Advocates push for ‘central tracking’ of job cuts by equity group as union warns public service gains at risk

2026/05/04 2 Comments

Have forthcoming analysis of the 2024-25 EE desegregated data, representation, hirings, separations, promotions that demonstrates that no negative impact compared to the previous year. So warnings may be overstated and public service may already considering equity impact:

As the public service moves to shed thousands of jobs, unions and a newly formed national coalition say equity gains may be more fragile than they appear, and warn leaving departments to monitor representation creates a “serious gap” in tracking where the cuts fall.

The federal public service entered 2026 looking more representative than it did a decade ago, according to the government’s latest Employment Equity Annual Report. The March report showed racialized workers made up 23.9 per cent of the core public administration in 2024-25, slightly above the 22.7 per cent workforce-availability benchmark. Black employees accounted for 5.1 per cent of the public service, up from 2.8 per cent in 2016-17.

Unions and advocates say the latest report can offer a useful snapshot, but it may not fully capture if employment equity efforts have been damaged. Their concern is less about whether the public service still looks representative on paper than about which workers are most exposed as job cuts deepen.

A newly formed group, the National Employment Equity Council, is calling on the government to require mandatory equity impact assessments before any further staffing decisions. Nicholas Marcus Thompson, its co-chair, warns the government’s current approach means signs of inequities tied to job losses may arrive “too late.”

Though departments have sent workforce adjustment notices tied to 17,000 job cuts, the federal government has not publicly released data to show if equity-seeking groups will be affected….

Andrew Griffith, a former senior federal official who has analyzed Treasury Board employment equity data for years, said the latest data does not support the conclusion that racialized public servants are being disproportionately harmed.

Representation of visible minorities rose slightly in 2024–25, while hiring rates for visible minorities and Indigenous staff remained above their internal representation.

Still, advocates say the TBS response to The Hill Times suggests a worrying approach.

“This doesn’t address the concern,” Thompson said by email. 

“It leaves departments to monitor themselves, with no central tracking, under a law the government has acknowledged is outdated. That’s how inequities continue, and by the time we see it, it’s too late.”…

The council’s central demand is implementation of the 2023 Employment Equity Act Task Force report, including formal recognition of Black workers and 2SLGBTQI+ people as distinct designated groups under the law.

For Thompson, one of the most urgent unresolved issues is how Black workers remain folded into the broader visible minorities category. Under that approach, the government can meet aggregate targets while leaving subgroup disparities untouched, he argued.

“When it is lumped in with everyone else, Black people almost always get left behind,” Thompson said.

Due to ongoing cuts, Thompson said Black workers contacting the council have described fear, declining trust in internal systems, and frustration with what they see as a lack of clarity and transparency in how restructuring decisions are being made….

Source: Advocates push for ‘central tracking’ of job cuts by equity group as union warns public service gains at risk

Filed under DEI, Government, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Success rate for basic training in Canadian military drops

2026/05/01 Leave a comment

Good intentions but problematic selection and integration processes. Some of the details are indeed disturbing…:

The success rate for basic training in the Canadian military has dropped to 77 per cent over the past fiscal year as the Canadian Armed Forces grapple with the impact of recruiting changes designed to boost enrolment, according to a leaked internal report.

That compares with a historical average of 85 per cent, according to an internal January, 2026, report by Lieutenant-Colonel Marc Kieley, commandant of the Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School (CFLRS) in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que. 

His report covers the first three quarters of the 2025-26 fiscal year, which began on April 1 last year.

The number of candidates requiring multiple attempts to graduate rose to 14.89 per cent, far higher than 8.44 per cent in the previous year and significantly above other recent annual rates.

The school conducts basic military qualification (BMQ) training and basic military officer qualification (BMOQ) training for the Forces.

In recent years, the federal government, in an effort boost the size of the military, has opened recruiting to foreign nationals who are permanent residents, begun accepting recruits with certain pre-existing medical conditions and dropped aptitude test requirements, among other changes….

