Essential Services vs. Essential Time Off: Building Culturally Safe Workplaces for Indigenous Employees in BC
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Coastal Research, Education, & Advocacy Network (CREAN) has been leading the Essential Services vs. Essential Time Off project to explore how workplaces across British Columbia can create culturally safe environments for Indigenous employees. This study sought to examine how workplaces could better accommodate Indigenous cultural time off for holidays, including ceremonies, grieving, seasonal duties, and community obligations, and how such accommodations (and/or lack thereof) impact the well-being, retention, and advancement of Indigenous employees. The project builds on a community forum held in Victoria, BC, in April 2024, which highlighted the pressing need for policy changes.
Current cultural-leave provisions in Canada remain scarce, fragmented, and inconsistent across provinces and industries, leaving many Indigenous workers without adequate protections. Rather than treating time off for ceremonies as a discretionary favour, organizations must recognize it as part of their responsibility to uphold Indigenous rights and self-determined governance.
Through interviews, focus groups, and surveys, CREAN found that while many organizations express support for reconciliation, Indigenous employees continue to experience inequities related to cultural leave, awareness, and representation. The research revealed that 69% of respondents want Indigenous cultural awareness training, 59% seek policy development guidance, and 54% call for Indigenous-led mentorship or consulting opportunities.
These findings highlight a clear need for flexible cultural leave policies, mandatory anti-racism and cultural safety training, and greater Indigenous leadership in workplace decision-making. The study also emphasizes the importance of building accountability frameworks and implementing Indigenous-led approaches to human resource practices.
CREAN’s recommendations urge employers and policymakers to:
Integrate Indigenous-led training and mentorship into workplace development.
Recognize Indigenous cultural and ceremonial leave as essential to employee well-being.
Co-develop workplace policies with Indigenous staff and community partners.
Evaluate progress through transparent, measurable indicators of cultural safety.
This project provides an evidence-based roadmap for organizations across BC seeking to advance reconciliation and foster truly inclusive and culturally safe workplaces for Indigenous employees.