Women and Gender Equality Canada

Part I. Values and ethics training plans

Question 1

Has your organization developed department-specific values and ethics training plans down to the divisional level?

• No

If not, to what level have department-specific values and ethics training plans been developed and what is your target time frame for completing this work?

As of March 31, 2024, Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) had a total substantive population of approximately 438 employees. WAGE is developing a Values and Ethics (V&E) action plan. In terms of training, the department intends to leverage the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) learning path and will develop other materials to support V&E discussions within sectors.

While work on these plans is underway, the department has already started rolling out engagement and learning activities, in keeping with its status as a department created in late 2018 whose growth occurred primarily in a pandemic crisis period. For instance, in response to feedback from employees and managers and from the Ombuds for small departments and agencies about the need for management development and learning, WAGE developed and launched an Enterprise Leadership Series in March 2024, targeting all executives as a collective learning exercise, in partnership with the CSPS. The series touches on several key leadership themes through facilitated dialogue sessions. The first session, held in March 2024, was a two-hour dialogue on V&E where 28 of our 33 executives talked through seven different scenarios, touching on various elements of the V&E code. These discussions are being carried through at the sector and branch level by Assistant Deputy Ministers (ADM) and Directors General (DG) and explained in Deputy Minister (DM) weekly emails to all-staff for purposes of transparency and demonstration of management learning and development. A learning strategy has also been developed to bring these discussions down to the next level of management and employees and work on content to support these dialogues is expected to be completed by fall 2024.

WAGE’s departmental V&E Champion, the Deputy Minister (DM), has been hosting a series of dialogues with employee networks and committees on V&E, including the following: Manager’s Network, Young Professionals Network, Administrative Professionals Network, Indigenous Employee Network, Pride Network, Persons with Disabilities Network and Diversity and Inclusion Committee. The insights gathered from these sessions will help inform the development of the action plan. Discussion questions in these sessions, to start conversations, are as follows:

• It became clear at the Townhall that “respect for people” is the most important value for WAGE employees. In your opinion, what does that tell us?
• Out of the five public service values, which one speaks to you the most? Which value speaks to you the least and why?
• Are the public service values part of your team’s regular discussions? To what extent and how do they come up in the course of your day-to-day work?
• What are the most impactful actions, a leader can undertake to make the values of the public service real?

Question 2

Has your organization fully implemented department-specific training plans?

• No

If not, what is your target time frame for completing this work?

As discussions are currently under way with employees, the goal will be to gather input and themes, and then craft a V&E action plan by returning to networks in an iterative fashion. The overall objective is to evolve WAGE’s operations in a way that embeds values and ethics into all we do. Meanwhile, learning activities have already begun at the executive level to show that management is engaged and taking the first steps to reflect on our own behaviours and actions, and to become better supports to employees. The department will work on tools and supports to bring these discussions to the sector and team levels. While timelines are not yet set, the goal is to have an action plan completed and resources assigned, as needed, in the fall of 2024 with rollout beginning at the organization, sector and team levels beginning April 1, 2025.

Performance indicators are also included in all 2024-25 employee performance management agreements (EX and non-EX) to encourage and track participation in discussions and efforts to increase personal awareness of the V&E Code and WAGE’s Code of Conduct, which was last updated in 2020. All employees (non-EX and EX) are also expected to participate in a minimum of 2 learning events or activities related to V&E, with the CSPS Learning Path provided as examples within the current fiscal year.

As part of the departmental onboarding process, all new employees are asked to complete the mandatory training related to V&E within their first three months at WAGE (Values and Ethics Foundations for Employees (FON301), Values and Ethics Foundations for Managers (FON302), Who We Work For (FON304)).

Part II. Codes of conduct

Question 3

Has your organization reviewed its code of conduct?

• My organization is in the process of reviewing its code of conduct.

Question 4

If your organization is in the process of reviewing its code of conduct, what is your target time frame for completing the review?

