Table of Contents

Employment Equity Annual Report

Introduction

Workforce Representation Data Analysis by Employment Equity Designated Group

Women

Indigenous Peoples

Persons with Disabilities

Members of Visible Minorities

Employment Equity Measures Implemented

Consultations

Conclusion

Annex A: Polar Knowledge Canada’s Employment Equity Data Tables

Employment Equity Annual Report

Polar Knowledge Canada

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Document availability

This document can be viewed on the Polar Knowledge Canada website. To request a copy of the document in English or French, please contact:

Cambridge Bay

Polar Knowledge Canada

Canadian High Arctic Research Station

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Canada

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Polar Knowledge Canada

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Canada

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Publishing history

October 2025 - Version 1.0

Introduction

The purpose of the Employment Equity Act is to “achieve equality in the workplace so that no person shall be denied employment opportunities or benefits for reasons unrelated to ability and, in the fulfilment of that goal, to correct the conditions of disadvantage in employment experienced by the following Employment Equity Designated Groups; Women, Indigenous Peoples, Persons with Disabilities and Members of Visible Minorities by giving effect to the principle that Employment Equity means more than treating persons in the same way but also requires special measures and the accommodation of differences.”^[1]

Although Article 23 of the Nunavut Agreement, which addresses Inuit employment in the Government, does not legally apply to Polar Knowledge Canada since Treasury Board is not the employer of Polar Knowledge Canada’s employees, the Agency has made a deliberate strategic choice to align with the spirit and objectives of this Article.

As an organization headquartered in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, the Agency has developed its 2025-2033 Inuit Employment Plan with key goals that align with the Government of Canada’s objective of increasing Inuit participation in government employment in Nunavut. The Agency is committed to achieving the Article 23 objective of Inuit representation in all occupational groups and levels in its Nunavut operations over the long term. To support this commitment, the Agency will ensure that its Inuit Employment Plan remains a cornerstone of its broader Employment Equity Plan, currently under development. Both plans are being designed to complement one another while advancing their respective goals and objectives.

As required in subsection 21(3) of the Employment Equity Act, this document presents the Agency’s Employment Equity Annual Report for fiscal year 2024-25.

______________________________________________  Suzanne Kerr

Acting President & Chief Executive Officer 

Polar Knowledge Canada 

Canadian High Arctic Research Station

Workforce Representation Data Analysis by Employment Equity Designated Group

The following section provides an analysis of the Agency’s Employment Equity data for each Employment Equity Designated Groups for fiscal year 2024-25 from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025. Associated data tables for this report can be found in Annex A: - Polar Knowledge Canada’s Employment Equity Data Tables

The Federal Public Service uses workforce availability, which is a subset of the Labour market availability and is calculated based on the 2021 Census and the 2021 Canadian Survey on Disability. Workforce availability is defined as the portion of the Canadian population that are “identifiable by qualification, eligibility, or geography and from which the employer may be expected to draw employees”.

As of March 31, 2025, the Agency employed a total of 104 employees. The Agency’s workforce for Employment Equity purposes includes indeterminate employees, term, and student employees greater than three months, and Interchange Canada employees. Employees on extended leave without pay beyond 2025, term employees less than three months, and casual employees are excluded.

Employment equity representation is based on voluntary self-identification. The data presented in this report is taken from the Agency’s Human Resources system as of March 31, 2025.

Women

In 2024-25, Women accounted for 61.5% of the Agency’s workforce, which exceeded their workforce availability by 5.9%. Representation was below workforce availability in the Cambridge Bay office but exceeded it in the Ottawa office by 22.9%.

Representation was below workforce availability in the Administrative Group by 13.3% and exceeded or were within 1% in all other occupational groups.

Women exceeded workforce availability in all salary ranges, except the lowest salary range which is the Agency’s student salary range.

Women exceeded workforce availability in new hires, promotions, and had a departure rate below workforce availability.

The Agency is performing well overall in terms of women’s representation within its workforce and in new hires and promotions.

Indigenous Peoples

Indigenous Peoples represented 25% of the Agency’s workforce, exceeding their workforce availability by 2.5%. Indigenous Peoples’ representation exceeds the workforce availability in all the Agency’s offices except for Whitehorse where the gap is 2.8%.

Indigenous Peoples exceeded the workforce availability across all occupational groups, with the exception of the Administrative Group, where representation is below by 2.8%

Representation was below workforce availability in the highest salary ranges.

