Hiring for Indigenous-specific positions will now be verified under Queen’s new interim Indigenous hiring policy.
The University unveiled details for the policy on March 24, with more information on processes and procedures to come. Under the new policy, applicants will be required to present government documentation verifying their Indigenous status or share their personal story.
“For people who find themselves in a situation where they can’t obtain one of the legally recognized documents, then we offer the opportunity for them to basically tell their story,” (Kanonhsyonne) Janice Hill, associate vice-principal (Indigenous initiatives and reconciliation) said in an interview with The Journal.
“The benefit [of the policy] will be, and the intention is, that positions meant to benefit Indigenous peoples will benefit Indigenous peoples by ensuring those people who are considered for the benefits are actually verified Indigenous people.”
The new policy will not be implemented retroactively to verify the identities of current Queen’s faculty or staff. According to Hill, the timeline for finalized policies and procedures for Indigenous identity verification will be “short.”
“We’re right in the process of hiring Queen’s national scholars for the Indigenous Studies program. I know there are some Canada Research Chair positions being proposed that this may have implications for, so [the finalized procedures] need to be in place for those hires,” Hill added.
According to Hill, there are several communities and individuals identifying as Indigenous who are not officially recognized.
“There are issues where families were disenfranchised because, years ago, in order for an Indigenous person to get a post-secondary education or hire a lawyer or serve in the military, they had to give up their Indian status. They’re still an Indigenous person, but they don’t have status.”
According to Hill, some Algonquin communities in Ontario are currently not recognized as having Indigenous status by the government or other affiliate communities due to complex land claims.
“Because of things like residential schools, the 60s scoop, government policies, there’s a lot of complexities that resulted in many Indigenous people, especially children and youth, being separated from community, family and their land base,” Hill added.
The information candidates provide in their personal statement will be verified with other members of their community.
Previously, Queen’s required applicants for Indigenous positions to self-identify as having First Nation, Métis, or Inuit ancestry or community ties without undergoing formal verification of their identities.
“Self-identification was not enough that we needed to be able to verify documentation or verify that people claiming to be Indigenous were actually Indigenous,” Hill said.
Changes to hiring practices for Indigenous positions are not unique to Queen’s or the higher education sector. There have been multiple instances across Canada and at Queen’s where individuals have allegedly falsely claimed an Indigenous identity to access benefits meant to provide equity to Indigenous people.
Hill considers the decision to verify applicants’ Indigenous identities is to be a necessary step in ensuring structures meant to support Indigenous people reach Indigenous people, but knows it’s not without controversy.
“There are still people who feel it’s a colonial imposition of policy and procedure and that it doesn’t sit well with some Indigenous communities and individuals,” Hill said.
“I think broadly it’s seen as a necessary measure.”
Indigenous personnel files have previously been vetted through the Office of Indigenous Initiatives, but the details of the new policy are still undecided.
Hill expressed hope for Queen’s to enact similar policies extending to other benefits for Indigenous people in the future.
“I hope the policy will extend beyond hiring to look at other benefits people are applying for such as grants, bursaries, scholarships, and fellowships,” Hill said.
“Anytime a benefit is intended for an Indigenous person, I would hope that this policy would eventually apply to them.”
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