In 2022, Atlantic Business Magazine founded the Employers of Diversity Awards, a program celebrating “Atlantic Canadian employers taking meaningful action to embrace Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging and Anti-Racism (DEIB-AR) in their workplace.” Now, just three years later, the program is on hiatus. Why? Only five companies entered—barely enough for a shortlist, let alone a competition.

We couldn’t help but wonder if the drastic decline in applications had anything to do with the new Donald Trump presidency and his anti-DEI messaging. For companies doing business stateside, there could be very real and negative implications if their brand beliefs don’t align with American policies. But, could changing American priorities really have so much of an impact on Canadian companies that they would change or halt diversity programs altogether?

Through her work as CEO of the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion, Anne-Marie Pham collaborates with more than 700 employer partners across Canada. That gives her a unique perspective on how DEIB-AR is faring up here. Her take? The commitment is still there, but the branding language is shifting.

Essentially, Canadian companies are still doing the work—it’s just less performative, more ingrained… and a whole lot quieter. Pham explained: “The reality is that most companies focus on many, many dimensions of diversity and are hoping that their workplaces will attract the best talent, will retain the best talent.”

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