Royal Bank of Canada signage is pictured in the financial district in Toronto, Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Lahodynskyj
TORONTO – Royal Bank of Canada has committed to racial equity audits after facing pressure from shareholders.
The bank says it will conduct a third-party audit of employment practices next year and another on business practices in 2025.
RBC spokesman Jeff Lanthier says the bank remains focused on identifying and helping to address barriers that can impede the success of Black, Indigenous and other racialized groups.
The bank’s announcement comes after it met this week with shareholder advocacy group SHARE and the British Columbia General Employees’ Union, which had together put forward a resolution at RBC’s annual general meeting calling for an audit that received 42 per cent shareholder approval.
Racial equity audits look to identify and fix practices that may negatively affect Indigenous peoples and communities of colour, and overall evaluates how well a company is addressing systemic racism.
The two groups also filed a similar resolution at BMO that got 37 per cent support, but SHARE say the bank has yet to publicly confirm whether it will conduct one.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov 10, 2023.
Companies in this story: (TSX:RY; TSX:BMO)
