WHO ARE WE?
Indigenous Workways is a collaborative research effort among scholars, and Indigenous education centres across four recognized Southwest Ontario institutions—University of Waterloo, University of Windsor, Wilfrid Laurier University, and Conestoga College. Our goal is to develop a sustainable solution to underemployment among Ontario’s Indigenous workforce by empowering Indigenous youth with career mentors and opportunities and Ontario's employers with relational, respectful, reciprocal, and relevant workplace communication and climate practices where Indigenous worldviews can flourish.
To support Indigenous youth with their transition into the workforce, maintaining employment, and career advancement, it is imperative that we understand how Indigenous worldviews impact their workplace experiences with relationships, communication, conflict management, and trust. By utilizing a multi-disciplinary approach that involves participative knowledge sharing, community engagement, and Indigenous methods, we ultimately hope that our research will create psychologically safe work spaces, respectful organizational communication tools, and sustainable Indigenous alumni networks.
WHAT ARE THE FOUNDATIONS OF THIS WORK?
Preparation for this work included a two-day knowledge-sharing conference at Vancouver Island University’s Cowichan campus as well as three conversations and workshops at the Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers’ annual meetings.
Non-Indigenous team members work in collaboration with Indigenous Student Centres and Advisory Circles with Indigenous community representation to conduct research guided by Indigenous voices.
Led by mixed teams of Indigenous and non-Indigenous undergraduate and graduate students, the research is designed to benefit current and future Indigenous post-secondary students entering the job market and current Indigenous employees.
In Stage 1, Graduate students (Indigenous and non-Indigenous) engaged with Indigenous post-secondary alumni (8 case studies; 30 survey responses) to hear stories of identity, relationships, place, and conflict management at work, focusing on positive experiences at work.
HOW ARE WE DIFFERENT?
We focus on trust, moving beyond mandated cultural competency training that increases awareness but can also cause resentment and divisiveness.
We invite Indigenous voices to lead organizations in adapting existing systems to make space for Indigenous employee well-being and success.
We emphasize changing organization systems to support Indigenous employees, complementing cultural training efforts aimed at shifting majority group employee attitudes.
We work to build trust: respectful relationships, cultural safety, and networks of trust. Employee trust increases engagement, job satisfaction, performance, & commitment.