Employment and Social Development Canada

Goal setting

Question 1

Has your organization set goals (for fiscal year 2023-2024 or future fiscal years) for recruiting and promoting Indigenous peoples and Black and other racialized people?

• My organization has set recruitment goals for:
  • Indigenous peoples
  • Racialized people
• Work is underway to set goals.

Please provide details and/or examples, including what your organization is using to set its goals (e.g., operational priorities, labour market availability [LMA], population data, workforce availability [WFA]), and how these goals are communicated to employees, if applicable. What has been the most helpful in advancing towards the goals you have set? What challenges, if any, have you encountered?

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has set and communicated specific multi-year recruitment goals for indeterminate positions for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees:

• Utilizing the Workforce Availability (WFA) metric as a benchmark to strive for and surpass. Efforts are ongoing to establish more defined and tailored objectives.
• For the Executive feeder groups and executives (including Directors or equivalents, Director Generals or equivalents, Assistant Deputy Ministers or equivalents):
  • the use of performance management agreements.
  • the review of the 23-24 FY data to determine a baseline.  From the baseline, a goal is set to increase hiring and promotion of the targeted groups by 5%.
  • Reviewing data available, through Quarterly Workforce Demographic Reports Public Service Employment Survey (PSES) Results, Exit Survey results, Ombuds Office Data, Feedback from Networks, to make a realistic determination.
  • Goals will be placed in individual performance management agreements. Progress towards and achievement of established goals will form part of the ongoing and year-end assessment of executive performance and directly inform individual talent management considerations.

Also, ESDC’s Joint Reconciliation Work Plan includes a pillar on Indigenous Recruitment, Retention and Advancement – with the objective of increasing representation of Indigenous employees who are promoted and who occupy management and leadership positions and increasing the number of new Indigenous employees being recruited.

The Labour Program leverages the latest Workforce Availability data during People Management Committee and Diversity and Inclusion Management Committee meetings to inform staffing decisions. In senior management meetings, the program uses employment equity-specific dashboards to show gaps at various levels and provide a detailed breakdown of employees by employment equity category.

The Labour Program's role involves developing, administering, and enforcing workplace legislation and regulations like the Canada Labour Code and the Employment Equity Act (EEA). These laws aim to promote workplace equality by removing barriers for women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, and visible minorities.

Next Steps:

• Efforts are ongoing to establish more defined and tailored objectives for recruiting and promoting Indigenous peoples and Black and other racialized people.
• Staffing services will implement the use of a specific employment equity (EE) process code as part of EE hiring for the PeopleSoft system to capture EE appointments.

Question 2

Has your organization set goals to foster greater inclusion (for fiscal year 2023-2024 or future fiscal years)?

• My organization has set goals to foster greater inclusion.
• Work is underway to set goals.

Please provide details and/or examples, including which metrics or data your organization is using, if applicable (e.g., your Public Service Employee Survey results, pulse surveys, exit interviews, human resources administrative data).

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has taken significant steps towards addressing systemic barriers and fostering awareness through various initiatives. This includes the establishment of the 2020-2024 Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan in response to the initial Call to Action, aimed at cultivating organizational understanding and commitment to change.

Additionally, ESDC has prioritized accessibility by creating the ESDC's Accessibility Action Plan, mandated under the Accessible Canada Act, and has published its first Progress Report in compliance with the Act and its regulations.

The organization has created safe spaces and networks to support employees from diverse backgrounds, providing dedicated resources such as Full-Time Chairs (FTC) and budgets to these diversity networks which includes, the Women’s Network, The Visible Minorities Network, the Employees with Disabilities Network, the Indigenous Employee Circle, the Pride Network and the Black Employee Network.

ESDC senior management has championed the development of a Diversity Network Roadmap to facilitate engagement of networks with the Portfolio Management Board (PMB). The roadmap provides a platform for the networks FTC to report their findings, enhance accountability, drive meaningful change, and foster a culture of inclusivity and representation. It will also contribute to the establishment of a clear governance path. It increases opportunities for diversity networks Chairs to sit on committees ensuring their valuable insights and concerns are effectively communicated to senior management.