Source: Success rate for basic training in Canadian military drops, Juno, who uncovered the memo, more sensationalist take: EXCLUSIVE: CAF training platoon with 83% non-citizens devolved into ethnic infighting

Filed under Immigration, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

Lisée | Les frères invisibles

2026/05/01 Leave a comment

More on Quebec Muslim Brotherhood fears:

…Une source policière québécoise me rapporte que les services fédéraux — sauf, de toute évidence, l’Agence du revenu du Canada — sont timides lorsque vient le temps de mener des enquêtes qui pourraient générer un ressac dans les communautés culturelles et religieuses visées. Une accusation d’islamophobie est si vite arrivée. Et il est vrai que, comme la majorité des communautés culturelles, les musulmans canadiens ont voté en masse (65 %) pour le Parti libéral du Canada l’an dernier. Chacun a aussi bien noté que premier ministre Mark Carney s’est présenté, six semaines après les élections, à un événement de l’AMC.

Cela rappelle l’extrême prudence, sinon la pusillanimité, affichée par les libéraux de Justin Trudeau face à l’ingérence de la Chine au Canada, particulièrement dans sa diaspora. Tout cela est paradoxal, car l’action des Frères musulmans et de leurs alliés nuit considérablement aux musulmans modérés qui forment la majorité des fidèles. Un effort conséquent de vigilance et d’action pour neutraliser l’action des extrémistes est au contraire dans l’intérêt général, et dans l’intérêt particulier de la communauté.

“On est en droit de noter que l’action de la GRC la plus intense contre les réseaux fréristes à Montréal s’est déployée lorsque les conservateurs fédéraux étaient au pouvoir à Ottawa, donc avant l’élection de Justin Trudeau en 2015. Il est difficile de croire que ce sont les Frères qui se sont assagis depuis. Auraient-ils jugé que l’effervescence entourant la cause palestinienne dans les campus l’an dernier ne serait pas une bonne occasion de recrutement et de financement ?

Croire que l’évocation d’une présence toxique des Frères dans nos sociétés est une « théorie du complot », comme on l’a entendu la semaine dernière à Ottawa, est plutôt un signe de l’existence chez les libéraux fédéraux de ce qu’on appelle, dans les milieux subversifs, des « idiots utiles ».

Source: Chronique | Les frères invisibles

… A Quebec police source tells me that the federal services — except, obviously, the Canada Revenue Agency — are shy when it comes to conducting investigations that could generate a hangover in the cultural and religious communities targeted. An accusation of Islamophobia came so quickly. And it is true that, like the majority of cultural communities, Canadian Muslims voted en masse (65%) for the Liberal Party of Canada last year. Everyone also noted that Prime Minister Mark Carney presented himself, six weeks after the elections, at a CMA event.

This is reminiscent of the extreme caution, if not the pusillanimity, displayed by Justin Trudeau’s liberals in the face of China’s interference in Canada, particularly in its diaspora. All this is paradoxical, because the action of the Muslim Brotherhood and their allies considerably harms moderate Muslims who form the majority of the faithful. A consistent effort of vigilance and action to neutralize the action of extremists is on the contrary in the general interest, and in the particular interest of the community.

“It is right to note that the most intense action of the RCMP against the fraternist networks in Montreal was deployed when the federal Conservatives were in power in Ottawa, so before the election of Justin Trudeau in 2015. It is hard to believe that it is the Brothers who have been tasting each other since then. Would they have judged that the excitement surrounding the Palestinian cause on campuses last year would not be a good opportunity for recruitment and funding?

To believe that the evocation of a toxic presence of the Brothers in our societies is a “conspiracy theory”, as we heard last week in Ottawa, is rather a sign of the existence among the federal liberals of what is called, in subversive circles, “useful idiots”.

