OTTAWA – A government-funded report says Black executives within the public service are subjected to harassment and intimidation, career stagnation, unjust workloads and, as one executive wrote, a “cesspool of racism.”
Lawyer Rachel Zellars, who authored the report for the Black Executives Network, wrote that the interviews she conducted with 73 participants were the “most distressing” she has witnessed and recorded. Of the 73 people she interviewed, 63 are current employees.
“It is my great hope that the patterns and data revealed through these career narratives provide affirmation and recognition for career Black public servants whose narratives about racist career experiences have been long dismissed as anecdotal or hysterical when they have reported anti-Black abuse,” Zellars wrote.
A majority of executives interviewed said they experienced harassment, intimidation or the threat of reputational harm from supervisors or senior leaders, with 78 per cent of Black women reporting harassment and intimidation.
“Executives encountered outright threats; were denied or stripped of their power and responsibilities; were referred to with stereotypical or racist remarks; and were challenged regarding their merit and right to a position,” the report says.
The results were workplace conflicts “so severe that they led to chronic depression, the use of antidepressant medications and suicide attempts,” Zellars wrote.
Among the incidents described in the report were a colleague throwing a chair at a Black executive, threatening to beat him and using a racist slur. Threats of physical violence and unwanted sexual advances were commonly reported.
In a statement, Treasury Board spokesperson Myah Tomasi said everyone has the right to a safe work environment that is free from all forms of discrimination, saying it’s plagued many workplaces for generations.
“We are immensely grateful to the courageous employees who have come forward to share their experiences, as painful as they may be,” Tomasi wrote.
“It is my expectation that Treasury Board officials and deputy heads take immediate steps to address the troubling findings and implement the recommendations from the report, in collaboration with the Black Executives Network.”
The report’s release coincides with a Federal Court hearing to determine whether Black public servants can proceed with a class-action lawsuit alleging discrimination in the federal government.
That certification hearing in Toronto is expected to wrap up Wednesday, though it’s unclear whether the judge will release a decision immediately. The plaintiffs are hoping the judge will allow Zellars’ report to be included as evidence of discrimination.
The class action is made up of 45,000 people who worked for the government dating back to 1970. They are asking for $2.5 billion in damages for lost salaries and pensions.
The plaintiffs allege widespread discrimination in the public service, citing reports of anti-Black racism at the Canadian Human Rights Commission and an internal report on discrimination at the Privy Council Office.
The federal government has said the plaintiffs could have brought individual concerns to the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
But Gerard Etienne, a former executive in the public service, said the Canadian Human Rights Commission can only go so far, and that it operates in a system Black employees are trying to change.
Instead, Etienne wants the government to appoint a Black equity commissioner to report directly to the public — and to government — on how the system can be changed to improve the experiences of Black employees.
“If we recognize that racism is endemic in our society, then by means of definition, it is also endemic within the federal public service. And if it is, why not create a commission of anti-racism?” Etienne said in an interview.
A Senate report on anti-Black racism in the Canadian Human Rights Commission released last December found a “crisis of confidence” in the body and questioned its ability to respond to human-rights complaints in a “fair and equitable manner.”
The study was prompted by grievances against the commission over its treatment of Black and racialized employees.
Zellars’ report supports the idea of a Black equity commissioner, along with accountability for prevention of anti-Black workplace harassment and violence and mandated cultural competency training. It also recommends implementing targeted appointment and retention initiatives for Black executives at all levels.
Etienne said the experiences he had working within the public service are exactly what Zellars wrote in her report, calling it a pattern of discrimination against Black executives.
“There is a sense in the public service that we do not belong,” he said.
“People will use the system — they will use the formal complaint mechanisms, informal complaint mechanisms. And when they do, you are totally isolated.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version stated that the class-action plaintiffs cited reports of anti-Black racism at the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.
