Christian Employers Face ‘Arbitrary' Ideological Screening for Summer Jobs Funding, MPs Told

Demonstrators display signs in the March for Life event on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on May 11, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby)

Christian employers applying for Canada Summer Jobs grants continue to face discrimination by the federal government, two Christian organizations told the Commons human resources committee.

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada alleged the Department of Employment continues to deem some faith-based groups ineligible for funding, despite a Federal Court ruling three years ago that Christian employers could not be singled out because of their beliefs.

“We are now concerned the values screening has moved behind closed doors,” the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada wrote MPs in a letter obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter.

“The review process involves a case by case assessment of applications that can be subjective, arbitrary, inconsistent, unpredictable, lacking in transparency and which in some cases seems to involve ideological screening. We have heard from enough faith-based groups that we are concerned these are not just isolated incidents.”

Employment and Social Development Canada in 2017 said any organization applying for a grant to hire a student must sign a federal oath recognizing “the right to access safe and legal abortions” regardless of their purpose in hiring students.

The Right to Life Association of Toronto and Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform of Calgary sued the government after 1,559 applicants were denied funding because they refused to sign the oath. The lawsuit was settled out of court.

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Ottawa rewrote the oath in 2018 to require that applicants “respect individual human rights,” wording that kept Redeemer University in Hamilton, Ont., from accessing funding, Judge Richard Mosley wrote in his 2021 decision.

Redeemer University was denied funding after it was deemed a “high risk” for Christian values, even though the school hired students for ordinary charitable works, the university said in a 2021 blog post.

Justice Mosley upheld the university’s complaint, saying that the government “breached procedural fairness,” adding that it must treat faith-based institutions in a way that respects their Charter rights.

‘Transparency’ an Issue

Despite the ruling, the Evangelical Fellowship accused federal employees of continuing to flag “some faith-based groups’ applications for review or deem them ineligible for Canada Summer Jobs grants” because they are Christians.

“There is little transparency or consistency,” the Evangelical Fellowship said in its letter. “We see that in this process sometimes groups are being flagged because of their beliefs, not their actions.”

One such case, the letter said, was the department overseeing Canada Summer Jobs grants “looking for reasons” to deny a request for funding to hire a camp counsellor.

“An applicant involved in providing summer camp to hundreds of children was informed of a Google review in which a parent complained their child, a camper, got a sunburn at day camp,” the letter stated. “This triggered a Service Canada request for proof of workplace safety.”

The Evangelical Fellowship also said some faith-based groups were asked to provide their statements of faith and “explain their religious doctrine.”

The Canadian Centre for Christian Charities (CCCC) also wrote to the MP committee, citing examples of churches being singled out for questioning unrelated to their reason for hiring a summer student.

“For example, churches are asked why assistant ministers or similar ministerial roles need to adhere to a doctrinal statement or statement of beliefs,” wrote the CCCC. “The perception of different treatment for religious charities is not without merit. This perceived differential treatment is most often experienced by way of follow-up requests that focus almost exclusively on the applicants’ religious beliefs.”

The Commons human resources committee last October requested petitions from Canada Summer Jobs applicants as part of its review of the program. Canada Summer Jobs provides 50 percent wage subsidies each summer allowing businesses and charities to hire students aged 15 to 30.

Changes to 2024 Program

The CCCC, in a November blog post, noted that the government has added a new category of “ineligible employers” for 2024’s Canada Summer Jobs program.

Previously, employers had to affirm that “any funding under the Canada Summer Jobs program will not be used to undermine or restrict the exercise of rights legally protected in Canada.”

Employers must now attest that “​​I confirm that neither the job activities nor any of the activities of my organization which are directly or indirectly supported by the job activities in any way infringe, undermine, weaken, or restrict the exercise of rights legally protected in Canada.”

The CCCC said it is concerned about the new wording.

“We trust that the new category of ineligible applicants will not be used so as to exclude more faith-based organizations; however, it does beg the question, what purpose will it serve?” the blog post author wrote, adding that “it seems that it may be used to justify an expanded ability for ESDC staff to look beyond the job or job activities.”

The CCCC promised it would “closely monitor” how the modified clauses might impact faith-based organizations’ CSJ Applications.

The Epoch Times contacted Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault’s office for comment but did not hear back by press time.