To make a realistic determination to establish goals, ESDC utilizes quarterly Workforce Demographic Reports, Public Service Employment Survey (PSES) Survey Results, Routine pulse check survey with the network members, Exit Survey results, and Ombuds Office Data Feedback from Networks.  

The College@ESDC continues to advance the Diversity and Inclusion Learning Strategy which aims to help ESDC employees gain the knowledge and skills required to engage with diverse communities and eliminate barriers in recruitment, development, and retention. 

The Labour Program has developed a comprehensive Diversity and Inclusion Plan for 2024-2027, building on previous priorities, aiming to foster greater inclusion. Key initiatives include the establishment of a Diversity and Inclusion Management Committee to provide leadership, accessibility measures for events, an inclusive language initiative, and the creation of a Council for Indigenous Peoples and a Reconciliation Framework to advance reconciliation efforts. The Program has dedicated resources to support these efforts and promotes learning initiatives and workshops related to diversity, inclusion, and mental health.

Measuring progress

Question 3

Has your organization developed an approach for measuring progress towards your established goals? 

How is the approach being implemented within your organization (e.g., how is it communicated to employees? What are the roles of executive team members including the Chief Data Officer and Head of Audit and Evaluation and regional management if applicable? How are you reporting on results and outcomes both internally and externally?)?

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) employs a range of staffing metrics and flexibilities to gauge progress, including tracking the number of tailored advertised appointment processes and those utilizing restricted areas of selection for Employment Equity (EE) groups.

Metrics such as the ratio of self-identified Indigenous candidates and the number of qualified EE candidates are monitored to assess outreach and representation. ESDC also tracks the hiring of Indigenous students and non-imperative bilingual appointments for EE groups.

Progress made for Persons with Disabilities is monitored quarterly through EE Workforce Reports.

Furthermore, an Inclusion Survey has launched to evaluate the organization's overall inclusivity and organizational culture.

Regular quarterly presentations to senior management on progress are conducted, along with efforts to increase recruitment through various inventories.

Branches, such as the Labour Program shares and discusses Workforce Availability (WFA) data in management meetings to inform staffing decisions, relying on quarterly WFA for progress measurement.

Next steps:

• The College@ESDC is currently developing a Diversity and Inclusion Readiness Assessment Work Plan in collaboration with the Diversity Networks to measure the value and impact of ESDC’s Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) training curriculum and its effectiveness on changing behaviours.
• Use feedback forms and informal discussions at safe space meetings.
• Identify key metrics (other than representation rates) as baselines to measure progress.
• Use employee feedback through surveys and voluntary disclosure or review the Senior leadership feedback through Performance Management Agreements (PMA) ratings and Talent Management (TM) approvals.
• Develop a fulsome data strategy that includes multiple data stewards and takes a distinctions-based approach and includes a Reconciliation and Indigenous lens, that considers intersectionality and diversifies the data sets to include both qualitative and quantitative data across various areas of consideration.
• For the Executive feeder groups and Executive: Review data to determine a baseline; 23-24 Fiscal Year data will be used. Once this baseline is determined, a goal will be set to increase hiring and promotion of the executive feeder targeted groups by 5%.
• Plan to capture and analyze this data towards the larger ESDC Indigenous Retention Strategy, including an exit interview process where Indigenous employees have the option to complete their interview with an indigenous person and the information collected be used for research purposes across Government.  

Consequential accountability

Question 4

How is your organization using performance management and/or talent management processes to establish accountability for results?

• Quantitative goals are part of performance management agreements. 
• Qualitative objectives are in performance management agreements.

Please provide details about how performance management and/or talent management processes are being used to establish accountability for results.

One initiative of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) is the integration of the Call to Action - Forward Direction in the performance measures for 2023-2024.