WAGE has initiated consultations with its employee networks to gather feedback for the review of the departmental Code of Conduct, as part of overall discussions on the tools and levers we require as an organization to truly live our public service values. We have asked network Champions to consult their members as part of this broader conversation and report back by July 31, 2024, so that this can be part of considerations in the development of our action plan. This feedback will help ensure the Code remains relevant and effective in our changing environment.

Question 5

If your organization has completed the review of its code of conduct, did this review lead to updates?

• My organization is in the process of updating its code of conduct.

Please briefly describe the nature of any updates made (e.g., to clarify expected behaviours, to align with the emerging context, to include emerging risks) or explain why no updates were deemed necessary.

As noted above, a review of WAGE’s Code of Conduct has been initiated to determine whether or not updates are required and the place of such a tool in our overall levers to live our values and ethics on a daily basis.  

Part III. Discussions on personal accountability in upholding public service values and ethics

Question 6

What activities or actions has your organization undertaken to foster a conversation at all levels on personal accountability to uphold our public service values and ethics?

• Dedicated discussions at executive and management committee meetings
• All-staff engagements (e.g., town halls)
• Focused engagement sessions for specific functional areas (e.g., operations, finance, communications, policy, human resources)
• Focused engagement sessions on specific topics (e.g., conflicts of interest, social media, emerging technologies)
• Engagement sessions with equity groups, employee groups, networks and communities
• Inclusion in employees’ performance and talent management cycle discussions

Please provide additional details on activities that you have undertaken, including those not listed above.

WAGE is currently hosting dialogue sessions throughout the organization to get everyone’s perspectives on how we are connecting to our V&E at work. The conversation began at an all-staff Town Hall meeting in March 2024, where 371 employees participated. The DM talked about the Clerk of the Privy Council's initiative to renew our attachment to our public service V&Es, in how we work with and for Canadians, as well as with each other. The DM spoke of the importance of ensuring V&E is at the forefront of everything we do as public servants, and invited participants to share their views on which value resonates the most for them. Through a virtual voting exercise, the majority of employees selected Respect for people as the value that resonated the most for them. 

As mentioned previously, WAGE’s executive team participated in a two-hour dialogue session in March 2024, facilitated by experts at the CSPS, where they reviewed the V&E Code and talked through various scenarios touching on various elements of the Code. There have also been several discussions on V&E at various governance committees, including People Management Committee and Executive Committee, to share insights on key themes as the department continues to engage staff in dialogues.

In April and May 2024, discussions continued with members of employee networks and committees. WAGE’s V&E Champion, the DM, hosted dialogue sessions with each individual network and committee to ensure a safe space and active participation which represents approximately 248 individuals. To date, dialogues have taken place with the Managers Network, the Young Professionals Network, the Administrative Professionals Network, the Indigenous Employee Network, the Pride Network, the Persons with Disability Network and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. The goal is for participants to have an opportunity to reflect, to speak their mind and to be heard. The main themes and messages surfacing from these sessions are being gathered to ensure issues, gaps, questions are well understood and inform next steps towards the development of an action plan.

WAGE’s Human Resources Branch is also consulting with all DG and ADM to gather information on current practices related to V&E (e.g. creating space for discussions, assessing risks, supporting ethical leadership) within sectors and branches, as part of their annual strategic human resources planning process. This information will help guide our workforce plans (including diversity and inclusion as a central component) and V&E action plan.  

Question 7

Has your organization taken any actions to ensure that conversations on personal accountability to uphold our public service values and ethics occur on a continuing basis?

• Incorporated in employees’ professional development and mandatory learning plans
• Integrated in career succession planning (e.g., supervisor, manager, director)

Please provide details on activities that you have undertaken, including those not listed above.

As previously mentioned, performance indicators are included in all 2024-25 employee performance management agreements (EX and non-EX) to encourage participation in discussions and efforts to increase personal awareness of the V&E Code and WAGE’s Code of Conduct. All employees (non-EX and EX) are also expected to participate in a minimum of two learning events or activities related to V&E (to include in learning plans).