Filed under Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism, Religion Tagged with ,

CIMM: Canada’s Immigration System – IRGC

2026/04/30 Leave a comment

Of note:

That, further to the testimony from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) on March 9, 2026 related to the presence of agents of the Iranian Regime and agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Canada, and further to the committee’s study on Canada’s immigration system, and further to the imminent danger that the presence of IRGC officials and regime agents in Canada may pose to Canadian public safety, the committee report the following to the House:

  1. Government officials have admitted the known presence of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officials and regime agents residing in Canada;
  2. There are gaps in legislation and procedures that may allow IRGC officials to avoid detection prior to arrival and deportation after;
  3. The Government should exercise the full force of the existing law regarding the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist entity, specifically by expediting the execution of deportation orders of regime officials who are non-citizens under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act;
  4. The Government should immediately undertake a comprehensive review of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act with an eye to modernize it to prevent regime officials from avoiding deportation by:
  5. Clearly ensuring non-citizens are deemed inadmissible if involved in regime-linked businesses, spreading propaganda, or human rights abuses;
  6. Extend inadmissibility to immediate non-citizen family members of regime officials; and
  7. Create an exemption from non-refoulement protections for inadmissible non-citizen regime officials proven to be complicit in human rights abuses.
  8. The Government should, within 30 calendar days following the passing of this motion, table a report to Parliament explaining why it has not made public the identities of known non-citizens who are Iranian regime officials or agents who are currently present in Canada; and
  9. It is imperative that the Government stop approving refugee claims from nations with regimes hostile to Canada without an in person interview being conducted first;
  10. That the Government of Canada undertake a thorough legal review of the measures raised above to ensure consistency with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Canada’s international legal obligations.

Source: CIMM: Canada’s Immigration System – IRGC

Filed under foreign policy, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Geist: Why the Senate got antisemitism only half-right

2026/04/30 Leave a comment

Valid critique:

…The deepest irony lies in what the report says it wants to restore. Deborah Lyons, the previous Special Envoy on Combatting Antisemitism, understood the problem the Senate does not. Her handbook on the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism exists because anti-Zionist language was being used to launder antisemitism, and Canadian institutions, police, educators, and civil servants needed a working framework to distinguish legitimate, protected criticism of Israeli government policy from hate.

The handbook is explicit that Canadians can criticize the Israeli government at length and stay on the right side of the antisemitism line. But deploying double standards, contesting the country’s right to exist, or treating its Jewish supporters as legitimate targets of violence or political exclusion is another matter. The House Justice Committee reached the same conclusion in 2024. The Senate now recommends restoring Lyons’s office while declining the analytical work that made it useful.

For months, Jewish Canadians have argued that words are not enough. Neither, it turns out, is a report that documents the problem and declines to name half of it.

Source: Why the Senate got antisemitism only half-right

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism Tagged with , ,

Beinart: What Tucker Carlson Means When He Talks About Israel

2026/04/29 2 Comments

Good commentary:

…Mr. Carlson is more subtle. But he, too, often attributes Israel’s behavior to what he sees as its anti-Western religion. Last October, he claimed that “the Israeli position is ‘everyone who lives in Gaza is a terrorist because of how they were born, including the women and the children.’ That’s not a Western view. That’s an Eastern view. That’s a non-Christian — that’s totally incompatible with Christianity and Western civilization.” Earlier this year Mr. Carlson said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel had tried to punish members of Mr. Carlson’s family because Mr. Netanyahu “believes in blood guilt, Amalek. You know, when someone commits a crime against you, you punish not just him but his family, his bloodline. There’s no idea that’s less Western than that, more anti-Christian than that. Christians reject that.”

Mr. Carlson is implying that Israel’s punishment of the Palestinian people stems from something particularly Jewish — or “non-Christian” — about its misdeeds. Such civilizational generalizations are false; many Christian and Western leaders practice collective punishment. The United States was founded on the same kind of land theft that Israel is committing against Palestinians.

Combating the anti-Israel right’s conflation of Israel and Jewishness is made harder by pro-Israel American Jewish organizations that have conflated those two things as well.

