Chapter 5: Management Perspectives
5.1 Introduction
Management perspectives were obtained from three sources: a questionnaire sent to executives (EXs) of the public service and the staffing/managing group (lower than the EXs in the public service hierarchy); interviews with several EXs; and focus groups of the staffing/managing group. As in the case of the visible minority employees and control group participants, managers who participated in the study were generous in the time they devoted not only to sharing their perspectives but also to making suggestions for improving visible minority representation.
The following observations are significant for an appreciation of how things look from the "other side", so to speak. This also shows the extent to which the views and suggestions seem to converge with those of the visible minority participants on major points.
5.2 Environmental scan
The hiring/managing group who responded to the questionnaire were able to identify a large number of factors that affect the general environment in which the hiring of visible minority candidates into the public service takes place.
In identifying the factors that might account for the low proportion of visible minority employees in the public service, the reasons most often cited were differences in the availability of qualified visible minority candidates in various locations and different attitudes towards them in these locations. The culturally-based career preferences of some visible minority communities, a phenomenon beyond the control of the public service, was also identified as a factor. However, 12.5% of the staffing/managing group answering questionnaires and many managers who were interviewed individually or in groups, identified the presence of systemic barriers as a factor affecting the representation of visible minorities in the federal public service.
The managers' wider perspectives covered a number of points related to the general environment in which the hiring/managing occurred. These would include the fact that the power of visible minorities is growing politically as evidenced in the make-up of Parliament; that re-structuring of the public service is a major problem; that some departments and agencies are more sensitive to employment equity than others; and that the profile of visible minorities varies among departments and agencies -- some are high achievers. In that connection, management participants stressed the importance of the commitment and leadership of an organization: "Practice is more important than a well-articulated policy". They also noted the public service's inability to compete with private sector salaries in some areas such as the computer field. Some pointed to the importance of the merit principle, which they think should be better respected -- which, in turn, would likely contribute to greater representation of visible minority employees. As one manager put it, "the government is paid to provide services to the people and should reflect the people it is paid to provide services for."
Managers seem to have the perception that the only groups for which special measures have been adopted are women and Aboriginal people. They are of the view that visible minority groups have been "whining" but there have not been enough concrete recommendations to act on.
However, it was the attitude towards visible minority employees that managers seem to give the greatest weight. We were told that "racial discrimination" has a lot to do with the lower percentage of visible minority employees in the public service. One manager put it thus: "Canadians have prided themselves in being a non-racist society; [but the truth is that] they are no more or less racist than anyone else, although they compare themselves with Americans and claim to be less racist." In his view, much more needs to be done in order to eliminate racial discrimination -- cultural bias has to be addressed but that is a long term process and a difficult task. This manager asked the question: "Why are there no visible minority Deputy Ministers? There is no easy answer; but I would not rule out prejudice".
Other participants observed that barriers arise between people of different backgrounds, and that it is not human nature to take a long-term view. From this viewpoint, comfort levels, values and a level playing field are important factors. If there is no understanding, there is fear.
There was a feeling that there is a need to educate federal public servants about the value that immigrants bring to Canadian society: we need immigrants, it was argued, for economic reasons and there should be no employment barriers based on factors such as skin colour.
5.3 Hiring
The primacy of culture, not the official hiring process, seemed to permeate many participating managers' perspectives. They emphasized the cultural biases in hiring; the impact of regional factors or culture in hiring (for example, the difference in Toronto with a large visible minority labour force); the possible limitation of job search by visible minority candidates caused by community influences; the importance of corporate culture and comfort levels.
In the view of management participants, the majority of discriminatory acts are not intentional; they depend on the level of comfort allowed by the system. They note that the techniques used in hiring have cultural variations. In their experience, visible minority candidates do not respond in the same manner in interviews (with respect to eye contact, for example) and interpretation of answers is different. It was observed in passing that the hiring "tools" are not always appropriate for women either.