Indigenous Peoples were represented below workforce availability in both new hires and promotions.

Persons with Disabilities

Persons with Disabilities accounted for 10.6% of the Agency’s workforce, which is within 1% of their workforce availability. In the Cambridge Bay office, representation was below workforce availability.

Persons with Disabilities exceeded workforce availability in the Middle Managers and Professionals occupational groups but were below workforce availability in the Senior Manager, Semi-professionals, and Administrative groups.

Representation was below workforce availability in the lowest and the mid-tier salary ranges and above the workforce availability in the other salary ranges.

Persons with Disabilities were below in new hires and promotions.

Members of Visible Minorities

Members of Visible Minorities accounted for 6.7% of the Agency’s workforce, 10.5% below workforce availability.

Across occupational groups, representation of Members of Visible Minorities was below workforce availability levels, with the largest gaps observed in the Senior Managers, Middle Managers, and Professionals groups.

Representation across salary ranges was also below workforce availability, with the largest gaps in the mid-tier, second highest, and highest ranges.

New hires and promotions were also below workforce availability.

Employment Equity Measures Implemented

Inuit Employment Plan 

The Agency renewed and advanced the implementation of its Inuit Employment Plan. The Inuit Employment Plan lays out how the Agency continues to work towards increasing the representation of Inuit in the Agency’s workforce. The representative level is defined as the ratio of Inuit to the total population of Nunavut, which is 85% Inuit. As of March 31, 2025, Nunavut Inuit occupied 42.5% of the encumbered positions at the Agency’s headquarters, the Canadian High Arctic Research Station, in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.

Inuit Advisory Committee

The Agency’s Inuit Advisory Committee plays a key role in providing advice to senior management and guiding the integration of Inuit Societal Values / Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ) into Agency activities. The Committee also supports IQ Days, which promote Inuit traditions and cultural practices among employees and leadership, demonstrating the Agency’s commitment to embedding Inuit knowledge and perspectives in its work.

Supporting Inuit

The Agency actively supports Inuit employees to pursue post-secondary education and to attend career development programs. In 2024-25, the Agency sponsored two Inuit employees in the Pilimmaksaivik Education Support Fund, and three Inuit employees to attend the Pilimmaksaivik Sivuliqtiunirmut Ilinniarniq Leadership Program. These initiatives, offered in partnership with Pilimmaksaivik through the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, help strengthen Inuit leadership, build long-term career pathways, and ensure greater Inuit representation at all levels of the Agency.

Supporting Indigenous Culture 

In 2024-25, the Agency hosted four learning events at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station where visiting researchers shared the results of their research with the local community. These events provided an opportunity to invite holders of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (Inuit Traditional Knowledge) to share their knowledge with visiting researchers.

Supporting Persons with Disabilities

The Agency established a relationship with the Nunavummi Disabilities Makinnasuaqtiit Society, which supports employers, employees, and Persons with Disabilities who are seeking employment.

Disabilities include the multi-generational effects of residential schools which many Inuit in Nunavut attended, since residential schools in Northern Canada were the last to close. The Agency and Pilimmaksaivik, the Centre of Excellence for Inuit Employment in Nunavut, offer culturally relevant counselling services to Inuit employees to help create a working environment that takes these mental health issues into account.

Additional initiatives supporting Persons with Disabilities will be integrated to the Agency’s Employment Equity Plan, which is currently being developed.

Supporting Women  

In February 2025, as part of United Nation’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science, the Agency featured several employees on social media, showcasing their exceptional contributions to the field as role models as women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

Supporting Members of Visible Minorities

The Agency recognizes the underrepresentation of Members of Visible Minorities within its workforce and is committed to strengthening support for this group. This priority will be addressed through the Agency’s Employment Equity Plan, which is currently being developed and will include initiatives to improve representation and support.

Communications and events

The Agency actively promotes Employment Equity related days of observance, events, and information sessions to raise awareness and promote the benefits of a diverse workplace. In 2024-25, these included, but are not limited to, National Indigenous History Month, National Indigenous People’s Day, Canadian Multiculturalism Day, Advancing Reconciliation by Addressing Inequality, International Women’s Day, Black History Month, and International Day for Persons with Disabilities.

Staffing and Recruitment 

The Agency participated in the 2025 Kitikmeot Trade Show in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, where it promoted itself as an employer of choice in the North. This outreach helps raise awareness of career opportunities, attract local talent, and strengthen the Agency’s presence within the communities it serves.

