Employment Equity Report

Transcription

1 Employment Equity Report Creating a representative workforce at the Central Student Association Joshua Ofori- Darko Human Resources & Operations Commissioner OUR COMMITTEMENT The CSA is committed to employment equity and to the creation of a working environment that is welcoming for all applicants. We particularly encourage applications from women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, racialized people, international students and members of Queer communities. The CSA will determine the effectiveness of its outreach efforts and use the applicant tracking to enhance the diversity of applicants on the short list. CSA Policy Appendix D Human Resources Policy Section 4.8

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3 Canada s Employment Equity Act The Employment Equity Act requires employers to engage in proactive employment practices to increase the representation of four designated groups: women, people with disabilities, aboriginal peoples, and visible minorities. The Act states "employment equity means more than treating persons the same way but also requires special measures and the accommodation of differences." The Act requires that employers remove barriers to employment that disadvantage members of the four designated groups. Employers are also required to institute positive policies and practices for the hiring, training, retention and promotion of members of the designated groups. Positive policies include good hiring practices, for example asking all job candidates the same interview questions, or advertising a job widely and in places where it is likely to reach female identified or minority applicants. The CSA s Employment Equity Policy and Program In the academic year, the CSA approved a new employment equity policy and program to meet the requirements of the act along with CSA objectives and goals. The CSA recognizes six designated/marginalized groups who face systemic barriers to employment including (Appendix D Section 1.5): Women People of Colour/Racialized Students Aboriginal Peoples Members of Queer communities Persons with Disabilities International Students Employment Equity Report

4 Employment Equity Procedures is as follows (Appendix D Section 4.8): 4.8 The CSA is committed to employment equity and to the creation of a working environment that is welcoming for all applicants. We particularly encourage applications from women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, racialized people, international students and members of Queer communities. The CSA will determine the effectiveness of its outreach efforts and use the applicant tracking to enhance the diversity of applicants on the short list. The following is an outline of the steps we will take in this process: a) Advertisement for these positions shall be carried out in accordance with Appendix D, Section 4.3. b) All applicants are encouraged to complete an electronic or paper version Employment Equity Form and submit it to the CSA Front Office Manager. c) The CSA Front Office Manager will remove the Employment Equity Forms from files prepared for hiring committees. Data will be prepared and provided to the chair of the hiring committee. Forms will be kept on file by the Front Office Manager. d) In selecting successful applicants, hiring committees shall apply the principle of merit while striving to ensure that those selected represent the diversity of the university community. In addition, hiring committees will carry out responsibilities in accordance with Appendix D, Section 4.4 (summarized on page 6 of this report) e) At the end of the hiring cycle, aggregate data drawn from the pool of successful applicants will be reviewed to examine the efficacy of the CSA s outreach strategy. The results of this analysis shall be reported to the CSA Board. f) Following the conclusion of the hiring procedures, for year to-year comparative purposes, aggregate data derived from the Employment Equity Forms will be retained by the CSA. Upon completion of the annual hiring processes, all Employment Equity Forms will be destroyed.

5 In an effort to outreach to designated/marginalized groups, all job vacancies must be advertised for two weeks in addition to requiring that: Tabling will take place in the University Centre Courtyard A mass will be sent to undergraduate students advertising CSA job vacancies, CSA hiring policies, and the time and date of the hiring period. This will be sent during the week preceding the opening of the application process. Job vacancies will be advertised to all CSA clubs and campus organizations especially those that are primarily composed of members of marginalized communities. For example: the Centre for Students with Disabilities, The Aboriginal Students Association and Aboriginal Centre, CJ Munford Centre, Jewish Student Organization, Indian Student Association, West Indian Student Association, Muslim Student Association, International Student Organization, Guelph Resource Centre for Gender Empowerment and Diversity, Guelph Queer Equality, International Student Organization, Ontario Public Interest Research Group-Guelph and the CSA Accessibility Working Group. Presentations to clubs and organizations that outline the CSA s hiring process, and advertise both job vacancies as well as the application period and process will occur. Emphasis must be placed on the importance of the CSA s Employment Equity policies and process. Leaflets and posters advertising CSA job vacancies must be distributed by the Clubs Coordinator to all clubs and organizations. These posters must also be distributed through the CSA poster run the week preceding the opening of the application period. Employment Equity Report

