The City of Toronto commits to implementing employment practices that ensure that opportunities for employment are accessible to Aboriginal people and increases the number of Aboriginal employees at all occupational levels
Focus of the Aboriginal Employment Strategy
The Aboriginal Employment Strategy, which is part of the Talent Blueprint, focuses on:
- partnering with Aboriginal community groups to understand the barriers and how best to reach out to the Aboriginal community
- building on existing relationships and creating targeted outreach strategies
- reviewing and revising the City’s hiring processes using the equity lens to identify and address barriers
- being transparent and open to changing the City’s hiring processes to help eliminate barriers to full participation in all aspects of employment
- tracking progress of any self-identified Aboriginal candidate through the employment process at the City, including interview, assessment and selection
- communicating with City staff consistent principles and approaches to hiring in order to ensure representative participation of qualified Aboriginal candidates
Recent Activities
Recent activities to support this commitment include:
- embedding the Aboriginal Employment Strategy in Talent Blueprint, the City’s workforce plan for 2014-2018
- creating a work plan to implement the Aboriginal Employment Strategy
- launching a workforce survey to count all active Toronto Public Service members in 2014
- improving the outreach process for the City’s Urban Fellows program for Master’s and PhD students, in order to reach Aboriginal applicants
- working with City divisions to increase their awareness of the Aboriginal Employment Strategy
Planned Activities
Activities planned to support this commitment include:
- conducting an employment systems review at the City to identify and remove barriers to employment and advancement.
- creating an inter-divisional network on Aboriginal issues (community of practice)
History of the Aboriginal Employment Strategy
In July 2010, Toronto City Council adopted the Statement of Commitment to the Aboriginal Communities in Toronto. The commitments laid out in the Statement refer to employment and public appointments.
In June 2013, the Aboriginal Affairs committee through former Councillor Layton made a motion at Council to have an Aboriginal employment strategy created. The Aboriginal Employment Strategy was adopted by Toronto City Council In February 2014.