In all dialogue sessions, WAGE’s V&E Champion has spoken to how V&E is not just a code that we should be familiar with, it is part of our work, it is how we work, it is in everything we do. Weekly conversations and debriefs, including with executive Champions as engaged participants with their networks, are happening at the executive table also, particularly with regards to themes and questions that are surfacing in the dialogue sessions with staff.

We will continue to leverage the networks we have with other small departments and agencies to ensure we can draw on good practices and ideas, as well as the Ombuds for small departments and agencies.

Part IV. Additional information

Question 8

What recurring themes (e.g., social media, emerging technology, conflicts of interest) have emerged from conversations with employees (e.g., students, new public servants, front-line service providers, managers, executives, members of functional/horizontal communities/employee networks) across your organization?

The connection and interrelationship between the values was raised consistently as an important observation, in the sense that they are mutually reinforcing and need to be advanced in a holistic manner.

Respect for People

• Inclusion and Respect - Feeling respected and included is crucial for self-confidence, motivation, and morale. Lack of respect deeply affects employees, with impacts lingering beyond any actual event and sometimes requiring years of time to heal.
• Peer Support - The value of peer support was emphasized, noting the importance of having a supportive network to navigate workplace challenges, particularly when work teams are often very small. This is crucial for new employees and those in equity-seeking groups.
• Public Perception and Respect - The sometimes-harsh public perception of public servants, often portrayed as privileged or ineffective, can contribute to a feeling of a lack of self-respect.
• Generational Differences - New generations bring different values and work ethics. Seeking more autonomy, involvement in decision-making, transparency, individual consideration, and recognition are more of interest than traditional certificates or awards.

Respect for Democracy, Integrity and Trust

• Walking the Talk - Employees stressed the need for leaders to model the values and ethics they promote, and the importance of seeing desired behaviour is fundamental to confidence in one another. Authenticity and vulnerability in leadership are key to building trust and demonstrating integrity.
• Balancing Personal and Professional Integrity - Employees shared struggles with maintaining personal integrity and personal values while upholding professional responsibilities, particularly when social/political issues become personal to their identity and reality. This challenge is to remain impartial while knowing the importance of advocacy for communities they serve and sometimes employees’ own personal needs.
• Fearless Advice and Loyal Implementation - Employees frequently discussed the importance of providing fearless advice to decision-makers and loyally implementing decisions. Employees are looking for transparency and context when decisions made do not align with their own perspectives.
• Navigating Social Media - Employees expressed concerns about the complexities of social media use in today’s world and in the future, specifically seeking guidance for engaging on social platforms without compromising professional integrity. Balance is seen as an important objective.      

Accountability Excellence and Stewardship

• Effective Communication - Employees called for ongoing, consistent, transparent and inclusive communication from leadership, especially regarding decisions affecting them and with consideration of their views on impacts and mitigations. Ensuring that employees are informed and involved in decision-making processes fosters a sense of accountability and shared responsibility.
• Roadblocks to Innovation and Morale - Young professionals expressed frustrations about roadblocks and barriers to innovation. Despite seeing opportunities to improve processes and systems, they often face challenges in getting things done due to outdated systems, approval delays, or administrative burdens. These issues are said to significantly impact morale and motivation, and ability to contribute and advance excellence.
• Measuring Excellence - Employees have highlighted the importance of considering excellence as something that should not be defined by achievement only, but by the level of effort and personal situation of an employee on any given day, doing their best.

Question 9

How have you adjusted your learning activities to address recurring themes (e.g., adjusted training plans, developed specific case studies, invited expert speakers to focus on emerging themes)?

All information and perspectives gathered during the various dialogue sessions, along with the Human Resources Planning consultations with DGs and ADMs, are currently being analyzed to inform the development of WAGE’s V&E action plan, including training and learning materials. In real time, the executive Champions are following up with networks so that we can embed learning and development related to values and ethics into our regular operations, without waiting for a complete action plan.