6 To enhance promotional efforts in the winter of 2012 the Executive Committee approved the creation of the Outreach and Promotion Associate Commissioner. This individual, under the supervision of the Human Resources & Operations Commissioner, conducted presentations to clubs and organizations, coordinated the distribution of leaflets, facilitated job information workshops and tabled in the University Centre courtyard. To further the CSA goal of a representative workforce, the CSA employs fair and equitable hiring practices to ensure hiring is based on merits and qualifications, not personal biases. Practices and procedures include: Three person hiring committees made up of executive, staff, and board members Hiring training for all members of hiring committees Procedures to prevent conflict of interest Establishment of criteria, standardized questions, and scoring system prior to the review and interviews of candidates Aggregate Applicant Data In order to maintain confidentiality of applicants and staff, only aggregate data in the form of percentages are included in the report. Representation statistics are supplied from University of Guelph departments and units, including Registrarial Services, Student Affairs, Centre for Students with Disabilities. Whenever University specific information was unavailable for a particular group, statistics from the 2006 Canadian Census were used. Individuals in Ontario between the ages of 15 and 24 were selected as the population that closest resembles the University of Guelph student body. Differences or gaps in representation are calculated by subtracting the representation in the applicant pool from the University of Guelph and/or Ontario representation. In the cases where representation is equal to or greater than community representation, the difference or gap is measured as zero or achieved.

7 Table 1 summarizes the effectiveness of the CSA s outreach and promotion strategy for the Summer and Fall 2011 semesters. A small number of positions were hired during the two semesters (summer and fall). Table 1 Representation of applicants during Summer and Fall 2011 Marginalized Applicant Undergraduate Undergraduate Ontario Gap Groups Pool Representation and Graduate Representation Representation Female 40% 61% 60% 21% Racialized 20% 15%* N/A 26% 6% Queer 5% N/A N/A N/A International 11% 2% 3% 0% Disability 3.5% 6% 2.5% Aboriginal 3.5% <1% <1% 2.5% 0% *Statistic is based on an incoming student survey Table 2 illustrates the CSA outreach efforts for a larger number of positions hired for during the Winter 2012 cycle. The CSA continued to exceed its goals for outreach to aboriginal and international students and students with disabilities. However there was a larger gap in the representation of both female identified and racialized groups. Targeted outreach is required to improve the numbers of female, racialized and students with disabilities applicants. This can be accomplished by increased communication with the Centre for Students with Disabilities, CJ Munford Centre and specific CSA clubs. Table 2 Representation of applicants during Winter 2012 Hiring Cycle Marginalized Applicant Undergraduate Undergraduate Ontario Gap Groups Pool Representation and Graduate Representation Representation Female 21% 61% 60% 41% Racialized 9.5% 15%* N/A 26% 16.5% Queer 5.4% N/A N/A N/A International 3.5% 2% 3% 0% Disability 3.5% 6% 2.5% Aboriginal 1% <1% <1% 2.5% 0% *Statistic is based on an incoming student survey Employment Equity Report

8 Representation for the Employment Period In addition to surveying applicants, the CSA surveys new and incoming staff to determine if the workforce is representative of the University of Guelph population and to identify potential gaps in representation. For the employment period, the CSA reached all of its Employment Equity (EE) goals across all six designated/marginalized groups. It should be noted that the CSA met all of its goals without introducing any additional special measures (such as hiring preferences or awarding additional points for applicants from marginalized/designated groups). Hires were simply based on qualifications and merit. Table 3 Representation of Contract Staff for employment period Marginalized Staff Undergraduate Undergraduate Ontario EE Goal Groups Representation and Graduate Representation Representation Female 66% 61% 60% Achieved Racialized 31% 15%* N/A 26% Achieved Queer 24% N/A N/A N/A Achieved** International 7% 2% 3% Achieved Disability 14% 6% Achieved Aboriginal 3% <1% <1% 2.5% Achieved *Statistic is based on incoming student survey **No statistics are available to determine with confidence if the CSA achieved its EE goal