5.4 Labour market supply
The problem of labour market supply was underscored by hiring/managing staff, with some emphasis on regional factors. The Atlantic provinces were cited as an example of where there are few minorities in a location where one is hiring. This, it was argued, is exacerbated by a frequent unwillingness on the part of candidates who live in or near large metropolitan centres like Toronto to move. Other factors mentioned as affecting supply were: some visible minority members prefer entrepreneurial activities to public service; the attraction of the nature of the work of certain departments for particular ethno-cultural communities; and the fact that it is not as difficult to find visible minority candidates in some of the research disciplines as it is in the business disciplines.
5.5 Recruitment
Participating managers felt the current predominance of term hiring limits opportunities for visible minority group members. In fact, they said only about a quarter of appointments are indeterminate.
In the participants' view, competitions preclude targeting, though it may be required; this approach requires cooperation with the PSC and the Treasury Board Secretariat. Many of the participating managers complained that the present system is bureaucratic and inefficient and that they often run into a "brick wall" with human resources staff, while acknowledging that the solution is for them to "forge an understanding" with the latter. Their self-diagnosis was that "managers should be educated on employment equity goals."
The barriers to a higher rate of recruitment of visible minority groups which management participants identifed were: insufficient external recruitment; very precise and specialized requirements for scientific positions; the limited recruiting methods; language requirements; cultural differences and lack of sensitivity on the part of those involved in staffing.
Other recruitment-related factors mentioned by participating managers deserve mention. Networking plays a central role in securing access to employment opportunities. For example, one senior executive pointed out that if he wishes to hire someone, he goes to a select number of trusted colleagues to ask for recommendations or to seek their opinion on a particular candidate's personality. About a quarter of the hiring/managing group that responded to our questionnaire and most members of the focus groups deemed networking to be important. Then, too, the respondents to the questionnaires listed "other", which was unspecified, as the most important source of information on jobs; newspapers and electronic and broadcast media coming second and third.
Citizenship and official languages were said by some participants to be "only excuses, not barriers" at the hiring level, although bilingualism may be a barrier at higher levels. However, three out of five respondents in the hiring/managing group felt that Canadian citizens should continue to be given employment preference. Accreditation is also seen as a potential barrier. There was the perception that there is a need for more programs to hire visible minorities at lower levels and then train and equip them to rise.
5.6 Selection
Participating managers made a number of observations on the operation of the selection system:
- The recruitment and staffing process is not monitored; it is left to the human resources division and there is no tracking.
- People do discriminate; also some visible minorities accuse one another of racism
- There is no ready-made formula for success; success depends on the tools available; a level playing field is important; the challenge is how to create one.
- Some departments have policies that differ from those of the PSC.
On the strictly operational side, it was reported that casuals are being hired for the scientific and professional areas as well as the administrative category. Four out of five of the participating hiring/managing staff confirmed that internal competitions take place all or most of the time and that external competitions are rare. This group also indicated that in about one-fifth of the cases, appointments are made without competitions, a point of great concern to visible minority focus group participants.
Over 70% of respondents to the management questionnaire said that they included education and experience equivalencies all, or most, of the time in their statements of qualifications, and three out of ten posted notices about internal competitions either in the branch or throughout their department or agency. Only seven percent did so throughout the public service. (We were told that "area of search" bears a direct relationship with access to opportunity.) Four out of five respondents use the referral services of the PSC to fill vacancies but they use it least for the EX category -- only about one out of ten. Some 27% of them had asked specifically for visible minority referrals all the time. Four out of 10 indicated that they do not like these strategies to recruit members of underrepresented groups. In fact most say they do not target designated groups, including visible minority groups, in recruiting high calibre university and community college graduates through the PSC's Cooperative Education or Summer Employment Programs. The Accelerated Economists Training Program was reportedly seldom used.
The main tools used in assessing candidates were said to be, in order of importance: interviews, written tests, reviews of past experience, reference checks and reviews of past accomplishments. Over 70 per cent of the questionnaire respondents said the gender mix on interview boards was commonly considered, but that visible minority representation was usually not.
There seemed to be a divergence of opinion between the executives and the rest of the staffing/managing group regarding one point: a minority of the latter indicated that they assessed recruitment and selection methods and criteria to ensure that they met the requirement of the positions; the EXs did not agree. However, all respondents said they never established different selection criteria for visible minority candidates. Most respondents indicated that the process per se does not have a negative effect on visible minorities.