But progressives must not blur the distinction between viewing Israel as a state, which practices forms of oppression and aggression that can occur in states of every ethnic and religious type, and viewing Israel as the product of a peculiarly Jewish pathology. It is understandable that some progressives, who are rightly eager to end America’s support for Israel’s human rights abuses, might be tempted to see figures like Mr. Carlson as allies. But the struggle for Palestinian freedom should not indulge bigotry of any kind. That includes the bigotry of figures like Tucker Carlson, who blame Israel’s crimes on its Jewishness so they can pretend that America and Christianity are morally pure.

Source: What Tucker Carlson Means When He Talks About Israel

Filed under Antisemitism Tagged with , , ,

Lederman: Find out if your kin were Nazis – in seconds

2026/04/27 2 Comments

Discovering some uncomfortable truths:

…For many descendants of German and Austrian families, it has been easy to hang onto vague family stories of Second World War resistance. Now, it has become easier to disturb that comfortable narrative. 

“Research your family’s Nazi past here,” offers an online resource launched by German newspaper Die Zeit. The publication has downloaded digitized documents released by the U.S. National Archives, which were seized at the end of the Second World War. Subscribers can plug in family names and discover whether relatives were card-carrying members of the Nazi party – and view the actual cards themselves.

This has led to a reckoning – a timely one, even with cards dating back decades. …

Source: Find out if your kin were Nazis – in seconds

Correct link to database: https://catalog.archives.gov/search-within/12044361



Filed under Antisemitism, Holocaust Tagged with ,

Propos sur le « frérisme »: Ottawa accuse le chef du PQ de propager « une théorie du complot »

2026/04/27 Leave a comment

Valid criticism of PQ:

« Je pense que cela ressemble pas mal à une théorie du complot », a déploré mercredi le député de la région de Québec et ex-ministre Jean-Yves Duclos.

« La politique la plus facile, c’est celle de diviser. Il faut absolument travailler autrement dans le contexte mondial dans lequel on vit. Il faut qu’on soit unis et que l’on travaille ensemble et éviter de se polariser comme d’autres pays le font », a-t-il ajouté.

Pour sa part, le ministre de l’Identité et de la Culture canadiennes, Marc Miller, a qualifié de « ridicules » les propos du chef péquiste.

Le libéral réagissait aux déclarations de Paul St-Pierre Plamondon qui a affirmé que le « frérisme » – une idéologie prônée par les Frères musulmans qui vise à islamiser les sociétés occidentales – « est une réalité documentée dans plusieurs pays d’Europe », mais que « la seule raison pourquoi on ne la documente pas au Canada, c’est que c’est l’agenda du gouvernement en place ».

« Je suis désolé, mais c’est ça », a soutenu le chef du Parti québécois, qui a ajouté que le « Québec n’étant pas un pays est subordonné à des décisions et à un service de renseignements absolument pas orienté par l’intérêt public à [son] avis ».

Il a tenu ses propos lors d’une assemblée publique (townhall) organisée par Centre consultatif des relations juives et israéliennes, le 15 avril. Il répondait alors à une question de Léo Dupire, du groupe de droite Québec Fier, qui lui demandait de reconnaître « qu’il y a un problème avec l’immigration musulmane de masse ». M. Dupire relaie lui-même l’extrait sur les réseaux sociaux.

Le leader souverainiste apporte rapidement des nuances à la question de son interlocuteur. « Je vise la paix sociale », affirme-t-il. M. St-Pierre Plamondon déplore ensuite « l’immigration incontrôlée » imposée par Ottawa et propose de « revenir à l’immigration planifiée ».

« Je n’irais pas à dire l’immigration musulmane parce que j’ai eu plusieurs discussions avec des gens qui ont fui des régimes iraniens, saoudiens, afghans. Des gens qui disent : “Moi, j’ai vu comment une société peut virer et je suis conscient du totalitarisme religieux, donc j’ai choisi le Québec pour ne pas vivre là-dedans” », explique le chef péquiste, qui dit vouloir « inclure tout le monde » dans la discussion.

Le Conseil national des musulmans canadiens a dénoncé des déclarations qui ne font « qu’alimenter la peur entre les Québécois avec des idées importées d’Europe ».

