HRmatters www.cphrmb.ca 8 T JOURNEY TOWARD TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION TRUTH BEFORE RECONCILIATION “Life-changing…powerful…so impactful and important” – this is a sampling of responses from business leaders after a half-day learning session with Kevin Lamoureux, past National Education Lead at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR), located at the University of Manitoba. Lamoureux told the story of residential schools and the trauma inflicted on Indigenous people through seven generations, continuing up to today. He often referred to his daughter who, in a not-so-distant past, would almost certainly have been among the thousands forced into residential school to suffer the loss of culture and the many other indignities that occurred. Instead, she is a typical seven-year-old who loves traditional dancing. For business leaders attending the NCTR session, these were difficult but critical truths to learn about. MaryAnn Kempe, Chief Human Resources Officer at Birchwood Automotive Group, put it this way: “I left the session feeling quite emotional – a raw reminder of my privilege and as (Kevin) stated, deep anger of broken promises…I cannot fathom the scars that have been created for seven generations as a result of our ancestors. But, I also left hopeful for the future, that the time is now and that we all need to step up and make it our business to set the future right and repair this partnership. I commit to spending reflective time considering the TRC Call to Action and what next steps might look like.” SINCE 2017… In Spring 2017 HRmatters published an article describing the new initiative being undertaken by the Winnipeg By Erika Wiebe Poverty Reduction Council (WPRC), a program of United Way Winnipeg. Named after and guided by the 92nd Call to Action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report (2015), the TRC92: Youth Employment initiative seeks to increase employment opportunities for Indigenous youth by building connections between Indigenous job-seekers and private-sector employers in Winnipeg. The initiative incorporates learning for management and staff about Indigenous history, anti-racism and intercultural safety, before jumping ahead toward creating employment opportunities. A lot has happened since 2017. Dave Angus, former CEO of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce and current President of Johnston Group, stepped forward to champion the initiative. He proposed using an Employer Consortium model, whose purpose would be “a journey toward truth and reconciliation, incorporating business-to-business learning.” Angus’ vision is to gradually scale up the impact of the initiative by establishing sector-based employer consortiums in Winnipeg, all committed to working together to respond to Call to Action #92. But would businesses be interested in participating in TRC92: Youth Employment? Would it be a priority? It turns out that there is a compelling business case to be made for adopting Indigenous-focused employment strategies, considering the rapidly growing and very young Indigenous population throughout Canada, and particularly in Winnipeg. But more than that, many businesses recognize the urgent need to redress past wrongs with Indigenous peoples, and want to be part of the solution. A Business Story Employers meet with job-training participants in conversation circles.