In support of the 23-24 government-wide commitment to advance anti-racism, diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the public service, and its mention of the forward direction of the Call to Action, Many Voices One Mind as well as the Accessibility Strategy, ESDC adopted measures that reflected the advancement of its Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Action Plan and its Accessibility Roadmap. Among the more qualitative aspects expected of all executives we find the following measures:

• Promoting awareness, understanding and respect of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility with the intention to reduce unconscious bias in operational decision-making and actively advocate for the promotion, sponsorship, mentorship, and talent management, including recruitment and retention, of equity-deserving groups, committing to addressing biases and removing identified barriers.
• Progress towards and achievement of established goals will form part of the ongoing and year-end assessment of executive performance agreements and directly inform individual talent management considerations.
• Executive commitments to address diversity and inclusion as well as Reconciliation have been used as the basis for executive performance at the Labour Program. Additionally, the program has established a Talent Management process, resulting in an internal list of talent-managed employees, particularly focusing on those from employment equity groups.

Work underway:

• Executive Group Services and Talent Management will work with Strategic and Service Policy Branch (SSPB) for the identification of measures for Deputy Ministers as well as develop ESDC measures corresponding to the government-wide priorities for the 24-25 cycle. These measures will apply to all executives as well as managers at ESDC. Once again, this year, among the four government-wide priorities can be found a clear priority to Advancing Reconciliation, Anti-Racism, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility in the Public Service.
• Exploring, adapting and scaling up the building black leaders (BBL) program at ESDC.

Specific, tangible actions outlined in the forward direction of the Call to Action

Question 5

Have you, as head of your organization, and/or your executive teams sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles?

• I have sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles.
• My executive team has sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles.

Please provide details about the nature of sponsorship that you and/or your executive team have provided, along with other programs, such as mentorship or leadership development, if applicable.  

In 2021, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) launched, under the leadership of its previous Chief Operations Officer and Deputy Minister, a Mentorship Plus initiative for Black executives, inspired by Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS). It's titled From Mentorship to Sponsorship, emphasizing relationship-building for effective representation. In January 2024, ESDC adapted and launched an additional cohort of ‘From Mentorship to Sponsorship’ for Indigenous executives with sponsorship from the Deputy Minister, planning to continue it for the next fiscal year. Future plans include a version for executives with disabilities. These initiatives include monthly group mentoring led by Deputy Ministers, supported by coaches and an Elder for the Indigenous cohort, with senior executives acting as individual sponsors.

The Executive Group Services and Talent Management (EGSTM) team recently launched the Mentorship to Sponsorship program for Black employees and a stream for Indigenous employees. Sponsorship was included in the 2023-24 corporate commitments and performance measures for all executives. There was no means to measure them in 2023-24.

Also, as examples of branches’ initiatives, Benefits and Integrated Services Branch (BISB) launched a Branch mentorship program, with a focus on Employment Equity (EE) and equity-seeking groups in January 2023. A Pilot Project for 12 months (15 participants).

Human Resources Services Branch (HRSB) Black Engagement and Advancement Team (BEAT) launched the Collective Community Enrichment Circles, a peer-to-peer career mobility pilot, for Black employees in 2022. An enhanced version was facilitated in September 2023 which introduced an executive mentor match phase. The program supported 45 Black employees. 29 mentorships were created, and a total of 59 senior leaders are registered in the mentor inventory for future iterations of the program.

The Deputy Minister of Labour sponsored employees from diverse backgrounds, including Indigenous, Black, and other racialized groups, as well as 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals, for leadership roles. Labour Program executives, including senior ones, are also sponsoring employees from these groups. Efforts are ongoing to increase executive sponsorship of such employees.

Next steps:

• Expand the Mentorship Plus initiative to include People with disabilities, if feasible, after review and analysis.
• Branch Management Services (BMS) and Senior Management Team (SMT) are launching a Sponsorship Program within the Learning Branch.
• The Labour Program plans to use its talent management list to identify more candidates for Sponsorship/Mentorship and to leverage Sponsorship initiatives being developed for all employment equity groups by ESDC.

