Committee updates

Committee reflections on release of statistics 2026

The Anti-Racism Data Committee was established in September 2022 under the Anti-Racism Data Act to support government in using data to identify and address systemic racism and advance racial equity. The committee helps minimize the risk of harm to communities in this work, improve transparency and accountability. We ensure that the voices of Indigenous (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) and racialized people are centred through this work.

We are a committee of anti-racism, research and data experts, with years of lived and learned experience and knowledge in these spaces. We bring this lens to our review of the release of statistics each year while keeping in mind our primary focus as a committee: to help ensure data is gathered, interpreted and shared in ways that advance efforts to eliminate systemic racism in government programs and services.

We are encouraged to see that the BC Public Service Agency is continuing its ongoing commitment to identifying racial equity gaps that exist in the BC Public Service (BCPS). This is the third report focused on this topic since the committee recommended racial equity within the BCPS as an anti-racism research priority in 2023. While the findings in this year’s report highlight where Indigenous and racialized employees are facing barriers to career progression, the absence of disaggregated data results in an incomplete picture of the distinct challenges that employees are experiencing. Further research will need to explore why these barriers exist and lead to informed discussions about possible harms within the public service.

The Anti-Racism Data Committee is also advocating for improvements moving forward, including urging government to collect disaggregated data for anti-racism purposes, to use an intersectional analysis, and to release distinctions-based findings that show which communities are most adversely impacted. We already know systemic racism exists in government services – it’s what led to the creation of the Anti-Racism Data Act. Disaggregated and intersectional analysis takes this knowledge one step further and helps to show exactly which communities are facing barriers. This is key to making progress in this work.

We also need to see research that fully explores “the why” behind the disparate numbers being reported. Research that deeply examines the root causes of what the data shows is essential to mitigating harm and understanding how government can live up to their commitments to address systemic racism.

Despite the challenges, the Anti-Racism Data Committee is encouraged to see government working in the open and sharing these reports. Making findings available helps communities advocate for their needs and hold government accountable for making change. As efforts to address racial inequities continue to be challenged in B.C. and across the world, it is important that government maintains the momentum built since the introduction of the Anti-Racism Data Act. Enshrining this commitment to address systemic racism in legislation gives a clear signal that this work is a priority and we’ll continue to hold government accountable for making progress.

We are committed to this work and will continue to hold government accountable for taking concrete steps to act on these findings now and over the coming years.

Anti-Racism Data Committee, May 2026