Canadian Equity Council

The Canadian Equity Council (CEC) was created at the 2016 Triennial COPE/SEPB convention in response to Resolution 23 which requested a reserved seat for equity seeking groups at the National Executive Board (NEB). Although this resolution did not pass, it was clear that given the current lack of representation of the union’s structure, something needed to be done. Consequently, the NEB presented a resolution demanding the creation of the equity council.

The CEC ‘s main focus is on members who self identify as equity seeking members. Namely, people living with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+, young workers, visible minorities, and First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI).

The CEC’s mandate is to offer guidance to the National Executive Board regarding questions of equity such as, inclusive lines of conduct, submit resolutions to convention floor, participate in the preparation of content for the conventions, and prepare campaigns in order to favour the inclusivity of all COPE/SEPB members. Additionally, the CEC can be called upon to analyse and suggest changes on policies elaborated by the NEB and the locals of COPE/SEPB to ensure that they are viewed through an equity lens. Furthermore, it is tasked with analyzing requests submitted to the Equity Education and Learning Fund for approbation. The CEC also organises workshops on issues that affect equity seeking groups in order to stimulate discussions and debate on issues of importance to us.

The CEC is composed of members from four regions in Canada and each region can have up to four seats at the table:

Region 1: Quebec

Region 2: Ontario

Region 3: The Prairies

Region 4: British-Columbia