5.7 Promotion
The management participants shed their own light on the nature of the promotion system and the way it affects visible minority employees. Comments included the observations that: no performance appraisal is objective; that there are barriers in some departments and agencies against visible minority public servants entering the EX category; the level of comfort is important ("playing golf with the boys helps so that the boys will notice you") and that the role of mentors is important.
It was suggested that mentoring and "sponsorship" need to be actively encouraged. The view expressed was that these things happen unofficially and visible minority employees should be encouraged to find mentors from among the "many smart people among visible minorities" who "are noticed."
5.8 Entry into the management category
As in the case of the employees, the matter of entry into the executive realm of the federal public service was the object of special commentary from the management respondents.
The litany heard with regard to visible minorities is: "you are not ready to be a manager". Though this would seem to be a false perception in many cases, it appears to be an entrenched habit of thought. Visible minorities are perceived to lack self- assertiveness. Unless such skill sets are developed, visible minorities will continue to be perceived as "non-managerial" material, the EX participants said. Often, somewhat passive traits are not seen as being "in sync" with North American values.
To get into the EX group one needs a wide range of experiences, not just a professional or other specific background: one must be a good manager and have policy experience. According to management participants, some visible minority professionals would prefer to remain in their field of specialization: this creates a barrier against their entry into the EX category. There seem to be some unarticulated qualms among senior EXs as to whether the visible minority employees would be good managers who understand the needs of the groups under them. Participants pointed out that entering the EX group is a career change and there could be a conflict between commitment to a specific profession and general management.
Management participants also pointed out that the EX group itself is shrinking: many want to reach that level but few are needed.
5.9 Workplace environment
The context for employment equity initiatives that would influence the workplace environment for visible minorities is of interest.
As high as 72% of the managers said that they did not set specific employment equity objectives for individuals under their supervision. Respondents also indicated that few departments or agencies had done anything beyond adopting a self-identification strategy, doing some training and establishing employment equity committees. Only 36% of the executives had asked their managers to keep employment equity objectives in focus in the hiring process and only 10% monitored the recruitment and selection process. And only about a quarter said their employees required training in employment equity and human rights issues.
About 47% of the managers said they did not believe the workplace environment is free of racial harassment: the participants were also divided equally when asked if they had witnessed negative attitudes toward visible minorities or immigrants. While more than half said the special needs of visible minorities are being accommodated, a significant percentage was not so sure. Close to two-thirds said that visible minority employees do not initiate more complaints than other employees.
Unlike the employees, a high proportion of the participating managers, about 85%, said they felt comfortable in the workplace environment.
5.10 Best practices
Our interviews, focus groups and a review of statistical material show that some departments have done much better than others in the recruitment of visible minority employees. It would be worthwhile to discover why this happens to be so.
A number of the managers told us about the "good practices" of some departments. These include:
Summary: Chapter 5
Management Perspectives
This chapter outlines the perspectives of public service managers regarding the situation of visible minority employees and applicants. The perspectives were obtained through questionnaires sent to EXs and members of the staffing/managing group as well as focus groups and interviews.
Managers and executives confirmed that a firm commitment to equity and diversity is not always present. They agree with employees that rigid employment systems make it difficult to reach out to visible minority candidates, and that networks are important in hiring and promotion decisions.
They share the employees’ view that interviews are more important than previous experience, and that cultural biases, language requirements and accreditation issues may limit the success of visible minority candidates.
About half the management participants stated that there is some bias against visible minority individuals within the public service, and that diversity related education for managers is required.
Too little attention is paid to visible minority representation on hiring boards, and employment equity activities within their organizations are often restricted in scope.
Overall, managers and executives did not believe that hiring and promotion processes are inherently biased or that there is much conscious discrimination. They attribute low visible minority representation to such factors as the relatively small qualified visible minority workforce in regions where recruitment is taking place, the unwillingness of some visible minority candidates to relocate, the absence of indeterminate hiring, and the unattractiveness of public service salaries. Some were skeptical about the management capacities of visible minority employees.
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