Question 6

Have you, as head of your organization, personally endorsed at least one recruitment campaign for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees?

• I have personally endorsed at least one recruitment campaign for:
  • Indigenous employees
  • Racialized employees

Please provide details.

An Indigenous Leaders advertised process was launched at the EX-01 level in 2019. A partially assessed pool of 43 candidates was created through the process. The pool has been shared with TBS who will be marketing this as a source of talent to senior management for potential opportunities.  

In 2021, an external process tailored to racialized employees was launched for entry-level positions in the FIN, IS and IT classification. A pool of 360 qualified candidates was established in September 2022. To date, 61 candidates have been appointed within Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) (20) and across the public service (41).

Also, ESDC has endorsed the Information Technology Apprenticeship Program for Indigenous Peoples. The Program is an ESDC initiative that supports the hiring of Indigenous IT Apprentices in the Government of Canada (GC).  During the 2023-2024 fiscal year, 77 Indigenous apprentices hired in 23 federal organizations, with 11 graduates. ESDC hired 7 Indigenous IT apprentices, with 5 graduating. Since 2020, 151 Indigenous apprentices were hired in 32 federal organizations, with 31 in ESDC and 12 apprentices have graduated.

ESDC also has a continuous intake EC process (EC-02 to EC-07) for Indigenous Peoples. Assessments are conducted on an individual basis and founded on a bilateral relationship between the assessor and the candidate. The focus is on the candidate's capacities rather than on "screening". Safeguards are in place to ensure the candidate can succeed at the level at which they are assessed.

In 2022, a pilot staffing process targeting students was launched to establish an inventory of racialized (visible minority) candidates. A total of 11 racialized students were hired for the fall 2022 session (pilot closed on December 31, 2022). Discussions are underway with the Public Service Commission as to the next steps. Also, an Indigenous PM-03 Internal Team Leader Process was launched by the Western Territories and Region (W-T) and a pool of 36 Qualified candidates was established. A PM-05 Internal Indigenous Service Manager Process was also launched.

And finally, over the last few years, there have been several advertised processes with a restricted area of selection to one or more Employment Equity (EE) groups resulting in many appointments. There were three (3) processes (PM group) from the Western Region, two (2) processes (CR and PM groups) from the Atlantic Region, one (1) process (EC group) from the Indigenous Affairs Directorate and one (1) departmental process (IT/FIN/IS groups). One of the processes from the Western Region (PM-01) resulted in 80 appointments of Indigenous Peoples.

Next Step:

• Launch of a targeted EX-01 to EX-03 Indigenous process. 

Question 7

Has your organization prioritized official language training for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are ready for advancement?

• Work is underway to develop an approach to prioritizing official language training for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are ready for advancement.

How is your organization prioritizing official language training?

First and foremost, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Second Official Language Learning Guidelines were updated to include: Category 2: Support to governmental and departmental priorities. To build a more representative and inclusive organization, Managers are encouraged to use this category to prioritize training for those in the ESDC Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) category, including Indigenous employees.

In addition, the College@ESDC has created:

• Tools to help managers prioritize employees for language training, including those in the EDI groups.
• An assessment guide for second language training (SLT) that focuses on EDI.
• An intake form that employees can use to request SLT and provide information to facilitate discussions with their manager.
• Guides for employees and managers that clarify the process of requesting SLT for employees, including those in EDI groups.

The guidelines were implemented in September 2023. As a result of the implementation, the College@ESDC had a SLT during the winter session which included 148 learners self-identified as being part of EDI groups, and more employees continue to self-identify.

