sexual assault | 2022 | 59% | 41% |
| Women | Experienced sexualized or discriminatory behaviours | 2022 | 55% | 45% |
| Women | Overall | 2022 | 70% | 30% |
| Women | Victim of sexual assault | 2022 | 45% | 55% |
Data Source: Survey on Sexual Misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (2022)
Sexual misconduct support services
CAF member sentiment towards sexual misconduct support services
This data is from the 2022 Your Say Matters survey. The Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre (SMSRC), provides support services to currently serving and former CAF members and DND public service employees who are affected by sexual misconduct. To access confidential support from the SMSRC toll-free in North America, call 1-844-750-1648.
CAF members
I would know where to go to get help if I experienced sexual misconduct:
| category | subcategory | Year | % Agree | % Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Overall | 2021 | 73% | 27% |
| Gender | All Men | 2021 | 75% | 25% |
| Gender | All Women | 2021 | 68% | 33% |
| Gender | Primary Reserve Men | 2021 | 71% | 29% |
| Gender | Primary Reserve Women | 2021 | 70% | 31% |
| Gender | Regular Force Men | 2021 | 76% | 24% |
| Gender | Regular Force Women | 2021 | 67% | 33% |
| Component | Primary Reserve | 2021 | 71% | 29% |
| Component | Regular Force | 2021 | 74% | 26% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 67% | 33% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Junior Officer | 2021 | 78% | 22% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 82% | 18% |
| CAF Rank | Overall Senior Officer | 2021 | 84% | 16% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 66% | 34% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Junior Officer | 2021 | 74% | 26% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 82% | 18% |
| CAF Rank | Primary Reserve Senior Officer | 2021 | 88% | 13% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Junior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 67% | 33% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Junior Officer | 2021 | 80% | 20% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Senior Non-Commissioned Member | 2021 | 82% | 18% |
| CAF Rank | Regular Force Senior Officer | 2021 | 83% | 17% |
Data Source: Your Say Survey: Programs & Policies (2021)
More information: Restorative Engagement Program
Context
In 2016-2017, seven former military members filed class action lawsuits against the Canadian Armed Forces for sexual assault, sexual harassment, and discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation. In November 2019, the Federal Court approved the CAF-DND Sexual Misconduct Class Action Settlement.
As part of the settlement agreement, DND/CAF established a Restorative Engagement Program to enable members of the CAF-DND Sexual Misconduct Class Action Settlement to share their experiences, impacts and insights with Defence Representatives and to contribute to Defence Team efforts to build a more inclusive and respectful institutional culture. The program is run by the Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre (SMSRC).
Recent actions
The SMSRC launched the Restorative Engagement program in November 2021. In January 2022, the first groups of Defence representatives began working in cohorts with restorative practitioners to develop the knowledge and skills needed to engage with class members and translate what they learned into meaningful action for culture change. The program has continued to bring together Defence representatives to meet the class members’ needs for engagements and to learn from them, and the activities are expected to continue into 2026.
The settlement mandated a restorative engagement program. This program launched in November 2021 and allows members of the CAF-DND Sexual Misconduct Class Action Settlement to share their experience(s) of sexual misconduct, the impact it has had on their life and career and/or provide their knowledge, ideas, and insights on how to improve and contribute to culture change in DND/CAF. This shared understanding between class members and DND/CAF representatives will help the Defence Team to build a more inclusive and respectful institutional culture.
In May 2022, the Minister of National Defence granted a regulatory amendment to create an exception to the Duty to Report, in the context of a restorative engagement program. This amendment allows the program to be delivered as per its intended design but does not limit a class member's ability to report. It helps to ensure others are not reporting on their behalf, and that CAF members who have volunteered to listen, acknowledge, and learn from class members' experiences are not put in a position where they are obligated to report incidents of wrongdoing, regardless of whether the affected person is ready or willing to report them.
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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