Hon. Jane Cordy: Senator Gold, Indigenous women are four times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be victims of violence. Indigenous women make up 16% of all female homicide victims and 11% of missing women, yet Indigenous people make up only 4.3% of the population of Canada.

Last month in the other place, a motion declaring the continued loss of Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people a Canada‑wide emergency passed with unanimous consent. The motion also called on the federal government to provide immediate and substantial investment including a red dress alert system to help alert the public when an Indigenous woman, girl or two-spirit person goes missing.

Senator Gold, this motion received unanimous support in the House of Commons, and this includes support by the government.

My question will be to the point: Does the government intend to act on this motion and will the government work to develop an alert system for missing Indigenous women?

Senator Cordy: Thank you, Senator Gold. That is very positive.

We know that a motion made in the other place — or in this place — does not necessarily compel the government to act; although, you have said that they will be doing that, which is a positive thing.

As you stated, the alert systems are the jurisdictions of the provinces and territories. My question is: Will the federal government take a leadership role so that it is not just one province or one territory but, in fact, the whole country? Will the federal government take a leadership role to make the alert system a reality, and will the federal government provide some funding to help the provinces and the territories set up the alert system?

Hon. Jane Cordy: Senator Gold, in July the 2021 national employment equity survey of women employees at Correctional Service Canada was released. The survey gathered feedback from women about their experiences at Corrections Canada, and this information should help to inform and build a representative and inclusive workforce. Over 2,500 employees responded to the survey: 79% reported that they felt comfortable disclosing incidents that compromised physical well-being to supervisors, and 76% agreed that they felt physically safe on the job.

However, only 61% of respondents agreed that their work environment represented a culture of zero tolerance to gender-based harassment and violence; 29% said that they were the victims of on-the-job, gender-based harassment or violence in the last five years. Senator Gold, unfortunately, the predominant source of this harassment was co-workers.

The Human Rights Committee visited many prisons across the country. In at least three prisons, we heard from employees who were sexually harassed by colleagues, and action taken by their superiors in many cases was little or none. We also heard from employees who were subjected to racism and, again, little was done. So they questioned whether they should quit their job or continue to fight for a safer working environment.

Senator Gold, has the government responded to the survey? I understand that the Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada committed to holding town hall discussions with Corrections Canada employees this fall. Do you know whether these discussions have taken place? If so, are you able to share with this chamber the results of these discussions? If not, could you perhaps share the results if and when you receive them?

Senator Cordy: Thank you for that, Senator Gold. In light of the work that the Human Rights Committee has done on human rights of prisoners, and in this case it’s human rights of prison employees, it would be very important for us, and particularly the Human Rights Committee, to know.

Senator Gold, I understand that in 2020 Corrections Canada launched their National Comprehensive Strategy on Workplace Wellness and Employee Wellbeing designed to identify risks and action plans with clear accountabilities and performance monitoring in order to track progress.

Sadly, the 2021 employee survey showed that there continues to be a perceived lack of action when it comes to Corrections Canada responding in a proactive and timely way and, unfortunately, also when it comes to disciplining the perpetrators. Almost 48% of respondents believe that support for victims is either absent or needs improvement, and only 42% believe that Corrections Canada provided a confidential and safe space to file complaints. What’s more discouraging is that less than half of respondents — 46% — were even aware of how to file a formal discrimination complaint.

So in light of the survey results, and in consideration of the national comprehensive strategy, what action will the government take to bridge these gaps? Again, you may have to bring that information to us at a later date. I would appreciate that. Thank you.