Work underway:

• Development of a non-EX talent management framework which includes tools identifying the Talent Management (TM) placement of employees.
• Tools have been developed to help managers prioritize employees for language training, including those in the EDI group.
• Assessment guide for SLT that factors in EDI.
• Intake form that employees can use to request training and provide information to facilitate discussions with their manager.
• Guides for employees and managers that clarify the process of requesting training for employees, including those in EDI category.

Does your organization offer access to Indigenous language training or have plans to offer access? Please provide details. 

No, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) does not provide Indigenous language training.

Question 8

Has your organization provided support and/or invested resources for organizational employee networks and communities?

• Engagement with employees and employee networks in my organization’s decision-making is meaningful and regular.
• Governance structures are in place to support employee networks and communities (e.g., champions, champions/chairs participate at management tables).
• Material supports are provided for employee networks and communities (e.g., dedicated funding, FTE support, allowing time to engage in activities).

Please provide additional detail about how your organization engages with and supports employee networks and communities.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) created six diversity networks with five Full-Time Chairs (the selection of the 6th to be soon completed) and continues to see network membership grow. The department nominated Executive Champions and Deputy Minister (DM) / Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) Sponsors for each diversity network to support and foster a more strategic approach with a diversity, equity, inclusion, and reconciliation lens.

• Black Employee Network (BEN)
• Employees with Disabilities Network (EwDN)
• Employee Pride Network (EPN)
• Indigenous Employees’ Circle (IEC)
• Visible Minorities Network (VMN)
• Women Network (WN)

Each of the six diversity networks have created their own Action Plans. These individual groups Action Plans recognize the distinct needs of each group, allowing them to focus on concerns and needs specific to each area.

In 2021, ESDC created the Black Engagement and Advancement Team (BEAT) which is the only team of its kind in the Federal Public Service to identify and implement tangible and sustainable solutions to change the existing landscape for all Black employees at ESDC.

In 2022, the Ombuds Office was created as an additional safe space and resource for our employees to share their concerns. The Office recently posted its first annual report.

Question 9

Has anti-racism, equity and inclusion work been embedded in your organization’s integrated business plan and/or mental health plan?

• Anti-racism, equity and inclusion work has been embedded in the organizational plan.
• Anti-racism, equity and inclusion work has been embedded in regional and/or branch plans.
• Work is underway on our integrated business plan and/or mental health plan to embed anti-racism, equity and inclusion work.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) fosters an organizational culture of well-being, diversity, inclusion, and belonging by applying a workplace mental health lens to key policies and procedures that impact employees. 

As part of its Workplace Mental Health and Well-being Action Plan, ESDC promotes a psychologically safe workplace and provides diverse, inclusive, and accessible support to address emergent themes and reduce stigma.

Also, Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) are incorporated into the Essential Training Curriculum (ETC) for all levels of employees within the organization. The curriculum includes courses such as "Richness of Diversity and Inclusion" for all employees, along with an annual commitment to "Indigenous Awareness and Reconciliation Learning." Managers and executives receive additional training on "Values and Ethics Foundations" and "Inclusive Hiring Practices for a Diverse Workforce."

Furthermore, Cultural Awareness and Safety is a key pillar in the ESDC Joint Reconciliation Work Plan Strategy and Work Plan and can help inform the development of action plans.

Consultations with HRSB Mental Health Teams regarding existing services and resources available to ESDC employees were conducted. A pilot partnership with the HRSB Mental Health Team is underway to develop and implement community-centric and diversified mental health services and resources specifically tailored for Black employees at ESDC.

ESDC also developed a Black Centric Lens – informed by consultation with Black community networks both within and external to the public service – to equip employees and executives at all levels with knowledge and resources, allowing them to take into consideration the disparities facing the diverse and intersectional Black communities in all stages of policies, programs, services and development and implementation. This Black Centric Lens is the first of its kind in the federal public service and is available to be shared with other departments and agencies.

