STRONG WOMEN: STRONG WORLD

On March 7, 2008, I was honoured to join the Honourable Margarett Best, Councillor Sandra Bussin, and Acting Chief Jane Dick at an International Women’s Day event at Toronto Police Headquarters.

Here is an excerpt from my speech:

It is a pleasure to greet you all today on behalf of the Toronto Police Services Board, as we gather to celebrate a very important event, the International Women’s Day.

This day is a celebration of the collective power of women past, present and future. On this day, every year, we remind ourselves of the social, economic and political barriers faced by women worldwide, while recognizing the tremendous achievements of women in virtually every part of the world. International Women’s Day has thus become a day to celebrate the great distance that humanity has travelled in improving the status of women, and to re-dedicate to the long journey that yet remains to be completed.

Canada's theme this year, Strong Women: Strong World, draws in part from one of the fundamental beliefs underlying the modern women's movement, that "a woman's place in society marks the level of civilization of that society."

Marilyn Waring, the New Zealand feminist, academic and politician, shows in her works that it is not women alone who have suffered and lost because they are yet to occupy their rightful place, but societies themselves. On this day, we do well to remember Waring’s wonderful phrase, “counterfeit equality,” as a salutary reminder that true, genuine equality will only come when women truly counted.

To say this is by no means to disregard or discount women’s many achievements as leaders, policy-makers, caregivers, educators, and international peacemakers. Examples of women playing such vital roles can be found everywhere, including in our communities and in the Toronto Police Service.

It is in recognition of just such achievements that awards will be given today to two Service members, civilian and uniform, on behalf of all of the female members who received Service awards in 2007. These awards are a symbol of the Board’s commitment that true and genuine equality for women is an important organizational priority.

Today, plaques will also be presented to Ms. Florence Wong and Ms. Talat Muinuddin, two community members who have given tirelessly to improve the lives of others.

There are countless women in this city who contribute so much every day. In honouring Florence and Talat, we honour each and every one of these magnificent women. We thank them for their gift of time, their incredible energy and their compassion. To echo the theme of this event, strong women create a strong world. Closer to home, they create a strong community, a strong workplace, a strong police service.

From celebrating the work and contribution of women like today’s honourees, we take hope that change is not only necessary, but is on its way.

Today, we renew our determination to hasten the arrival of that change by remembering the immortal words of Mother Jones who said: “Pray for the dead, and fight like hell for the living.”

Thank you.

WELCOMING “GENERATION Y”

There has been much discussion on how best to address the challenges that “Generation Y”, or ”Yers”, present to employers who are seeking to attract the best and the brightest into their workforces.

“Yers” are usually defined as those who were born between 1977 and 2000. Fortune magazine claims “Yers” are the most high maintenance, yet potentially most high performing generation in history because they are entering the workplace with more information, greater technological skill and higher expectations of themselves and others than previous generations. According to Time magazine, “Yers” want a work-life balance where every minute has meaning. They are not interested in the work styles of their Boomer parents.

So – what do “Yers” want?
An interesting job with many changes and challenges
Work-life balance
Superior training
Access to cutting-edge technology

Where can they find all that? The Toronto Police Service.

It is no fluke that the Toronto Police Service is positioned to be the employer of choice for ”Yers”. The Board and the Service have worked hard to attain this position. As I mentioned last week, (Employer of Choice) our objective is to be an employer of choice for highly qualified and motivated young people from all backgrounds.

With retirements and a rate of new hiring that is higher than ever in the history of this Service, the proportion of “Yers” in the organization is increasing rapidly. It is estimated that some 18% of our workforce is already made up of “Yers.” In fact, a full 20% of our uniform employees are “Yers.” On the civilian side, they constitute 14% of the employees. These numbers are bound to keep growing.

What do we offer that will encourage members of this group to come to us as well as to stay with us? Here are some of the factors that, I believe, make us an attractive long-term employer for “Yers”.

Employment with Toronto Police Service opens the door to one of the most exciting career opportunities in Canadian law enforcement. Our Service works in one of the world’s most cosmopolitan and diverse communities. Recognizing and embracing this diversity in all its forms is one of our highest priorities in the way we serve the community. Our emphasis on neighbourhood policing, culturally competent services, strong community linkages and preventative strategies, for example, means that working for us offers many opportunities to anyone who is creative and innovative, loves challenges, and is interested in serving the community.

The Toronto Police Service is a large and complex organization with an amazing range of functions that require a wide variety of technical, professional, linguistic and cultural skills and expertise. As a result, people with drive and a desire to try their hand at doing different things can have many different careers while working for the Service. Where else can you move from working with youth in high schools to the Guns and Gangs Task Force to the Community Mobilization Unit to the Sex Crimes Unit to Information Technology Services or to supervisory or managerial positions?

