APTN News: The head of one of the country’s largest labour unions promises support for Indigenous bureaucrats advancing a class-action lawsuit against the federal government. The claim, filed in 2021 by two First Nations women, alleges widespread systemic discrimination and harassment at the two departments responsible for Indigenous affairs.
“We’re certainly supporting the class action,” said Chris Aylward, national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), in a phone interview. “We applaud the Indigenous voices calling on the government to do what is necessary to right some of these wrongs and to ensure that these injustices don’t continue.”
The multi-million-dollar suit still must be certified before its allegations can be tested. It was launched about six months after Indigenous employees began going public with stories of racism, harassment and fear. Aylward said the union followed the reports “fairly extensively” and wants the government to acknowledge the harm caused by systemic discrimination, compensate the victims and make meaningful systemic change. “We will continue to support the Indigenous public sector employees who have (allegedly) been subject to systemic injustice, racial profiling and the practice of Indigenous employee exclusion,” he said. “They’ve had plenty of time to deal with these issues, and they’re simply not taking the action that’s required.”
The Indigenous claim addresses systemic discrimination and harassment only at CIRNAC, ISC or Indian Oil and Gas Canada (IOGC). IOGC is a special operating agency within ISC that regulates fossil fuel extraction and development on First Nations reserves.
A third-party review of the organization unearthed stories of racism consultants called “staggering” in a December 2021 report obtained by APTN under access to information law. The report’s 78 recommendations were withheld by government censors. However, on March 4, ISC shared a draft strategic planning document with APTN that included the previously redacted recommendations.
The document describes the department’s plan to overhaul the troubled agency in response to the probe. The plan focuses primarily on strengthening policies, processes and training around human resources, grievances and harassment complaints. The same executive and leadership teams — who, the report found, were either unable or unwilling to deal with misconduct, thus tacitly encouraging it — will remain in place.
Aylward said this sort of approach is “not going to work” and “all symbolism.” There needs to be bedrock operational changes across the government, he added. PSAC, as part of ongoing contract negotiations, is urging the Treasury Board to implement mandatory systemic racism, harassment, and discrimination training for all employees.
The government, so far, has rejected the proposal, saying it already has some required training in these areas.