No need for Trudeau to be silent on systemic inequality

It was a virtual thought bubble of anguish, begging to be filled.

Let’s assume that during those excruciating 21 seconds when the prime minister paused Tuesday before answering a question about why he wasn’t speaking out about Donald Trump’s treatment of anti-racism protesters, Justin Trudeau was evaluating whether it’s more important to shield the Canadian economy from the impetuous U.S. president or to defend democratic rights.

After the well-timed silence, Trudeau came down on the side of a careful “both” — the only acceptable answer to a country whose prosperity is so deeply connected to the United States, even at a time of political instability, but also has its own record of racial inequality to deal with, especially during the pandemic.

“It is a time for us as Canadians to recognize that we too have our challenges, that Black Canadians and racialized Canadians face discrimination as a lived reality every single day,”

Trudeau eventually told reporters on the morning after police in Washington used tear gas and concussion grenades to force a path through peaceful protesters to make way for a Trump photo-op.

Trump followed up by threatening to bring in the military to stifle the protests.

But Trudeau wanted to keep his focus on Canada, in part because he has crossed the thin-skinned Trump before, and come face to face with trade retaliation that hurts us all.

Trudeau has made an art out of silently criticizing the U.S. president, and the meaning of his unspoken message was perfectly clear without being overtly offensive.

But when he did answer out loud, he also turned to an area where he can actually make a difference — confronting systemic racism in Canada.

“We need to see that — not just as a government and take action but we need to see that as Canadians. We need to be allies in the fight against discrimination.”

His call to action was echoed across the country — on social media, in the House of Commons and in a letter from 116 business leaders pledging publicly to denounce racism and do better.

“As employers, we value and promote diversity and inclusion in our companies and in our communities,” said the letter written by Manulife CEO Roy Gori and circulated by the Business Council of Canada.

“We call on other leaders to do the same so that together we can build a more just, fair and equitable society.”

But what does that really mean for a labour market that has systemically paid less money to people of colour, promoted them less often and given them weaker protections and lower standards?

Trudeau’s silence on that question is more troubling.

According to 2016 census numbers crunched by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, women of colour in Canada earn 59 cents for every dollar a white man earns, while men of colour make about 78 cents. They face higher unemployment rates and earn far less from investments.

Black workers face even bigger wage gaps than other racialized workers.

The pandemic seems to have exacerbated these inequalities, often placing people of colour in dangerous front-line jobs without proper personal protective equipment, low pay and often few benefits.

Clearly, this is indeed systemic, and workplaces are a perfect spot to look for solutions.

In the short term, when it comes to fair treatment for front-line workers during the pandemic, the federal opposition parties have been quick to propose some answers. The NDP and the Bloc Québécois are both pushing the Liberals to more quickly process and legitimize the hundreds of often-racialized asylum seekers who walked over the border from the United States and are now working in long-termcare homes.

Federal and provincial governments are increasing the pay and bettering the protections for these workers in real time. Quebec Premier François Legault offered Tuesday to provide training, give benefits and pay up to $49,000 a year for new personal support workers to join the ranks.

But will all those improvements end when the pandemic is over?

The Business Council is proposing some longer-term approaches, including training all new employees to recognize unconscious bias, setting up zero-tolerance anti-racism policies in the workplace and developing mentorships.

Sheila Block, who co-wrote the CCPA paper on racialized inequality, would like to see legislated employment equity rules, legislation for transparency on pay rates, stricter labour and safety standards, higher minimum wages and more pervasive unionization. And of course, anything that alleviates the precarious nature of work for new immigrants — with immigration status and foreign credential recognition at the top of the list.

The to-do lists of business and labour and social justice advocates are long, but they’re also completely feasible with some concerted leadership from all sides.

There’s no need for the thought bubble to remain empty on this one.

Workplaces are a perfect spot to look for solutions to systemic inequalities