The FSA at UFV is committed to the following principles that guide our EDI thoughts, actions and outcomes:
Diversity
Diversity refers to a broad representation on the FSA Executive and subsidiary branches of the union. Diversity refers to demographic or identity diversity, including that which is protected by law. Within a post-secondary faculty and staff union, diversity should be reflected in our governance, Indigenization and Reconciliation, internal operations, advocacy efforts, communications, interest-holder relationships and responsibilities of labour organizing.
The FSA actively encourages and supports diversity through the identification and removal of barriers and biases, and the creation of a workplace and environment that is free of harassment, prejudicial treatment and/or discrimination of any kind.
Equity
Equity is about fairness in all our interactions, governance, operations and in the ability to access our organization and institution. Equity principles address our policies and practices that work to enable equitable access, representation, opportunities, and meaningful participation of individuals and groups such as Indigenous peoples, women, members of visible minority groups, persons with disabilities and neurodivergences, and LGBTQ2IS+ peoples.
The FSA recognizes that policies, practices, formal and informal processes, and language created by and for groups of people, are done with a default norm in mind which produces structural barriers, limiting access, opportunity and inclusion for individuals and groups. Taking equity as a guiding principle means that the FSA commits to respecting and valuing our members by actively identifying and removing all kinds of barriers, including structural barriers, to ensure that historically excluded groups have the same opportunities\y to fully interact with the FSA.
Inclusion
Inclusion means that we cultivate, maintain and enhance our ability to engage meaningfully with our community by paying attention to historically and structurally excluded individuals and groups. The work of inclusion is to provide opportunities for all individuals on our campuses to fully represent our communities in our efforts.
The FSA commits to ensuring that all equity-seeking groups are meaningfully represented in all aspects of our work and decision-making roles through executive roles and consultations.
Human Rights - Substantive
Every person, by virtue of being human, is entitled to certain fundamental rights regardless of race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, religious beliefs, gender, gender identity and gender expression, physical disability, mental disability, marital status, family status, sexual orientation, age, political beliefs, and all other protected grounds as amended over time. Each person is entitled to a life of dignity, equality, and respect, free from discrimination, harassment, prejudice, ill-treatment, enactment of privileged power, and bullying. FSA’s commitment to upholding human rights is reflected in its policies and practices, as well as the support it makes available to our members, and all engaged interest-holders.
Intersectionality - Substantive
Using an intersectional approach to equity, diversity, and inclusivity begins from the understanding that the different vectors of social diversity, (race, class, gender, sexuality, disability, nationality, religion, language, age, etc.) we do not exist in isolation from each other. Instead, the various vectors of social diversity are interconnected. Intersectionality focuses on how multiple, interwoven components of identity shape social belonging, cultural representations, social and political institutions, as well as the material conditions of our lives in ways that are not reducible to any singular vector or social category.
The FSA understands that everyone's life is shaped by intersecting social categories and that these intersecting social categories play a role in exclusion which in turn shapes social, political, and material marginalization and dominance. We recognize that experiences and systems of persistent social inequality cannot be understood without an intersectional framework.