In Canada racial harmony has not led to equality in the boardroom
“I think that Canadians recognize that there’s a lot of work that remains to be done to fight against racism, even today … this is not only something that is happening elsewhere..” -Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, June 1, 2020.
While there is more racial harmony in Canada than in other countries Canada has its own racial inequities to contend with. Only 5.9% of board of directors within Financial Post 500 companies are people of colour yet that demographic represents 22.3% of Canada’s population.
Diversity is widely celebrated in Canada but it has yet to change the makeup of those who hold power. Take Black citizens. They represent 3.5% of Canada’s population but only hold 0.8% of roles on corporate boards. In Toronto, Canada’s largest city, representation is even poorer with Black people compromising 7.5% of the population but only occupying 0.3% of corporate board roles.
Women fair better in Canada but still lag behind their male counterparts. Women hold 27% of board seats at large Canadian-listed companies but they comprise 47.4% of the workforce. When looking at CEO level representation the story for women is not flattering. Only 24 or 3.5% of TSX-listed Canadian companies have a female CEO. “It is disappointing to me that we still have a need to discuss the issue of gender equity,” said Carol Stephenson, a director at General Motors Co. and Maple Leaf Foods Inc. and former dean of the Ivey Business School: “I spent four decades in business and it was an issue then. There has been exhaustive research on the topic and very practical recommendations to solve the issue. It begs the question, if we know what to do, why haven’t the numbers changed?”
This inequity is not just in numbers but in one of the most important determinants of one’s quality of life, wages. Women of colour in Canada earn just over half, 56.7%, of what all men earn. Koreans and West Asians fair the worst among women of colour in Canada earning 41.5% and 42.7% respectively of what all men earn.
Speaking about income disparities in Canada, labour economist Steven Tobin commented that: "what surprised me the most was that in looking at the earnings by credential and field of study, women earn less than men in every credential and every field of study." "There isn't one combination of a credential and a field of study where women earn more than men five years after graduation."
People often argue these disparities are due to a “lack of supply” of qualified talent. But the data tells a different story. People of colour in Canada are highly educated with 68.6% of people of colour aged 25–64 holding a postsecondary certificate, diploma or degree giving them the qualifications they need to succeed. 42% of people of colour in Canada have a university certificate, diploma or degree at the bachelor level or above which is materially above the general population in Canada where 28.5% of people have the same qualifications.
A lack of data on race also contributes to racial inequities in Canada. How can you identify or even fix a problem you cannot see? If you were to ask the average Canadian how COVID-19 is impacting people of colour who live in Canada most would not know. That’s because the data is not collected. Rich demographic data along racial lines has long been available in the United States and it is the key reason why there is such a high awareness and understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on people of colour in the United States. "We need to make sure we have the data, that there is race-based data that allows us to make the evidence-based decision making to remedy these injustices," said NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh in the House of Commons in June of this year.
This push for collecting more race related data in Canada has been taking place for many years. A 2017 report on anti-black racism in Canada by the United Nations Human Rights Council called for data segmented by race to be collected in Canada in order to: “determine if and where racial disparities exist for African Canadians so as to address them accordingly.”
Since understanding inequality at a deeper level in Canada can be like peering into a black box there has been mounting pressure for Statistics Canada to collect better data. Not just to understand how COVID-19 is impacting people of colour but to identify underlying trends that impact all facets of our lives, from employment to wages to housing.
Due to mounting pressure for the first time ever Statistics Canada started reporting monthly unemployment data segmented by race at the beginning of August of this year. Statistics Canada deemed the effort a “historic” moment. "For the first time, Statistics Canada has included race-based data in its monthly survey, which will help provide a fuller picture of who's being impacted by changes in the job market," said Michelle Mungall, Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Competitiveness.
Not surprisingly when the data was released it showed that people of colour are struggling more than their White counterparts. For the month of July the unemployment rate in Canada was 9.3% nationally for those that did not identify themselves as a visible minority or Aboriginal. For other demographics it was significantly higher. In July, in Canada the unemployment rate for South Asians was 17.8%, for Arabs it was 17.3% and for Black people it was 16.8%.
Companies in Canada like our neighbours to the south are making an effort to resolve these racial inequities. RBC recently spent time listening to its Black employees to understand their experiences with racism in Canada. What they heard was “eye opening”. “We never listened, really, as a society. I have to say maybe we didn’t listen close enough at RBC. And we have to do something about that,” says David McKay, RBC’s President and CEO. “When you have this type of systemic racism you can’t say your community’s healthy.” “We were never sensitized to how serious the issue was.”
RBC still has a long way to go in improving diversity within its own company. None of the 10 most senior executives at RBC is a visible minority. But RBC is increasing its target for visible minorities within executive positions to 30% and requiring that 40% of summer internships go to Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC). RBC is also making $100 million in loans available to Black entrepreneurs over the next five years. “We have a plan, and it will change,” says McKay. Yesterday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a $221 million program over four years to help Black entrepreneurs receive loans from national banks.
While Canada is a peaceful nation much still needs to be done so that everyone feels an equal amount of peace and prosperity in their daily lives.