As previously mentioned, a learning strategy has also been developed to bring the Enterprise Leadership Series dialogue session on V&E down to the next level of management and employees, through sectors and branches. The recurring themes that have surfaced during the various engagement activities will inform the development of this content.  

Question 10

Are there any actions or learning activities that have been particularly successful in fostering conversations within your organization (e.g., new tools, creative approaches that have resonated well with employees and managers, meeting with small groups, equipping managers to lead conversations, equipping values and ethics office/practitioners)?

As of May 29 2024, WAGE’s V&E champion has led dialogue sessions with WAGE committees and networks representing approximately 248 individuals, continuing discussions from the all-staff meeting. To date, dialogues have taken place with the Managers’ Network, the Young Professionals Network, the Administrative Professionals Network, the Indigenous Employee Network, the Pride Network, the Persons with Disability Network and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. This allowed for a high level of participation and a safe environment for open discussions. Feedback from participants has been very positive, employees expressing appreciation for the opportunity to share their perspectives and thoughts in a natural and open conversation, and being assured that these thoughts are being heard and reflected to the whole department in DM weekly messages.

Feedback from the Enterprise Leadership Series dialogue on V&E with the executive team, delivered through CSPS senior representatives, was also very positive. The richness of the session was in providing participants the opportunity to share perspectives, ask questions and talk through how one would navigate the various scenarios. This conversation has now been taken up in sectors and in branches by ADMs and DGs going into further depth with more specific scenarios depending on work teams and mandates.

Question 11

What indicators will be used to measure increased employee awareness of the role of values and ethics in their daily work (e.g., Public Service Employee Survey, pulse surveys, engagement with focus groups)?

Given its relatively small size, WAGE believes that feedback on how we are living our values and ethics are best done through communication, which is why we have prioritized dialogues with employees. As our action plan evolves, we will be considering the balance between dialogue and other ways of obtaining feedback. We continue to work closely with the Ombuds for small departments and agencies to gain valuable insights into trends and situations requiring management attention, such as building management as well as employee skills and competencies around empathy and understanding. The Ombuds has regular meetings with the DM, ADMs and with the management team as a group to discuss what she is seeing and hearing, and what suggestions she has for us to improve as a collective.

We have also made a practice of skip level discussions at the DM, ADM and other levels of the organization so that employees feel they have a trusted senior manager to speak to if they are experiencing behaviours and situations that are not aligned with public service values or good management practices. In a small organization, every person’s behaviour matters to those around them, particularly managers. This is why we have started our collective learning among our management team with values and ethics as a foundation, to ensure we have a common view of leadership expectations that centre on our public service values.

Question 12

Will these indicators be disaggregated by identity factors?

• Yes

As a small organization, low numbers often limit the disaggregation of data by identity factors, to protect personal identifying information and situations.

We rely on strong engagement with our networks to understand the differences and similarities among the experiences of employees from different equity-seeking groups, which are often intersectional in nature. The nature of our organization, as a lead on gender-based analysis (GBA) Plus, is such that we are very conscious of the need to be true to our mandate in how we manage our own organization. Our employees insist on this and will rightly continue to hold their management to account for how we live our values and ethics.  

Question 13

Is there any additional information that you would like to share regarding your organization’s work on values and ethics (e.g., to advance particular recommendations of the Deputy Ministers’ Task Team on Values and Ethics Report)?

At Women and Gender Equality Canada, we are deeply committed to upholding the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service, which aligns closely with our mandate to advance equality. Our organization is values-based, attracting, and retaining individuals driven by a deep commitment to these principles with correspondingly high expectations for authenticity and coherence within the organization. Our focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion is not only a strategic priority but also a moral imperative that shapes our culture and operations.

The renewed conversation on values and ethics across the public service provides an invaluable opportunity for us. It allows us to not only ensure that our internal policies, programs, and daily interactions are aligned with the Code but also to engage in important discussions with our employees on our future role as a convenor, capacity builder and knowledge broker in the areas of our mandate, working for system-level improvement on equality.