« Les propos tenus par M. St-Pierre Plamondon sont à l’image de sa rhétorique habituelle qui laisse planer la suspicion envers nos concitoyens de confession musulmane. En tant que prétendant au pouvoir, il doit être capable d’affirmer clairement que les Québécois de confession musulmane ne sont pas une menace pour notre société », a déploré le président-directeur général, Stephen Brown.

Dans un point de presse mardi à Québec, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon a rappelé que le Parti québécois « est capable d’attirer des candidatures de toutes les religions » qui sont « d’accord sur le contrat social qu’incarne » sa formation politique. Les candidats péquistes dans Jeanne-Mance–Viger et Anjou–Louis-Riel sont notamment de confession musulmane.

De « l’aveuglement volontaire »

Le leader péquiste a également précisé ses propos à l’égard d’Ottawa, mardi. « L’agenda, c’est le multiculturalisme et l’aveuglement devant l’ingérence étrangère », a-t-il expliqué.

Selon lui, il y a matière à inquiétude sur le phénomène du « frérisme » : « Ce serait surprenant qu’il n’y ait pas cette forme d’ingérence étrangère au Québec alors qu’on est en train de la documenter de manière assez précise dans plusieurs pays européens. » Il montre du doigt « la doctrine fédérale » qui est « de fermer les yeux » et d’ouvrir les vannes de l’immigration.

« C’est ce que Trudeau appelait le postnational. Le postnational, c’est un peu l’effondrement de l’État national qui surveille ses intérêts, puis qui voit à une planification », a-t-il dit, ajoutant ne pas observer de changement avec l’arrivée de Mark Carney.

Le ministre des Transports, Steven MacKinnon, s’est montré tout aussi cinglant que Jean-Yves Duclos. « L’agenda du gouvernement, c’est d’assurer la prospérité et la qualité de vie de l’ensemble des Canadiens. Mais venant du gars qui a regardé la caméra pour dire aux gens de l’Outaouais : “C’est ça qui est ça. Vous allez perdre votre job, mais vous allez agir en bons Québécois quand même”, cela ne me surprend pas », a-t-il décoché.

Source: Propos sur le « frérisme »: Ottawa accuse le chef du PQ de propager « une théorie du complot »

“I think it looks a lot like a conspiracy theory,” lamented Quebec City region MP and former Minister Jean-Yves Duclos on Wednesday.

“The easiest policy is to divide. It is absolutely necessary to work differently in the global context in which we live. We must be united and work together and avoid polarizing ourselves as other countries do, “he added.

For his part, the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, Marc Miller, described the words of the Péquista leader as “ridiculous”.

The liberal reacted to the statements of Paul St-Pierre Plamondon who said that “fraerism” – an ideology advocated by the Muslim Brotherhood that aims to Islamize Western societies – “is a documented reality in several European countries”, but that “the only reason why it is not documented in Canada is that it is the agenda of the government in place”.

“I’m sorry, but that’s it,” said the leader of the Parti Québécois, who added that “Quebec, not being a country, is subject to decisions and an intelligence service absolutely not oriented by the public interest to [his] opinion.”

He made his remarks at a public meeting (townhall) organized by the Advisory Center for Jewish and Israeli Relations on April 15. He then answered a question from Léo Dupire, of the right-wing group Québec Fier, who asked him to recognize “that there is a problem with mass Muslim immigration”. Mr. Dupire relays the excerpt himself on social networks.

The sovereignist leader quickly brings nuances to the question of his interlocutor. “I aim for social peace,” he says. Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon then deplores “the uncontrolled immigration” imposed by Ottawa and proposes to “return to planned immigration”.

“I would not go to say Muslim immigration because I have had several discussions with people who have fled Iranian, Saudi, Afghan regimes. People who say: “I have seen how a society can turn and I am aware of religious totalitarianism, so I chose Quebec not to live in it,” explains the Pequist leader, who says he wants to “include everyone” in the discussion.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims denounced statements that “only fuel fear among Quebecers with ideas imported from Europe”.