When it comes to career advancement, we value initiative, achievement, concern for community wellbeing, integrity and demonstrated ability over length of service. No longer is length of service the main or only criterion for moving ahead in the Toronto Police Service. Employees who possess those other attributes that I have just mentioned can move up sooner than you think. If moving up is not the thing for someone, but moving around is, the Toronto Police Service is the place to be!

As an employer, we are serious about making changes that will enable our employees to maintain balance between their work life and their family life. Thus, for some members, shift work may assist them to achieve a balance. Others are employed in non-shift jobs and find this arrangement is better. In addition, we also have provisions for alternate arrangements, such as job sharing.

As part of our commitment to a healthy balance between work and family, we also provide pregnancy leave top-up to 80% of salary. As well, members receive generous vacation and other types of time off. Many members accumulate additional paid time off through overtime and court appearances.

As an employer, we believe in the importance of life-long learning. We value and encourage higher education for our employees. Our excellent Training & Education Unit provides many different learning opportunities. In collaboration with one of Toronto’s premier post-secondary institutions, we offer a number of leadership training programs.

Some of the training takes place away from work. Many members choose to upgrade their education in their off hours. We provide certain opportunities for reimbursement of part of the tuition in order to encourage members to upgrade their qualifications.

Policing in general, and the Toronto Police Service, in particular, is fast becoming more technologically sophisticated. Technology is used for many functions, including for investigative, administrative, financial, human resources management, training and education, communication and many other purposes. For example, our child pornography investigators have achieved many successes through the use of technology.

A career with the Toronto Police Service offers challenges that will appeal to any generation – and “Yers” in particular!

ISN'T IT IRONIC?

I woke up this morning to both relatively good news and bad news, the irony of which is not lost on me.

The good news is that, according to the Toronto Sun editorial and a report in the Toronto Star a Macleans’ magazine report shows that Toronto’s crime rate is only 12.6% above the national average and that we are ranked 26 on the list of Canada’s 100 most dangerous cities. To quote the Toronto Sun editorial, “(this) suggests we must be doing something right.”

The bad news is that, according to another Toronto Sun report, “[a] new shotgun-shell firing revolver called The Judge could be the next big bad thing in Toronto’s gangland arsenal.”

I agree wholeheartedly with Staff Inspector Brian Raybould when he says in the Sun article, “[a]ny firearm in the city of Toronto is a bad firearm.”

The Toronto Police Services Board has been on the record repeatedly in calling for a ban on handguns for purposes other than law enforcement.

It is time that the federal government takes a realistic look at crime in Canada and realizes that the key to any anti-violence strategy is a ban on handguns for purposes other than law enforcement.

Perhaps the irony is lost on Minister Day.

EMPLOYER OF CHOICE

In the coming weeks, I will be blogging about diversity and how it plays a part in our drive to be the employer of choice for new recruits – uniform and civilian alike – and those transferring from other services. As I mentioned in a previous blog (Link), we are hiring more men and women than ever before who come from many different backgrounds. We are committed to making sure that the Toronto Police Service reflects this variety – and by extension, the City it serves - at all levels.

Let me explain what being an employer of choice means to me. Quite simply, an employer of choice is one that ranks among the top choices of the best and the brightest of those from all backgrounds who are seeking a profession to pursue and a workplace for it. And, further, an employer of choice is one that retains its employees for the long term.

What is particularly exciting to me is that we are pursuing the goal of being an employer of choice at a time when the Service is growing significantly, and is engaged in hiring more new members than ever before.

There are a number of factors that can help us in achieving our goal.

We offer, without question, some of the most exciting job opportunities. There are few workplaces where, in the course of one’s employment, one can have different careers, in areas as diverse as the Mounted Unit, Forensic Identification Service, the Guns and Gangs Task Force, Corporate Planning, Community Mobilization, Sex Crimes Unit and Sexual Exploitation Section. Because of this exciting prospect, an employee with drive, ambition, innovation and creativity need never be bored or fall into a rut at the Toronto Police Service.

Besides, we offer a very appealing benefits and compensation package. You will see below, information from the recruiting section of the Toronto Police Service’s website (Link)

But in a city like Toronto, with its unique demographics and its socio-economic diversity, being an employer of choice goes beyond the pay and the perks that we offer. An extremely important consideration is how we, as an employer, adapt and respond to the needs and expectations of those who come to work for us.

That is what I will be examining over the coming weeks.