ESDC’s Next Steps:

• Mental Health Team will include anti-racism, equity and inclusion work to their action plans moving forward.
• Maintain ongoing collaboration with D&I employee networks to identify departmental activities to be implemented as part of the Workplace Mental Health and Wellbeing Action Plan 2023-2025.
• Use recent data from the Public Survey Employment Survey (PSES) and the Employee Wellness Survey (EWS) to recommend approaches to discuss and address mental health and well-being issues experienced by D&I groups at ESDC.

Question 10

Does your organization have a calendar to avoid holding major meetings and events during significant religious, spiritual, and cultural periods?

• My organization currently has a calendar for this purpose.

If the calendar already exists, please provide additional details on how this calendar is communicated or promoted within your organization.  

There is a common Calendar for the entire department that is posted on our iService page: iService Calendar. Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) organized an Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility week for the management Community to help increase awareness.  There are also several different calendars used by different teams and groups within ESDC:

• Strategic Services Branch (SSB) is currently developing a calendar on SharePoint that will be continually updated with significant religious/cultural holidays & days of recognition. All senior leaders will have access to this calendar to check prior to scheduling regional meetings or major events. Calendar will be accessible through SSB One Door.  
• The Black Engagement and Advancement Team (BEAT) also has created fiscal year-based communication plans to bring awareness to events that support the dismantle of anti-Black Racism, engage with the ESDC community through intersection articles and iService online presence and provide perspective and learning. 
• The Labour Program has a calendar of significant religious, spiritual, and cultural periods. It shares them with all employees via the Labour Program intranet. It also promotes events hosted by internal and external networks that celebrate these dates.
• ESDC also worked on numerous communication products, regarding cultural events and commemorative dates, such as:  
  • On average 3 relevant content pieces every week on Diversity, equity and Inclusion (DEI) issues for the Monthly Branch Bulletin, aka the Benefits and Integrated Services Branch (BISB) Buzz.
  • On average 3 relevant articles on DEI issues every month for the BISB Newsletter and will keep working on the development of BISB Buzz and BISB Newsletter D&I Sections – commemorative events, DEI spotlight, useful training.

Work underway:

• ESDC is preparing various communication products and events to raise awareness and foster an environment of respect and understanding for different religious and cultural practices.
• ESDC continues to collaborate with Employee Networks to identify relevant religious and cultural events.
• ESDC continues to collaborate with Human Resources Services Branch (HRSB) Communication and Public Affairs and Stakeholder Relations Branch (PASRB) to promote communications regarding these events.
• ESDC continues to collaborate with other teams, branch, and department for events to acknowledge these days. Executive sponsorship when possible.

Additional information about your organization’s ongoing initiatives 

Question 11

What are two or three specific barriers that you have faced in advancing work on the Call to Action?

Please provide two or three examples.

• Resource constraints, including limited funding and competing priorities, pose challenges. For example, these constraints:
  • Affect the provision of second language training to employees identifying with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) groups due to insufficient tools and capacity.
  • Affect the organization's commitment to sponsor two marginalized employees requires a pool of potentially eligible talent. However, the lack of resources has prevented the creation and management of such a repository.
  • Affect the recruitment of highly qualified candidates from Indigenous communities arise due to financial pressures, leading to limited recruitment efforts and difficulties retaining Indigenous employees. While Indigenous programs facilitate identifying barriers and including diverse voices, other grant programs face constraints in prioritizing Indigenous organizations. Insufficient time hampers thoughtful program design and implementation to reduce barriers and encourage Indigenous organizations to apply for funding. Resource constraints, competing priorities, and implementation challenges hinder the provision of second language training for employees in ESDC DEI groups, including Indigenous employees. Employment cycle barriers involve strengthening anti-racism measures and improving the workplace experience, while efforts to increase employee awareness and learning focus on applying anti-racism knowledge and providing professional development opportunities.
• Barriers around data, to move from anecdotal barriers to a quantitative measurable targeted strategy; The accountability in establishing goals and measurable outcomes depends on the possibility to gather data and analyse the gaps and their source. Difficulties obtaining disaggregated data on employment equity seeking groups. More specifically, lack of data with respect to Visible Minorities subgroups and the 2SLGBTQIA+ group.
• ESDC's size leads to challenges in organizing and ensuring accountability for training and awareness activities due to operational complexity and workload constraints. The evolving nature of ministerial priorities and operational systems further complicates this issue. Accessibility challenges arise from the transformation of service delivery networks, operational platforms, and the adoption of adaptive technologies.

