Advocate urges feds to update equity act, settle class action with Black employees

By Canadian Press on February 16, 2026.

OTTAWA — An advocate is urging the federal government to update equity legislation for Black employees and to drop its fight against a discrimination lawsuit that has cost more than $15 million so far.

Nicholas Marcus Thompson, president and CEO of the Black Class Action Secretariat, says changes to Canada’s Employment Equity Act are long overdue after former labour minister Seamus O’Regan announced in 2023 two new designated groups would be created for Black and LGBTQ+ people.

The act requires that federally regulated employers, including the public service, take steps to eliminate barriers and maintain proportional representation in the workplace for members of designated groups.

Jessica Lacombe, a spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada, says the government is analyzing feedback from consultations with affected communities and organizations to help inform possible future changes to the law.

Thompson says he’s also still calling for the government to settle a class-action lawsuit launched by Black public servants in 2020 who alleged systemic racism within the workplace.

A Federal Court judge dismissed a motion to certify the lawsuit last year, though the plaintiffs in the case are appealing the court’s decision.