The Daily UbuntuThread 06 · Economy and Inequality · September 25, 2026
Equity is the law
In 2023, a task force chaired by a McGill professor proposed adding Black workers to the Employment Equity Act.
1 · The scene
At the sorting centre of a large delivery company in Dorval, a night crew takes its break. On the bulletin board, a poster announces a supervisor position. Three of the most senior members of the crew look at each other, then shrug.
One of them says he has already applied twice. A new colleague, who arrived last month, takes a photo of the poster. She suggests they ask together, at the next meeting, how promotions are decided. No one answers right away, but no one says no.
Original vignette
2 · The documented case
Modernizing a 1986 law
The Employment Equity Act applies to federally regulated employers in the public and private sectors. Since its creation in 1986, it has targeted four groups: women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities.
On December 11, 2023, a 12-member task force chaired by Adelle Blackett, a law professor at McGill University, submitted its report to the federal government. It was the most comprehensive review of the law since its adoption. Its 187 recommendations propose, among other things, adding two groups, Black workers and 2SLGBTQI+ workers, speaking of "racialized workers" rather than "visible minorities," and creating an employment equity commissioner. The same day, federal minister Seamus O'Regan announced the government's intention to include the two new groups.
The report also points out that "merit" should not be taken as neutral or objective. In other words, promotion rules deserve a close look, the way you inspect a bridge. Equity takes nothing away from anyone: it lets everyone see the path and take it. That is the Ubuntu idea of an "us" at work where one person's success is not built on another's invisibility.
3 · The voice
“thriving workplaces where we all belong”
4 · The question
In your workplace, who really knows how to get a promotion, and who still doesn't?
Sources
- Employment and Social Development Canada, Minister O'Regan receives the task force report, December 11, 2023. www.canada.ca
- Hicks Morley, summary of the task force's final report, December 14, 2023. hicksmorley.com
- BCF Business Law, new designated groups announced, December 2023. www.bcf.ca
Every figure on this page links to a verifiable public source.
Tags
Read also
A whole career on the first rung
Black federal public servants allege decades of discrimination in hiring and promotion. Their class action was refused at first instance; the appeal is to be heard this fall.
ReadOne permit, one boss, one fear
A UN rapporteur believes that permits tied to a single employer expose foreign workers to exploitation. Ottawa disagrees, but the debate remains open.
ReadA score is not a person
Between 300 and 900, a credit score opens or closes doors. It measures a history, never a person's worth.
Read