Associations have a critical role to play to support the hiring of Indigenous and equity-deserving academic staff and to ensure that their talents, capacities and contributions are valued, recognized, and respected once hired. This section looks at actions associations can take to assist in promoting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) for academic staff in the hiring, tenure, regularization, and promotion processes.

Institutions may already have guidelines and training around equity hiring, or they may be developing or renewing them in response to equity, diversity and inclusion requirements of the Canada Research Chairs Program, the federal Dimensions program, membership in Universities Canada or Colleges and Institutes Canada, the Federal Contractors Program, or requirements in the collective agreement.   Institutions may also have made specific commitments to fight racism, signing on to the Scarborough Charter.

It is important for associations to be involved in shaping the policies and practices on appointments and the campus climate. Research demonstrates that people tend to hire people with whom they assume they are culturally compatible, candidates who share similar experiences, leisure activities, and styles of self-presentation, perpetuating the status quo. Conscious and concerted effort is necessary to advance JEDI.