Montreal Discusses Next Steps in Fight Against Racism and Systemic Discrimination

Recently, the City of Montreal held a public discussion on its 2022 accounts on racism and systemic discrimination.

During the discussion, the city updated Montrealers on the status of the municipal government's work to combat racism and systemic discrimination. The administration said it would double its efforts and determination to ensure that no Montrealer would be subjected to discrimination or racism, especially following recent testimonies from 30 city employees of racist acts committed towards them.

In 2020, the city officially recognized the existence of systemic racism following a report submitted by the OCPM, which included 38 recommendations on how to tackle the issue. The same year, the City of Montreal announced the appointment of a Commissaire à la lutte au racisme et aux discriminations systémiques, and the creation of the Bureau de la lutte au racisme et aux discriminations systémiques.

Dominique Ollivier, the executive committee chair, said that the administration did not tolerate any direct, indirect or systemic type of racism, and that it is investigating and acting on the root causes.

To meet their objectives, the human resources department of the City of Montreal will accelerate its work, in the coming year, on three priorities: an updated and more robust Politique du respect de la personne, a more efficient handling of complaints, and business units that are better equipped and accountable.

The city will also ensure that any person who experiences aggression, harassment, discrimination or violence knows about the complaints body, feels secure to file a complaint, can be accompanied in a humane, safe and confidential manner in the process, that there is a follow-up, and that appropriate disciplinary measures are taken.

In 2022, the city of Montreal took essential actions such as; 
-Restructuring the human resources department to ensure a more robust approach to diversity, equity and inclusion within the city
-The implementation of an inclusive talent management strategy, which won an award in public administration and enabled a first cohort of 43 professionals to move into management positions
-Training was provided to emergency communications workers at 911, at the request of the SPVM, on discriminatory bias
-The Living Environment Equity Index was created by the Social Diversity and Inclusion Department
-Public consultations with Montrealers were held