“The remarks made by Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon are in the image of his usual rhetoric that leaves suspicion towards our fellow citizens of Muslim faith. As a contender for power, he must be able to clearly state that Muslim Quebecers are not a threat to our society, “lamented President and CEO Stephen Brown.

In a press briefing on Tuesday in Quebec City, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon recalled that the Parti Québécois “is able to attract applications from all religions” who are “agree on the social contract that embodies” its political formation. The Péquist candidates in Jeanne-Mance–Viger and Anjou–Louis-Riel are in particular Muslim.

Of “voluntary blindness”

The Pequist leader also clarified his remarks about Ottawa on Tuesday. “The agenda is multiculturalism and blindness to foreign interference,” he explained.

According to him, there is cause for concern about the phenomenon of “frarism”: “It would be surprising if there was no such thing as this form of foreign interference in Quebec when it is being documented quite precisely in several European countries. He points to “the federal doctrine” which is “to close the eyes” and open the floodges of immigration.

“This is what Trudeau called the postnational. The post-national is a bit of the collapse of the national state that monitors its interests, then sees to planning, “he said, adding that he did not observe any change with the arrival of Mark Carney.

Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon was just as scathing as Jean-Yves Duclos. “The government’s agenda is to ensure the prosperity and quality of life for all Canadians. But coming from the guy who looked at the camera to say to the people of the Outaouais: “That’s what it is. You will lose your job, but you will act like good Quebecers anyway,” it does not surprise me, “he said.

Filed under Islamophobia, Multiculturalism, Religion Tagged with , , ,

Globe editorial: Ottawa’s reforms to economic migration have (half) a point

2026/04/22 Leave a comment

Yep:

…If Ottawa is serious about using immigration to grow the economy, decisions shouldn’t be made on a minister’s whim or under pressure from lobby groups seeking to fill short-term labour gaps. Canada’s points-based system served us well for years before changes under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau damaged it. 

These proposed reforms are a step in the right direction. While enacting them, the government should get rid of category selections, and use general rounds to pick economic immigrants. This will get Canada back to a system that truly selects the best talent in the world.

Source: Ottawa’s reforms to economic migration have (half) a point

Filed under Immigration, Multiculturalism Tagged with

Jewish community top target for reported religion-based hate crimes, Senate committee finds

2026/04/22 2 Comments

Predictable call for return of envoy among others. I think one of the main questions, whether with respect to antisemitism, anti-Islam or other forms of hate, is which initiatives and programs are actually effective in reducing hate, bias and discrimination.

While all have political and community importance, my admittedly dated experience was that many of these initiatives have marginal real impacts with the exception of regular hate crimes reporting that ensured awareness and raise the profile.

As I have written earlier, prefer broader approaches that explore and share commonalities rather than separate approaches that are less integrative:

A Senate committee is calling on the federal government to establish a task force and reinstate a special envoy position to address rising antisemitism in Canada. 

The Senate Committee on Human Rights presented its report – called Standing United Against Antisemitism: Protecting Communities and Strengthening Canadian Democracy – on Tuesday. The committee heard from 44 expert witnesses and received 36 written briefs over the course of a year. 

The Jewish community is the number one target for religiously motivated hate crimes reported to police in Canada, making up around 70 per cent of such crimes documented in 2023 and 2024, according to the report. 

“It is unacceptable to me, and the committee, that a community should live in fear just because of who they are or what they believe,” committee chair Senator Paulette Senior told a news conference.

The committee’s report outlines 22 recommendations, including the establishment of an interdepartmental task force to address antisemitism, with representatives from other key agencies and departments such as the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, the RCMP and Canadian Heritage. …

Source: Jewish community top target for reported religion-based hate crimes, Senate committee finds, https://sencanada.ca/en/committees/RIDR/about/45-1

CP/CBC article link: Senators call on Carney to restore antisemitism envoy, step up fight against hate

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , , , , ,

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