The Limestone District School Board is committed to advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion for all staff and students. We recognize that the lived experiences of our staff and students contribute to the diversity of ideas and perspectives which in turn enriches our teaching, learning, and working environments. As we strive to have all staff and students ‘see themselves in Limestone’, we need to better understand the current composition of our workforce with the goal of creating a more representative staff, at all levels across the organization, that mirrors the diversity of the broader communities we serve.
All Limestone District School Board staff are being asked to participate in the voluntary, anonymous, and confidential See Yourself in Limestone Workforce Census and Belonging Survey (WCBS). The WCBS will provide a snapshot of our current workforce and workplaces. Just as it is for students, we know that equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts are also important for staff and their workplace.
As staff of Limestone, each of us has a legal and ethical responsibility to treat everyone with respect and dignity, to uphold and protect Indigenous and human rights, and to actively prevent and address any discrimination and harm. Collectively, we have a legal and moral obligation to provide our students with a safe and respectful environment. Similarly, we must ensure the same is true for all staff and that is why we want to hear from all Limestone employees.
The Limestone District School Board acknowledges that there are gaps in equity, inclusion, accessibility, and opportunity within our environment. There are new initiatives underway at LDSB aimed at strengthening and promoting human rights, equity, and inclusion, such as the creation of the Community Equity Advisory Committee, Staff Affinity Networks, and the creation of new human rights complaints procedures. The WCBS complements these initiatives and will provide a framework to develop strategies to address gaps in employment equity through human resource planning, attraction, recruitment, retention, learning and growth, and advancement within the organization.
The See Yourself in Limestone Workforce Census and Belonging Survey will ask questions about identity that include languages, gender, sexual orientation, religion/creed/faith, ethnicity, race, nationality, disability and socioeconomics, education, job status, role, and questions relating to opportunities, sense of belonging, safety and well-being are also included.
The results of the survey will allow Limestone to better understand the makeup of our workforce and further inform the development of strategies to address gaps in employment equity through human resource planning, attraction, recruitment, retention, learning and growth, and advancement within the organization. The Workforce Census and Belonging Survey will inform the development and implementation of strategies aimed at eliminating identified gaps and barriers, increasing employee sense of belonging, and creating a more inclusive workplace where everyone sees themselves in Limestone.
They survey was available to all employees of Limestone between April 29 and June 10, 2022. It is voluntary, anonymous, and confidential.
Workforce Census and Belonging Survey Preliminary Report March 2023