9 Challenges Despite the success with a representative contract staff workforce, a participation rate of 33% was observed with individuals completing the employment equity form/survey when applying to jobs. The CSA should aim for at least a 50% participation rate in the winter 2013 hiring cycle. Incoming executive and permanent/renewable contract staff were neither surveyed nor included in table 3. It is important to include these two groups in future reports for a more accurate picture of the workforce. To maintain confidentiality, the statistics of the contract, permanent, renewable contract staff along with the executive should be combined. The University of Guelph does not have statistics on queer or racialized students. Statistics on racialized students are extremely limited to incoming student surveys completed only every three to four years. Aboriginal students and students with disabilities statistics are based on the number of students registered with the Aboriginal Resource Centre and Centre for Students with Disabilities, respectively. These statistics are an underestimation of their population. Employment Equity Report

10 Recommendations Recommendation 1: More education and promotion of the EE policy and program both internally and externally Increased education about the Employment Equity (EE) policy and program will not only debunk myths, but also increase participation rates. If individuals understand the uses of the data, they may be more willing to participate at all levels. The Human Resources & Operations Commissioner will be responsible for the coordination of education efforts. Recommendation 2: Set an EE participation rate goal of 50% for the Winter 2013 hiring cycle Setting a goal will have a combination of positive effects on our program. Higher participation rates will create a more accurate picture of the applicants. In order to meet this goal, a strong promotion and education strategy is required. Recommendation 3: Surveying of incoming executive and current permanent & renewable contract staff for a more accurate picture for the new employment period These groups of staff and executive make up 27% of the CSA workforce (excluding Bullring staff). It is important that these groups are surveyed for a more accurate representation of the workforce and to identify gaps or shortfalls within the designated/marginalized groups. Recommendation 4: The CSA Executive will lobby the University of Guelph administration to quantify racialized and queer students Collecting statistics on racialized and queer students would not only be beneficial for the CSA Employment Equity program, but for the University as well. This information will be invaluable when planning initiatives to benefit these two groups of students at the University. The University has mentioned higher enrollment and attendance of these groups, however without statistics, strategic plans and goals cannot be developed nor achieved.

11 Recommendation 5: Conversion of Outreach and Promotion Associate Commissioner into a standing contract staff position The Associate Commissioner was beneficial to promotional efforts, however several limitations exist in the Associate Commissioner policy such as honorarium and hours, Appendix D Section 16. Conversion into a contract staff coordinator position to further assist the Human Resources & Operations Commissioner and Promotional Services & Graphic Designer will allow for a more effective promotion strategy. More time could be spent connecting with clubs and organizations to promote job opportunities, and the CSA in general prior to the winter hiring cycle. In addition to previously mentioned duties of promoting CSA jobs, duties such as promotion of the EE program and compiling EE data would be included. The coordinator will work a couple weeks in the fall semester and throughout the entire winter semester. Recommendation 6: Implementation of an EE tracking program in the Bullring The Bullring Human Resources Policy contains an Employment Equity policy in Appendix E Section 1.7, however no program has been implemented. Since the Bullring employs 40 to 50 staff with a large hiring cycle in the winter semester, it is important to establish a tracking program so the CSA as a whole can meet employment equity goals. The Human Resources & Operations Commissioner and the Outreach and Promotion Coordinator would work with the Bullring General Manager in the development and implementation of such a program. Recommendation 7: Mandatory hiring training for hiring committee members Hiring training for hiring committees proved to be particularly beneficial. Members were trained to evaluate candidates solely based on a preestablished set of criteria and qualifications. The Orientation to Recruitment and Selection workshop facilitated by the HREO ensured the hiring was in accordance with the Ontario human rights code and procedures did not introduce systemic barriers to designated groups. Employment Equity Report

12 Conclusion Overall the outreach and promotion strategy for the was successful, however there are significant improvements to be made in the following years. It is imperative that the CSA Board of Directors holds the current and future Human Resources & Operations Commissioners accountable for upholding the Employment Equity policy and accompanying program. Despite being in place for over two full hiring cycles ( and ) that policy was not followed. This report clearly demonstrates creating and hiring a qualified and representative workforce is achievable. Acknowledgements Mahejabeen Ebrahim, Associate Director, Human Rights and Equity Office Deaglan (MC) McManus, Outreach & Promotion Associate Commissioner Central Student Association References 1. Employment Equity Act 2. Canadian Human Rights Commissioner 3. University of Guelph 4. Statistics Canada 2006 Census