By Fabian Dawson
New Canadian Media
Canada’s military is not yet ready to allow permanent residents to join its ranks, even as it struggles to boost recruitment and fix the growing diversity gap in the nation’s armed forces.
In response to a request from New Canadian Media, ahead of the recent inaugural Navy Fleet Weekend in Vancouver, numbers provided by the Canadian Armed Forces (CAD) show that three-quarters of its ranks are white men.
Women make up 16.3 percent of the Canadian military demographic; Indigenous peoples come in at 2.7 percent while there is less than 12 percent of visible minorities in the Canadian military make-up.
Canada needs about 100,000 troops to be at full strength, but it is short about 12,000 regular force troops and reservists currently.
A little-known immigration pathway called the Foreign Skilled Military Applicant (FSMA) has only seen 15 successful candidates over the last five years.
“Over the last year alone, the Canadian Forces Recruiting Group (CFRG) interacted with approximately 100 individuals who were interested in joining the military through the FSMA,” military spokesperson Major Brian Kominar told NCM.
“Discussions involving the Department of National Defence, the Canadian Armed Forces, and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on lifting the citizenship requirement are continuing, though there are no changes to announce at this time,” he said.
The CBC reported in 2018, in line with the government of Canada’s objective of raising the number of forces personnel, there are discussions to review the possibility of foreign nationals’ recruitment beyond skills applicants.
Lifting the forces’ citizenship requirement would be a sharp departure from Canada’s traditional recruitment practices and could open the doors to applications from thousands of permanent residents, the CBC reported.
Other countries — the U.S. among them — allow non-citizens to serve, with certain restrictions on the positions and ranks they can hold.
In 2016, the RCMP scrapped its citizenship requirement, allowing permanent residents who have lived in Canada for more than 10 years to apply. The goal was, in part, to boost diversity in the ranks.
“We invite any associations, agencies, or organizations that work with new Canadians to contact the Canadian Forces Recruiting Group and find out what resources and tools are available to improve awareness of the over 100 full-time and part-time occupations available in the Canadian Armed Forces,” said Major Kominar.
“Non-Canadian citizen applicants must meet IRCC guidelines and requirements before proceeding through the CAF recruiting system,” he added.
A report from the Advisory Panel on Systemic Racism and Discrimination in Canada’s Defence Team acknowledged the need for increased new immigrant participation in the armed forces.
“The proportion of people belonging to visible minorities in the labour force who were born in Canada is expected to increase from 20 percent in 2016 to 26 percent of the labour force by 2036…the increasing ethnocultural diversity of the labour force is expected to continue,” the report noted.
Earlier this month, Chief of the defence staff Gen. Wayne Eyre told the Ottawa Defence Conference that the CAF needs to “win the battle for talent” both in the recruitment and retention of new military members.
“If we don’t keep pace with the changing demographics, the changing face of Canada, we are going to be irrelevant,” he told the conference.
Among those taking the message to new immigrants to seek careers in the CAF is Manjot Pandher who moved to B.C. from India in 2010 and joined the Canadian Navy seven years later.
“It has provided me with great opportunities to travel while I was at school and learn new skills which will help me in my civilian career, later in life,” said Pandher, who is now a Navy Sailor 2nd Class.
“The military is a big family which welcomes everyone and being part of this family, you feel connected to Canada as a whole,” Pandher told NCM.
Meanwhile, the Ministerial Advisory Panel report released last month as part of an effort to eliminate systemic racism and discrimination in Canada’s Defence team has provided recommendations for change in thirteen areas that cross the organization - from improving education and awareness of reconciliation to promoting the history of Black service personnel, to improving recruitment efforts in multicultural communities, and using data to measure progress.
The Panel urged the Defence Team leaders to consider these recommendations with resolve and urgency and to use them as a guide for current and future work to eliminate racism and discrimination in all forms.
“Throughout our history, the Canadian Armed Forces and Defence Team have never faltered – always answering the call of service during climate-related disasters, throughout the pandemic, and on military deployments far from home. It is our most basic responsibility and top priority to ensure they can serve and work with pride in an environment that is free from racism and discrimination,” said Anita Anand, Minister of National Defence.
“The Panel has urged us to consider their recommendations with resolve and urgency, and that is exactly what we will do as we continue our mission to bring the culture change needed in the Canadian Armed Forces and the Department of National Defence,” she said.
“Meeting the challenges of an increasingly dangerous and unstable future requires an even more diverse and inclusive Canadian Armed Forces. Every Canadian needs to see themselves reflected within our ranks, and every member of our team must feel welcome, valued, and safe to bring their talents to bear in service to our country,” said General Wayne Eyre, Chief of the Defence Staff.
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