Time to cut bloated federal DEI bureaucracy in Ottawa

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Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) as a movement has accomplished its goal. It is time to put a fork in it at the federal government level.

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Perhaps everywhere, but let’s stay with Ottawa.

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First, consider the cost.

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, “federal departments last year assigned almost 600 employees to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, records show. Cabinet acknowledged the figure was incomplete since numerous departments declined to report how many managers worked on ‘representation goals.’”

The actual reported number was 577, but with some non-reporting from the RCMP and the Health, Justice and Public Works departments, among others, it is safe to say it is at least 600.

“The Department of Immigration declined. Paperwork made it ‘difficult,’” according to Blacklock’s Reporter.

Mission accomplished on the DEI front?

Perhaps the departments could get rid of some DEI managers and re-assign one or two to public accountability.

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It costs an average of $130,000, including salary, pension, office space and equipment, to pay a federal employee; 600 of them costs us over $75 million annually. Let’s thank them for their service and wish them the best in their future endeavours.

Why do I say they have accomplished the goal? Let’s look at the makeup of the federal government from the government’s own numbers.

— In 2023, women made up 56.8% of the federal government, but just over 50% of the population. Women are overrepresented.

— 5.3% of employees in the core public administration have self-identified as Indigenous Peoples, which is above the workforce availability estimate of 4.1%. Indigenous Peoples are overrepresented.

— 5.5% of executives are Indigenous. Overrepresented.

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— 5% of employees in the core public administration have self-identified as Black. It may come as a surprise to people in several large cities, but across this country Black people make up only 4.3% of Canada’s population. In the federal government, Black people are overrepresented.

— 22.9% of federal employees self-identify as visible minorities, as compared to 22.7% of the population. (The entire country does not look like Toronto.)

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People with disabilities only group underrepresented

The only group I could find that is so far underrepresented is people with disabilities. That is something well worth studying and, if possible, remedying. But I am sure it can be done with far fewer people on the committee than the 600-plus doing it now.

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Here is an anecdotal story, but a believable one in my mind.

A teacher called my Newstalk 1010 radio show to say that he works in the Toronto system and has been called numerous times to workshops dealing with DEI.

I asked, given the Ontario education system’s decades-long failure to get children up to speed in math and English, how many workshops he has been called to for discussions about that problem. “None,” he said.

Programs have cost feds more than $1B since 2016

Again from Blacklock’s Reporter: “Cabinet since 2016 spent $1.049 billion on diversity, equity and inclusion programs, according to an earlier inquiry of ministry tabled in the Commons on Sept. 17.”

One example of spending is the Defence Department paying Dr. Rachel Zellars of St. Mary’s University in Halifax $22,600 as a guest speaker for a Black History Month event. That’s good work if you can get it, but it should no longer be on the public dime.

Credit where credit is due: Goal accomplished.

When the plumber fixes the leak, we don’t pay him to stand there and admire his work.

Thanks for the service. All the best.

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