MUHC staff report racism and discrimination in workplace review

Employees at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) say they have experienced incidents of racism and discrimination "of various forms" at work.

That was one of several findings of a report from the centre's own committee tasked with surveying its workforce. The study itself has not been made public, but an executive summary released publicly on Friday reported wide-ranging feelings of discrimination and bias against minority groups. 

"Participants cited their concerns about hiring practices, pay inequality and inequity at the MUHC, including wage disparity between male and female employees. Participants also pointed out the inherent bias in the hiring and selection process for committees and management positions," read the summary. 

The four-page summary did not provide statistics to suggest just how widely those experiences were reported. However, the committee recommended the hospital implement significant changes to training, hiring, and reporting practices. 

Respondents said upper-level positions were lacking diversity, while visible minorities were more represented in lower-level jobs, "such as cleaners, janitors, and very few reach the upper echelons of administration."

Seeta Ramdass, a patient advocate, and Dr. Anita Brown-Johnson, chief of family medicine at the MUHC, both of whom are women of colour, were appointed as co-chairs of a task force mandated to launch the report. Ramdass called the survey a "brave" undertaking by the MUHC -- a hospital which serves a "very diverse" clientele. 

"People reported working in a department where an Indigenous patient was addressed in a very disrespectful manner," she told CTV News, adding that anti-Black racism was "very often" mentioned by respondents. 

The report paints a complicated picture of a hospital which, in the words of the MUHC Executive Director Dr. Pierre Gfeller, ought to be "free from discrimination and harassment."

Gfeller published an op-ed in the Montreal Gazette Friday morning, pledging to "do more" to ensure better access to jobs and advancement opportunities for under-represented groups. He also vowed to make a safe system for reporting instances of discrimination, as recommended by the diversity committee. 

Ramdass said "at no time" did respondents express a desire for their coworkers and superiors to be punished. 

"What they said was, they want to see the situation improved [at the] institution," she said, paraphrasing staff. "We want people to get education."

• Listen on CJAD 800: Authors of MUHC report on systemic racism told they can't speak to the media…but now they can?

 

2022-09-23 Exec Summary Report of MUHC Board of Directors by Ctv Montreal on Scribd