Question 12

Recognizing that employees often have multiple identities, what actions is your organization undertaking to support Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are also members of other communities, such as persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ communities and religious minorities who face compounding barriers of discrimination?

Please provide details.

The College@ESDC collaborated with Diversity Networks to develop a series of events throughout the year to increase cultural awareness and introduce the concept of intersectionality. Each event was organized with a focus on intersectional topics with which ESDC employees were invited to engage.

The Accessibility Office (EAO) established a Centre of Expertise for Optimizing Employee Potential (CoE) to find workplace solutions and strategies to keep employees at work, including through the Duty to Accommodate (DTA) process for employees with disabilities as per the ESDC Accessibility Plan. EAO is also working on increasing its capacity for intersectional research and analysis, to capture the full-lived experience of employees and clients with disabilities.

ESDC updated its Second Official Language Learning Guidelines to incorporate Category 2, focusing on supporting governmental and departmental priorities. This category focuses on employees identifying with ESDC Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) groups, including those in multiple groups, aiming to overcome barriers to second language training.

To promote an environment of openness and understanding to discrimination, the Labour Program hosted facilitated talks with invited guests to build awareness with all employees to reduce micro-aggression and other forms of discrimination towards equity seeking groups.  This includes a series on Anti-Black Racism that has been delivered to executives and managers and will soon be rolled out to all employees. A Council for Indigenous Perspectives has been established to address barriers within the Labour Program and to promote a unified approach to advancing Reconciliation within both ESDC and the Government of Canada.

Service Canada's Quebec region has established a Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA) team as of January 2023. Specialized support and integration services have been introduced regionally for employees with disabilities (one-stop shop) and Indigenous employees (the Indigenous route), along with their managers. Assessment tools have been revised to incorporate Indigenous cultural competence. Various awareness and training initiatives have been implemented, including workshops on invisible disabilities, orientation sessions for persons with disabilities (PWDs), training on Indigenous culture, events on inclusive leadership and cultural diversity, activities for 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals, and educational capsules highlighting racialized cultural heritage. A round table called Employment Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility facilitates discussions and shares best practices on these issues.

The Integrated Services Strategy and Operations' learning Circle fosters and promotes the principles of Reconciliation. Equity. Accessibility. Diversity. Inclusion/Intersectionality (READI) by ensuring that all topics discussed fosters, promotes, and perpetuates intersectional lenses.

Question 13

In your first year of implementing the forward direction of the Call to Action, what impact has this work had on the culture of your organization?

Please provide the two or three most important impacts. 

• The Forward Direction has impacted the culture of the organization by bringing the conversation on systemic discrimination to the forefront and identifying where gaps exist.
• Encouragement of proactive thinking and anticipation, fostering ownership and accountability, fostering innovation, promoting continuous improvement, and prioritizing inclusivity and respect are key elements of the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) approach. Implementation of the Second Official Language Learning Guidelines has led to heightened demand for second language training among Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) groups.
• Senior leadership at ESDC is committed to cultivating a culture of allyship, demonstrated through initiatives like creating a tool to address customer racism and promoting participation in training on bias and inclusion. There's a focus on fostering conversations about Reconciliation, evidenced by increased Territorial Acknowledgements and the establishment of resource repositories. Executives' participation in activities like the blanket exercise signifies a dedication to understanding historical context. Overall, there's a growing awareness of the importance of an inclusive workplace and the need for continuous improvement, as evidenced by efforts to integrate inclusion and intersectionality into processes and services.