Chapter 1: Diversity and Inclusion in the Security and Intelligence Community — Conclusion
National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians Annual Report 2019

Conclusion

102. Building diverse and inclusive workforces is essential to the effectiveness of the security and intelligence community. It is imperative that organizations charged with the responsibility to defend Canada and protect Canadians leverage the skills, talent and perspectives of individuals of different genders, abilities, and racial, ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds. That belief is well-founded in academic and professional studies and the approaches of Canada's closest allies. Most importantly, it is also shared by the senior leadership of the security and intelligence organizations themselves. Unfortunately, there is still much work to be done. Levels of underrepresentation for designated groups and rates of harassment and discrimination remain unacceptably high. The corrosive allegations of harassment, violence and discrimination at the CAF and the RCMP, two core members of the security and intelligence community, remain fresh in the public's memory. Addressing these issues will require sustained leadership and a commitment from each organization to create workforces that fully reflect Canada's diversity. Given the importance of the issues involved, the Committee believes that the security and intelligence community can and should be a leader within the wider public service.

Going forward

103. The Committee believes that it will be important to track the community's progress in increasing the representation of designated groups in all occupational groups and strengthening inclusion in the coming years. Indeed, the operational imperative for diversity across the security and intelligence community combined with Canada's evolving demographics suggests that continued improvement in these areas is critical to the success of these organizations. Moreover, given the long-term nature of organizations' representation goals and inclusion initiatives, a review of their implementation may serve as an indicator of the pace of progress on diversity and inclusion across the community.