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Canadian Tire
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Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging

Across our group of companies, we live and work by our core values, including our value that inclusion is a must. We understand the importance of taking thoughtful action to create authentic, measured, meaningful and sustainable change. We know that when we collaborate and strive for connection, we are stronger together. From cultivating diverse talent and perspectives, listening to our customers, employees and partners, and helping prioritize the needs of equity-deserving communities, we are united in our purpose of being here to make life in Canada better.

Our Vision

At Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC), we are on a journey to create a culture where belonging thrives, and diversity, inclusion and equity are infused into everything we do.

Our Strategic Focus Areas

To achieve our vision and drive impact, we are committed to addressing the following priority areas:

Our People

Attract, retain and develop diverse talent: Create training to improve cultural awareness and talent pipelines while providing opportunities for employees to have increased mobility across the organization

Our Culture

Build an inclusive environment: Prioritize employee voices and leverage diversity data to ensure workspaces and practices are welcoming, open, and barrier-free

Our Customers

Reflect all customers: Develop resources, training and messaging that help us better serve and connect with our diverse customers

Our Communities

Make our communities better: Address the barriers and issues that matter most to our communities

Our Framework

By hosting Courageous Conversation sessions with thousands of employees across our organization, we learned that achieving belonging is our core outcome. For belonging to be embedded into our DNA, we will prioritize three key enablers: diversity, inclusion, and equity.

Diversity Inclusion Belonging Equity Ensuring that people have access to opportunities and resources that meet their needs The representation of the visible and non-visible ways in which people may differ The participation and integration of different perspectives, views, and ideas An environment that fosters individual authenticity and common purpose to unlock engagement and performance

When equitable policies and practices are coupled with a diverse workforce and an inclusive organizational culture and work environment, we can foster belonging to create innovative and impactful spaces.

Our Journey

“CTC is cultivating a more representative, welcoming, and connected culture, and belonging is at the centre of our journey. Belonging ensures that we welcome and seek out diverse voices, incorporate and illuminate new perspectives and actively create accessible and fair opportunities that will unlock potential.

We are working to ensure that everyone feels seen, heard and that they can actively contribute to our purpose to make life in Canada better. While we are in the early stages of our journey, our commitment to progress is unwavering.”

– Letecia Rose, Vice-President, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
diverse people talking with laptops open in front

Education Series

We believe that knowledge is a critical building block for change. Through our education series, we are investing in our teams’ learning and development to raise awareness and understanding of crucial diversity, inclusion, equity, and belonging issues that impact our employees, customers and communities. We feature thought leaders and tackle complex issues and challenges through live events, online learning resources, mandatory team training sessions and company-wide town halls. These sessions have helped employees increase their knowledge and awareness of cultures, identities, and experiences while providing them with the tools to change behaviours and make spaces more inclusive.

two people having a conversation

Courageous Conversations

Our Courageous Conversation listening sessions are a safe space for our employees to listen and share their experiences, stories, perspectives and challenges without fear of judgement or repercussion. To date, thousands of CTC employees from across our offices, stores, and distribution centres have come together to have Courageous Conversations, challenge the status quo, and provide invaluable feedback, all of which we have used as insights to inform our Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging roadmap and strategies.

We use Courageous Conversations in the following ways:

To respond

Provide teams with a safe and dedicated space to come together, heal and take action in response to an internal or societal event.

To engage

To enable discussion

Our People

four female hikers hugging and laughing during their hike in the woods

Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)

Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are voluntary employee-led groups that help increase engagement across the organization by building communities among people with shared cultures, identities, and experiences.

These groups are formed by and made up of our employees, and provide a snapshot of the diversity found throughout our organization and the communities we serve. We value their lived experience and expertise and work with them to build programs, products and environments that are more inclusive and representative. We know that supporting and working with our ERGs is vital to building a more inclusive, collaborative, and authentic culture—one where all employees feel seen, heard and that they belong.

ACPI logo BEN logo Families @ the Tire logo PRISM logo SAAT logo WLN logo Tipen logo

The Asian Canadian Pacific Islander Network (ACPI): The ACPI Network is a community for raising awareness and celebrating ACPI culture, fostering a sense of belonging for our ACPI employees and allowing every aspect of their identity to be seen, heard, and welcomed.

Our Actions

Ashley holding I'm a changemaker are you? sign.

Recognizing Truth and Reconciliation

, marked Canada’s inaugural National Truth and Reconciliation Day. To recognize this important day, CTC hosted a company-wide Truth and Reflection learning event, which featured inspiring Indigenous leaders who shared their stories and knowledge about the residential school system and offered their personal perspective on meaningful reconciliation. In addition to a live fireside chat between activist Ashley Callingbull and Leanne Bellegarde, employees had access to workshops on land acknowledgement and traditional teachings led by the First People’s Group’s team.

Addressing Anti-Black Racism

In , the Black Lives Matter movement presented the opportunity for all of us to take a closer look at ourselves and our values. This led to the creation of our formal Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) team that is working to implement a five-year strategy and DIB commitments. We committed over $600,000 to organizations dedicated to helping Black communities across Canada and an additional $200,000 to Black grassroots organizations recommended by our employees.

In , as our work continued, we collaborated with Randell Adjei, the first Poet Laureate of Ontario, to capture the many emotions that were still very present while looking forward to the ongoing work that lies ahead.

Orange Jersey Project logo.

Driving change through sport

Through our partnership with the Orange Shirt Society and Keener Jerseys, the Orange Jersey Project (OJP) was developed to help coaches educate hockey teams about the history of the residential school system in Canada. The OJP is sending 10,000 orange practice jerseys to youth teams across the country to spark dialogue about residential schools and their harmful impact on Indigenous children and families.

Matthew Shepard Foundation, Erasing Hate since 1998.

Speaking with Judy Shepard

We were excited to have the inspirational Judy Shepard join CTC to share her wisdom and lessons with the organization. As a passionate mother and 2SLGBTQ+ activist, Judy told the story of her son Matthew’s murder to emphasize the importance of making spaces safe, inclusive and welcoming for people to come as they are. During the session, she offered suggestions and best practices for allyships and making the world more open to diversity to drive understanding, acceptance, and social change.