Undoing Systems of Exclusion in Public Service (1.5CEs)

Ever wonder how individuals can be excluded even when they are the majority of the demographic in the organization? Even though fire and police services are predominately male and white, many within the different departments and districts struggle to build inclusive and welcoming cultures. This is extremely problematic when attempting to diversify the workforce, as diversity without inclusion is harmful. Thus, one must first address the issues of inclusion prior to addressing diversity within the workforce. This talk will first discuss some of the common problems seen in the fire service and why these problems lead to exclusion of current members and worse for members who have diverse identity characteristics. Attendees will learn how to conduct culture assessments to identify the issues of exclusion and what to do about it once the problems are identified.