Continuing Anti-Racism At Work

Last Year…

In 2021, we conducted research in the Greater Sudbury Area in partnership with students at Cambrian College.

Read through the initial research analysis results here.

We Found Alarming Results…

The survey had 121 respondents with over 20 one-on-one in-person interviews.

According to our analysis, nearly 40% of people are still facing some form of racism at the workplace.

Those respondents highlighted Individual and systemic racism as their largest experiences. Micro-aggressions and institutional flaws are still prevalent within Sudbury and negatively impacting workers.

We found 50% of the respondents said they were fully aware of their work rights, while 9% of them were completely unaware. In addition, 14% of people are not satisfied at their workplace. This told us management is clearly not doing enough to address the complaints and concerns when they do happen, and that workers may be aware of their human rights, but not aware of the processes in order to protect them. 

An interview with a business owner who explored his own past working experiences emphasizes, “We often focus on the problem and not the solution, we talk about what has happened as opposed to what had been done to do better and succeed…” He later adds, “If ownership is not involved the rest of the organization will not want to be involved and take action.“

Another worker points out “Any workplaces should create a safe workplace… so everyone feels welcome, there should be easier accessibility for workers who come from a different country to gain experience and have a chance.”

Read through more one-on-one interviews here.

What’s Next…

With the stories we collected and our analysis, we are beginning to create an anti-racism campaign to be focused workplace’s. These workshops will aim to help name and address the issues that are arising here for Sudbury workers. With the help of this data, we will be able to target areas of concern and address specific acts or types of racism that are present in our local workplaces.

On February 23, we conducted our first part of this project. 

Our webinar on Addressing Racism at Work and working towards Anti-Racism explored the different complaint processes available for workers. We discussed crucial topics surrounding racial discrimination in the workplace, especially how these situations can be subtle, unconscious, and can attribute to the dangers of a toxic work environment. 

Watch our Webinar on Addressing Racism in the Workplace and advocating for Anti-Racism!  

(Passcode: 3#sA8=6E)

We know that more research can and must be done, but with this overall idea, we can make substantial changes to workplaces in Sudbury.  We must continue to have these crucial conversations and uplift the voices of Black people and other marginalized groups, not just within the constraints of a monthly time period. 

We must move with urgency surrounding change in workplaces, dismantling systemic pressures around us, and encouraging the protection and just equal-advancement of people of colour.