• Français
Future Skills Center logo
Français
Polygon Created with Sketch. Home | Research
Research

Gender, diversity and discrimination in the workplace

Workplace discrimination in Canada is a significant issue that affects a wide range of employees and has an impact on broader workplace culture. Discrimination in the workplace is experienced by many people from equity-deserving groups, including Indigenous peoples, women, racialized people, persons living with disabilities and 2SLGBTQ+ individuals. Intersectionality also plays a key role in how discriminatory practices affect people with multiple identities.

This study explores peoples experiences with discrimination in the workplace in Canada drawing on data from the Survey of Employment and Skills conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research, in partnership with the Future Skills Centre and the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University. The survey was administered in six waves between 2020 and 2023 to a total of 34,740 participants. Overall, the survey asked about seven grounds for discrimination: age, gender, race or ethnicity, Indigenous identity (asked only to Indigenous respondents), disability, sexual orientation and religion.

Download Report Button

Key insights

Employers need to have clear and formal commitments to preventing discrimination in all its forms and to ensure they have strong and effective equity, diversity and inclusion strategies that are well understood and implemented. Tracking complaints and separations from the company also offer important signs regarding what is working and what is not.

Results show intersectionality is important as many groups face multiple layers of discrimination; for example, Black women, and younger women (18 to 34 years) are more likely than women overall to report experiences of workplace discrimination.

The results also show that, for some groups, those who report experiencing workplace discrimination tend also to report poorer mental health compared to their counterparts who do not report experiencing discrimination.

More from FSC

Nurses discussing at table
Project

An Educational Pathway to Employment for Internationally Trained Nurses in Alberta

  • July 2026
  • Bow Valley College
Internationally educated nurses (IENs) represent a significant and underutilized part of the solution, yet systemic barriers consistently prevent them from securing nursing employment in Canada. To bridge this gap, Bow Valley College developed and piloted six employer-informed microcredential courses across two educational pathways, specifically designed to help IENs navigate the clinical and contextual demands of the Canadian healthcare workplace.
2 Related Reports
Woman doctor consulting with male patient at hospital
State of Skills

Skills and Training Innovation in Healthcare and Bio-Health

  • July 2026
The purpose of the healthcare sector is, ultimately, to improve the health of the population, which also includes its workforce. The impact of projected shortages of skilled health workers means Canadians will be challenged to get the timely healthcare that they need, as the burden of age-related, complex illnesses continues to grow.
1 Related Reports
Medical team in discussion, brainstorming and planning.
Project

Health English Language Pro: Leveraging A Physician-Driven Response to Medical Communication Skills Development for Newcomer Physicians

  • July 2026
  • ACCES Employment
The HELP program (Health English Language Pro) was developed to address some of these barriers through a peer-to-peer partnership model between volunteer and newcomer physicians. The program focused on improving English medical communication, understanding of the Canadian healthcare system, professional confidence, and social capital.
2 Related Reports
View all Research