When they are hired, Canadian Armed Forces fitness and sports instructors, who are civilian employees, must pass a Force test that assesses their physical condition. This physical test is identical to the annual test taken by military personnel and is a hiring criterion for the job.
However, it has been revealed that the National Defence also asks instructors to achieve a certain physical standard requiring their waist to be measured. If they exceed a certain waist size, they cannot achieve the required standard and receive a mark on their performance record that can lead to dismissal.
“We’re obviously not debating the virtues of fitness or a healthy lifestyle here. Simply put, this measure is discriminatory,” said PSAC-Quebec Regional Executive Vice-President Yvon Barrière. “Our civilian members shouldn’t have to suffer prejudice over something that has no bearing on their ability to do their jobs.”
PSAC-Quebec decries this breach of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Our members’ performance does not hinge on waist size or on whether they reach the required level on the Force test. All fitness and sports instructors have a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology or physical education. Their waist size is irrelevant to their physical condition or their ability to train military personnel, moreso since said military personnel are themselves not subject to this physical standard as a condition of employment and may refuse to have their waist measured.