Senate Committee tells Human Rights Commission to fix culture after allegations of anti-Black racism

In a new report detailing its investigation into allegations of anti-Black racism and sexism at the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), the Senate of Canada’s Standing Committee on Human Rights has called on the CHRC to change its workplace culture and work to regain the trust of its Black and racialized employees.

In its report, the committee recommended the federal government appoint a Black equity commissioner, modernize human rights and employment equity laws, and appoint an independent expert to review the working conditions of Black, Indigenous, and racialized employees at the CHRC. The report said that CHRC employees had complained of discrimination and lack of opportunities for promotion and that the CHRC dismissed race-based human rights complaints at a higher rate than other types of complaints. The committee tabled the report and has asked for a response from the government.

“One of the major concerns was the fact that it was hard for us to come to an understanding of how such harm could be caused by the very organization that's in place to address harms caused by racism and discrimination,” says Senator Wanda Thomas Bernard, deputy chair of the committee.

After CHRC staff members filed a set of grievances against their employer for its alleged mistreatment of Black and racialized employees, the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the Association of Justice Counsel, and the Canadian Association of Professional Employees filed grievances against the CHRC. In March, the Treasury Board of Canada found that the CHRC had breached the “no discrimination” clauses in three collective agreements.

The Senate report said that the “seeming inability” of the CHRC to address allegations of anti-Black racism dates back to the 1980s when Member of Parliament Howard McCurdy raised the issue. In June 2020, one employee said in their resignation letter that there were “deeply entrenched biases against racialized complainants” at the CHRC. The resignation letter stated that there were racist comments about Indigenous, Black, and Muslim people in “countless meetings” at the complaints branch. Following that employee’s departure, nine CHRC employees signed a letter to the chief commissioner complaining that “many racialized persons had left the CHRC due to issues such as racial discrimination, micro-aggressions and ‘adverse differential treatment in promotion opportunities and assignment of projects and files,’” said the report.

According to the report, several witnesses confirmed that complaints at the CHRC about racial discrimination were dismissed at a higher rate than claims of other forms of discrimination. CHRC employee Bernadeth Betchi said it was commonplace for staff to “speculate about how a complainant is imagining things” before an investigation occurred. Richard Sharpe, director of the Black equity branch of the Treasury Board Secretariat’s centre for people, culture and talent, said that the CHRC is “where race-based human rights complaints go to die, either rejected at disproportionately high rates or left to languish for years until people become too tired to fight anymore.”

When the unions brought their grievance against the CHRC, the Treasury Board noted in its decision that the CHRC had “taken proactive steps to address these matters,” and it recommended that parties mediate. The grievances are being arbitrated at the Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board. The CHRC accepted the Treasury Board’s findings, apologized, and undertook several measures to address systemic discrimination, said the report. It added that between 2018 and 2022, the portion of its race-based complaints the CHRC referred to its tribunal increased from six percent to 21 percent.

“Leadership at the commission felt that they had taken appropriate steps following the grievances,” says Thomas Bernard. “But when we asked the same questions of witnesses, we heard a different version of what was happening.”

“People were, quite frankly, concerned that the root causes of the issues were not being addressed.”

In 2021, the CHRC launched an anti-racism action plan to address systemic racism within the CHRC’s roles as employer, service provider, regulator, and human rights advocate. The Senate Committee heard from witnesses that CHRC senior leadership “diminished the significance of the TBS findings,” and its “process in developing and implementing anti-racism initiatives has not sufficiently reflected the views of Black and racialized employees.” One witness said the response lacked transparency and accountability and was “merely performative.”

The witnesses included CHRC staff, members of African descent from the broader community, CHRC leadership, and academics experienced in the area, says Thomas Bernard.

The Senate Committee concluded that the CHRC must do more to change its workplace culture and practices to regain the trust of Black and racialized employees and the communities that rely upon it.

The Senate Committee’s work revealed that the issues raised in the complaints were not isolated to the CHRC, says Thomas Bernard. She says problems were identified with other federal government departments, and a potential class action was discussed.

“What you're seeing with the Canadian Human Rights Commission is the tip of the iceberg,” says Thomas Bernard. “There are many issues across government that need to be addressed.”

The same day the Senate Committee released its report, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) announced the release of the Employment Equity Act Review Task Force's final report. Authored by McGill University law professor Adelle Blackett, “A Transformative Framework to Achieve and Sustain Employment Equity” is the “most comprehensive review of the Employment Equity Act since its introduction in 1986,” said ESDC.

The report included the following recommendations for the federal government:

1. That the Clerk of the Privy Council and federal public servants at all levels act as leaders in confronting anti-Black racism, as outlined in the Clerk of the Privy Council’s Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service, that measures to promote diversity, equity and inclusion be included as a performance measurement across all federal departments and agencies, and that federal public servants analyze available data to make evidence-based improvements.
2. That all federal departments and agencies increase mandatory anti-racism training for their employees, with the content of such training tailored to employees’ specific roles and responsibilities.
3. That the Department of Canadian Heritage urgently complete its promised National Action Plan on Combatting Hate and updated Anti-Racism Strategy.
4. That the Department of Canadian Heritage develop educational items on Anti-Black racism and other forms of systemic discrimination that can be incorporated into classroom and professional development activities for various age groups and stakeholders.
5. That a parliamentary committee undertake a study about anti-Black racism in the public service as soon as possible.
6. That the Canadian Human Rights Commission consider providing immediate legal and psychological support for complainants and their families.
7. That the Government of Canada take steps to ensure that victims of discrimination have access to a human rights system that is fair, effective and timely.
8. That the Government of Canada appoint a Black Equity Commissioner as an independent officer of Parliament.
9. That the Government of Canada commission an independent review of the conditions of CHRC employees from diverse backgrounds past and present, with particular focus on the experience of Black, racialized and Indigenous employees, and that the report be published by a specified date.
10. That the Government of Canada introduce legislation to modernize the Employment Equity Act, including by amending the designated groups under the Act to better reflect intersectionality and to specifically include Black and other equity deserving groups.
11. That the Department of Justice undertake a comprehensive review of the Canadian Human Rights Act that includes a comparative study of human rights systems in various Canadian and international jurisdictions, and propose amendments to improve access to justice for marginalized groups, including by considering changes to:

• shift to a direct access model;
• increase the compensation ceiling for the pain and suffering of victims from the current cap of $20,000;
• strengthen protections against retaliation by employers;
• remove the requirement for legal presence in Canada as a prerequisite for filing a complaint; and
• ensure that commissioners include individuals from equity deserving groups.