No More Waiting: Canada’s Unions Demand Action to Modernizethe Employment Equity Act

On this International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Canada’s unions are renewing our call for the federal government to take concrete action to address systemic racism and discrimination in the labour market by modernizing the Employment Equity Act (EEA).

Alongside other laws that advance real equality in the workplace—including human rights, pay equity and accessibility legislation, as well as collective bargaining protections—the EEA is a vital tool for workers facing entrenched, systemic barriers to employment. At its core, employment equity is about ensuring workers have fair and equal access to good, stable jobs—also known as decent work.

In 2023, after extensive consultations with workers, unions, employers, and other stakeholders, the federal government’s Employment Equity Review Task Force released a landmark report with 187 recommendations to modernize and strengthen the Act. These recommendations outline concrete steps to tackle systemic discrimination in hiring, promotion, and retention practices, and provide strong enforcement and compliance measures to hold employers accountable.

Following the report’s release, the previous Liberal government announced initial commitments to modernize the Act. These included creating two new designated groups under the EEA: Black and 2SLGBTQI+ workers; replacing the term “Aboriginal Peoples” with “Indigenous Peoples,” and updating the definition to include First Nations, Métis and Inuit people, and ensuring it is consistent with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act; replacing the term “visible minorities” with “racialized people” and updating the corresponding definition; and, aligning the definition of “persons with disabilities” with the Accessible Canada Act to make it more inclusive.

But three years later, workers are still waiting.

The government’s failure to act means that workers from designated groups—who already face significant equity challenges—continue to be held back by outdated legislation and systemic discrimination. The Task Force report provides a clear roadmap for change, and at a time of deepening inequality, implementing its recommendations is more urgent than ever. Modernizing the Employment Equity Act is an opportunity for the federal government to take meaningful steps toward dismantling barriers faced by the many workers covered by the Act.

Canada’s unions are calling on the federal government to fully implement the comprehensive recommendations made by the Task Force and quickly introduce an updated Act. This must also include sufficient funding to support employers in implementing the Act and the resources necessary for the Canadian Human Rights Commission to carry out enforcement and ensure compliance and effective evaluation.

“No more waiting. A strengthened Act that reflects the current realities of Canada’s workforce and labour market is a critical tool for overcoming workplace barriers faced by workers from the existing designated equity groups, as well as those from the proposed new ones,” said Larry Rousseau, CLC Executive Vice-President.” While the EEA alone cannot eliminate systemic discrimination and racism in the workplace and labour market, it is of a broader framework of laws designed to advance fairness and inclusion. When strengthened and properly enforced, it can help correct systemic injustices and ensure that workers who have been historically excluded from opportunity are fully represented in Canada’s workforce.