This National Indigenous Peoples Day, HRD looks at the barriers younger employees face when breaking into their first careers
Today is National Indigenous Peoples Day – a time to recognize the cultures and contributions of the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Indigenous peoples. And yet, despite Canada’s commitment to celebrating Indiegounes traditions, Indigenous youth are facing increasing discrimination when starting their careers.
A recent report from Deloitte painted a damning picture of Canadian organizations, specifically taking aim the barriers Indigenous youth face when landing their first job. The report, Bridging study and work for long-term success, highlights the perspectives of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis youth leaders in the context of higher education and early employment. It also draws attention to the systemic barriers Indigenous youth continue to face on their path to academic and career success.
‘Why do we have to prove ourselves to others to get respect?’
When compiling the report, Deloitte interviewed a collection of Indigenous youth – those ready to jump into the job market and those already there – looking at the issues they come up against and how employers can help.
Speaking to HRD, Dean Janvier, Director, Indigenous Prairies/BC and Government & Public Services, Assurance Services at Deloitte, says that one of the most surprising findings of the report was just how aware Indigenous youth are of the situation they’re facing.
“Being an Indigenous person myself, I was amazed by just how self-aware these youth are,” he says. “How sensitive they were to the suffering of their peers. And that’s not just those who’re in school or in the workplace with them, but those who didn’t make it to secondary education and those that aren’t employed - those that’re facing racism. Instead of just telling their own story, they brought these other voices forward. I thought it was a really wonderful that today's young people are so socially aware, so intelligent and have such a strong voice.”
Bias may start in the classroom but it seemingly follows into the workplace. Some of the statements made by Indigenous youths to Deloitte included;
- ‘My resumé is strong, but people still ask me if I’m a diversity hire’
- ‘Why do we have to prove ourselves to others to get respect?’
- ‘Most places want many years of experience, but an Indigenous person couldn’t get experience until recently’
- ‘It feels like a career fair is just a competition between students with MBAs and a lot of them already have families that work there.’
- ‘When someone gets a job, it’s who you know and who your community knows. If you don’t have that network you don’t get the job’
Lack of networking opportunities
The employment rate among off-reserve Indigenous youth in May 2021 was 45.9%, compared to 51.6% for non-Indigenous youth. There’s a startling disconnect between what Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth face – something that Aaron Lepine knows all too well.
“Challenges are diverse,” says Lepine, Indigenous Relations Advisor at Mikisew Group. “Indigenous youth come from all different cultures, and practices. Modern day Indigenous groups reside in urban communities, rural communities and Indigenous communities. Urban-based Indigenous youth may not have the same support systems in place to succeed that their peers have.
“With cultural differences, Indigenous youth residing in non-Indigenous communities can face identity issues and may have a difficult time connecting with, or even face discrimination from others. For those that come from Indigenous communities, it does become more difficult for them to acquire pre-employment prerequisites. When an employer sees the lack of these pre-requisites, there is not always a full understanding of why, they may proceed to overlook the candidate rather than work with their skillset.”
Lepine is well aware of the nuanced issues Indigenous youth face – but he and his employer are still determined to go the extra mile, even if sometimes it doesn’t work out. For example, Lepine tells HRD that community members from the Mikisew Cree First Nation (MCFN) living in Fort Chipewyan often cannot attain a driver’s license locally.
“And while we at the Mikisew Group look to work with our Nation members skills sets, if a client requires a driver’s license there is not always a way to accommodate the candidate,” says Lepine.
When it comes to getting your foot in the door, it’s often about who you know and not necessarily what you know. For Indigenous youth, this put them at a severe disadvantage.
“It’s hard to break into the workforce,” says Janvier. “Because we don’t have the kinds of connections and networks that other people have. We already know that Indigenous people are more underemployed, more subject to seasonal work. And so how would their parents and uncles and auntie's and grandparents have the same networks, for example, as their non Indigenous peers?”
“If you imagine all that young people coming out of secondary school we’re poised at a starting line, like a race, then the Indigenous kids would be 100 meters back.”
Throwing out archaic hiring plans
According to Statistics Canada, discrimination was more common among the Indigenous population than among populations who’re non-Indigenous - with 44% of First Nations people having experienced discrimination in the last five years, 24% of Métis and 29% of Inuit.
When you put an employer’s lens on this, it’s clear HR needs to step up and take some accountability. Something Lepine believes begins with the recruitment process itself.
“We need to ask the question ‘how are we attracting and retaining our current Indigenous employees?’ ‘What makes us stand out as an employer?’,” says Lepine.
“One of the things people need to realize is that modern day Indigenous youth know that they have a choice in which direction they want to go. Indigenous pathways are opening in post-secondary institutions, apprenticeship programs, and other viable long-term career pathways. As an Indigenous employer, we look to aspire those coming into the workplace, by recognizing the Indigenous people within our organization.
“We also need to address barriers where we can, even if it’s as early as the interview process. We have had several quiet, shy candidates come forward. Personality traits like these should not be a deterrent for a new candidate looking for an entry level position. This needs to be understood prior to the decision of the person making the hiring decisions.”
Committing to authentic reconciliation
There’s no clear-cut, one-size-fits-all approach to resolving these deeply entrenched issues – but there are some small steps employers can take today to make a real difference down the line. When you consider that, according to a report from Catalyst, over half of Indigenous people in Canada are “on guard” to experience some sort of bias, there’s no time to waste. By creating this report, Deloitte is bringing awareness, and a bit of a challenge, to other corporations who fund post-secondary institutions.
“Take a take a look at the laws, policies and practices regarding education, hiring, recruitment, retention and advancement in the workplace,” says Janvier. “By all of us keeping this positive momentum going with reconciliation efforts – assessing them and issuing reports on them – we create positive affirmation to peers and colleagues.
“In doing this, we create an environment that will result in closing the gap between Canadians and non-Indigenous Canadians regarding both secondary outcomes and workforce outcomes. But it's going to require a sustained effort by all of us over time to accomplish these goals.”