National Equity Committee
The role of the National Equity Committee is to provide recommendations to the USJE National Executive in regards to:
- Ways the employer could better deal with equity issues in the workplace
- Ways that USJE could better deal with equity issues within USJE
If you would like to contact the USJE Equity Committee, please email us at: USJEEquity-EquiteSESJ@psac-afpc.com
Updates
Equity Committee member represents USJE at Black History Month celebration
On February 5, 2025, USJE Equity Committee member Joe Brathwaite, who is a member of USJE Local 00079, was among invited guests to the official Government of Canada celebration for Black History Month 2025, in Ottawa. The event was hosted by The Honourable Kamal Khera, Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities who, along with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, gave keynote addresses. This year’s theme, Black Legacy, and Leadership: Celebrating Canadian History and Uplifting Future Generations highlighted past, present and aspirational contributions from the Black community to Canadian society. Ottawa’s annual Black History Gala is an opportunity to mark Black…
USJE Equity Committee Member Joe Brathwaite and Colleagues Win Award
The 2023-2024 Emerson Douyon Multiculturalism Award was bestowed upon the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC)- Ontario Region’s Black Social History (BSH) group during the Change of Command Ceremony held on October 23, 2024 in Toronto. Dr. Emerson Douyon (1929 – 2016) was a Quebec based criminal psychologist, whose body of work on human rights, racial profiling and discrimination helped to influence CSC services and interventions for the successful reintegration of ethnocultural offenders into the community. The BSH group are comprised of current or former members of USJE Local 00079. The award recipients are: Lori-Anne Beckford, Karen Grant, Vonetta McGhie, Donovan…
Equity Conference 2025
Committee Members
About Equity
What is employment equity?
Employment equity is a program of proactive, positive measures designed to:
1. Increase the representation of workers who have historically been disadvantaged in the workplace,
2. Identify and eliminate artificial barriers in the workplace that prevent equity group members from accessing jobs, promotions, training, etc.
Employment equity is the use of hiring policies that encourage fair representation of equity groups to a level that reflects their availability in the labour market. It’s about changing workplace culture and hiring practices so that members of these groups get jobs they are qualified to do.
Equally important is what happens after people are hired. Workplaces often have hidden bias or unnecessary barriers that create a negative environment for members of equity groups or prevent them from advancing in their careers on a fair and equal footing with other employees.
Who are the equity groups?
In the Employment Equity Act, the four designated groups are defined as:
- Women
- Indigenous people, whether First Nations, Métis or Inuit
- People with disabilities, which might be a physical, mental, sensory, psychiatric or learning impairment
- Visible minorities—this term is considered out of date, and more often we refer to Black and racialized people.
Why is equity important?
It’s about fairness. Employment equity recognizes that women, Indigenous people, racialized people, and people with disabilities are often held back—not because they lack ability—but because of things that are unrelated to their ability. Things like racism, discrimination, bias, stereotypes, assumptions, and systems that were not designed inclusively.
It’s about ensuring equal opportunity for all, by ensuring that hiring and promotion should be free from biases, favouritism, and prejudice, and that all workers should be recognized for their skills and abilities.
Discrimination is not always obvious and outright: sometimes it is embedded in our systems, practices, and policies. Employment equity is a proactive way of addressing systemic discrimination in the workplace.
