ARCHIVED – Annual Report on the Operation of the Canadian Multiculturalism Act 2008-2009

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Part II: Implementation of the Canadian Multiculturalism Act across federal institutions

2.7 Developing a multicultural work force

The Government of Canada invests in initiatives that promote equality of opportunity for individuals of all origins.
 
Federal institutions undertake activities that provide employment opportunities for people of diverse backgrounds and that build and retain a diverse work force. This section highlights activities of federal institutions in this area during the reporting period.

During the reporting year, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (Large~28,400) National Recruiting Program created and staffed a National Diversity Recruiting Analyst position to enhance the existing program. This position is responsible for providing direction to the divisional recruiting offices with a diversity context. The creation of the position also enabled the completion of a National Diversity Recruiting Strategy that is currently in place.

The RCMP’s Aboriginal Pre-Cadet Training Program both promotes Aboriginal recruiting within the RCMP and enhances the Force’s ability to better serve the community in a culturally sensitive manner.

The RCMP’s Aboriginal Pre-Cadet Training Program, which has been improved and which replaces the Aboriginal Youth Training Program, is an employment opportunity offered to Aboriginal students across Canada between the ages of 19 and 29 who have an interest in serving their communities in a Supernumerary Special Constable capacity. This measure both promotes Aboriginal recruiting within the RCMP and enhances the Force’s ability to better serve the community in a culturally sensitive manner.

Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (Large~5,250) developed a new recruitment website that reflects the multicultural diversity of the Department’s work force.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (Large~6,640) worked closely with the Aboriginal Student Association at the University of Guelph to increase awareness of the careers and programs at the Department and in the public service in general.

Moreover, to address historical gaps, the Department increased its recruitment efforts through its participation in the Aboriginal Workforce Career Fair in Saskatoon (February 2009), the National Council of Visible Minorities Hiring Hall (November 2008) and four Career Fairs that were hosted across the country in support of the Clerk of the Privy Council’s 2008–2009 Public Service Renewal Action Plan.

The Canada Revenue Agency’s (Large~45,600) Prairie Region Management Simulation Exercise allows employees who do not have a formal leadership position to demonstrate leadership competencies through an in-basket and simulation exercise. The results of the exercise are portable and can be used by participants when they apply for internal selection processes.

In 2008–2009, the Region offered this opportunity to visible minority and Aboriginal employees. As part of the pilot, the participants received competency assessments, feedback on their leadership skills and career planning advice. The candidates were provided with an opportunity to be assessed again after a period of time to track their progress.

The Public Service Commission of Canada (Medium~1,030) has broadened Canadians’ access to job opportunities in the federal public service. In such a large and diverse country, the public service should reflect the national character of all of Canada and recruit talented Canadians no matter where they live. The hiring process is an essential part of creating a diverse work force. The opening of every federal public service job in Canada to all Canadians allows diverse groups to apply for a wider array of positions.

The Public Service Commission of Canada has steadily expanded the requirement to use a national area of selection and removed geographic limits on external staffing. In 2007, the Commission extended the mandatory use of a national area of selection to include officer-level positions open to the public in all regions of Canada. Effective December 31, 2008, federal government organizations are required to use a national area of selection for all externally advertised appointment processes for full-time indeterminate and term appointments more than six months in duration. As of the fall of 2008, the national area of selection also applies to certain Federal Student Work Experience Program employment opportunities.

Partnership with immigrant-serving agencies was a key component in making the Immigrant Internship Pilot Program a success.

The Commission expects that this expansion will lead to a higher number of applications, including from visible minorities, of whom there are large concentrations in the Toronto, Vancouver and Montréal regions. Overall, the public service will gain from the diverse perspectives and approaches that contribute to better programs and stronger policy advice for the benefit of all Canadians.

In an effort to enhance the Department’s capacity to manage and integrate a diverse work force, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (Large~23,100) launched the Immigrant Internship Pilot Program.

Partnership with immigrant-serving agencies was a key component in making the Immigrant Internship Pilot Program a success. As a result, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada partnered with two immigrant-serving agencies in the National Capital Region—Local Associations Serving Immigrants (LASI) World Skills and Service Intégration Travail Outaouais—to advertise the internship opportunity and preselect eligible mid-career foreign-trained professional candidates on behalf of the Department.

The program was a success and enhancements are being made to strengthen it by allowing more interns to participate and expanding the scope to include regional offices. Another option to allow interns to complete a third placement in another participating government department will further expand the range of experience available to participants.

In June 2008, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (Large~4,400) launched the Young Newcomers Internship Program, an innovative program that offers new Canadian citizens and permanent residents the opportunity to gain Canadian work experience. Twelve individuals were chosen for internships at the Department after being selected from a pool of newcomers who came to Canada through the World University Services Canada’s Student Refugee Program. All the interns graduated from a Canadian university with a bachelor’s or master’s degree and completed a four-month internship with the Department.

Given the success of the pilot program, the Department is accepting a second group of newcomers in the summer of 2009. CIC will continue to build partnerships, such as the ones already established with the Canada Border Services Agency and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, to demonstrate the importance of the program.

Twelve individuals were chosen for internships at Citizenship and Immigration Canada after being selected from a pool of newcomers who came to Canada through the World University Services Canada’s Student Refugee Program.

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