The Agency has incorporated measures to include Employment Equity, diversity and accessibility into its staffing and recruitment practices to attract employees from diverse backgrounds, with an emphasis on Nunavut Inuit. The Agency provides managers with tools to promote barrier-free staffing processes, such as material on establishing barrier-free qualifications, barrier-free assessments, choosing appropriate areas of selection, and assessing alternatives to education credentials.

The Agency enhanced its online presence by posting job opportunities on LinkedIn, Facebook, and the Agency’s own website, and encouraged managers to utilize student hiring initiatives, such as the Inuksugait Resume Inventory, the Indigenous Student Employment Opportunities, the Federal Student Work Experience Program which includes the Employment Opportunity for Students with Disabilities, the Indigenous Student Employment opportunity and the Research Affiliate Program. The Agency also had its own informal student hiring initiative and successfully hired six students which was aimed at hiring students in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.

Consultations

Employees are consulted on diversity, inclusion, and Employment Equity related matters through various channels. These include the Public Service Employee Survey, the Nunavut Inuit Labour Force Analysis, workplace assessments, exit interviews and stay interviews, the Inuit Advisory Committee, and direct engagement sessions with employees. This consultation continued in 2024-25 and directly informed the development of the Agency’s renewed 2025-2033 Inuit Employment Plan.

Conclusions

In 2024-25, the Agency made meaningful progress in advancing Employment Equity. Women and Indigenous Peoples exceeded their overall workforce availability, demonstrating that the Agency’s efforts to promote inclusion and equitable access to opportunities are yielding results. Persons with Disabilities were within 1% of their workforce availability, reflecting progress but also signals that further efforts may be required to address potential barriers to recruitment, advancement, and retention. In contrast, Members of Visible Minorities were underrepresented, particularly in leadership and professional roles, underscoring a need for targeted action.

The analysis highlights that while the Agency has established important foundations, such as its 2025-2033 Inuit Employment Plan and initiatives to support persons from designated groups, gaps persist in representation, especially in higher salary ranges and promotion rates. Looking forward, the Agency is committed to transforming these insights into action. The finalization of its first Employment Equity Plan in 2025-26, alongside the Inuit Employment Plan 2025-2033, will provide a clear roadmap with measurable goals and actions to strengthen representation across all Employment Equity groups.

Annex A: Polar Knowledge Canada’s Employment Equity Data Tables

The following data tables depict the Agency’s state of Employment Equity for fiscal year 2024-2025. The data provided is a snapshot from March 31, 2025.

In order to adhere to confidentiality requirements related to self-identification information, all statistics involving 5 or fewer employees are not included in the tables below and are instead indicated by "SUPP".

Table 1: Representation of Employment Equity Designated Group’s and workforce availability

Employment Equity Designated Groups	Representation		Workforce Availability		GAP
		#	%	%	#	#	%
Women	64	61.5%	55.6%	57.9	6.1	5.9%
Indigenous Peoples	26	25.0%	22.5%	23.4	2.6	2.5%
Persons with disabilities	11	10.6%	11.6%	12.0	-1.0	-1.0%
Members of Visible Minorities	7	6.7%	17.1%	17.9	-10.9	-10.5%

Table 2: Representation of Employment Equity Designated Groups in the Nunavut, NCR, and Yukon regions

Location	All	Women				Indigenous Peoples				Persons with Disabilities				Members of Visible Minority
	#	Rep #	Rep %	WFA %	GAP %	Rep #	Rep %	WFA %	GAP %	Rep  #	Rep  %	WFA %	GAP %	Rep  #	Rep %	WFA %	GAP %
Nunavut	41	20	48.9%	51.9%	-3.1%	16	39.0%	30.1%	7%	SUPP	SUPP	8.7%	SUPP	SUPP	SUPP	15.6%	SUPP
NCR	61	42	69.0%	51.2%	22.9%	10	16.4%	3.1%	14.1%	9	15.0%	11.6%	3.4%	6	10.0%	21.1%	-11.1%
Yukon	SUPP	SUPP	SUPP	47.9%	SUPP	0	0%	2.8%	-2.8%	SUPP	SUPP	9.7%	SUPP	0	0%	24.7%	-24.7%
Total	SUPP	SUPP	SUPP	55.6%	SUPP	26	25.5%	22.5%	-3%	SUPP	SUPP	11.6%	SUPP	SUPP	SUPP	17.2%	SUPP