EQUALITY

Military members on exercise for Operation REASSURANCE. Photo Credit: Cpl Côté, CAF/DND 

Esprit de Corps Magazine April 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 3 

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 2 

by Military Woman 

In case you missed our inaugural celebrations last month, this is a new opinion column that offers a military women’s perspective. The purpose of the column is not to be right or wrong, but a conversation starter that hopefully helps to build bridges and break barriers.  

You asked:  

Women are legally equal already. Why are we STILL talking about equality in the military? 

We answered: 

Excellent question: I sense some frustration. Let me assure you that most, if not all, military members men and women share in some fatigue on this topic discussion. We hopefully can all agree that we wish we didn’t still need to have these conversations in 2019 and yet here we are. 

The Pareto principle, also known as the “80/20” rule, may be helpful here. Military men and women are agreed to be treated as “equal” about 80% of the time and situations. So, for most of us, most of the time, there is no problem to solve – military men and women are equal. For about 80% of situations there is more variation within the sexes than between the sexes.  

But the devil is always in the detail, and it’s the 20% of remaining times and situations where treating everyone equal i.e., “exactly the same” may not actually be the fair or equitable approach. 

The Federal government has a three-minute video explaining the difference between being treated equally and being treated equitably,  “GBA Equality Equity”. Check it out!  

Let me offer a military-specific example. In male infantry soldier only days, a platoon on a rucksack March would be given timed 2-minute rest periods for rest, blister care, rehydration, snack, and urination. When women were "integrated" the rules and standards were already all set by men, for men in support of men. As a result, women ordered to be treated "equally" were given the exact same 2 minutes to accomplish all the above cited tasks. 

However, for the often-sole female, urination meant breaking away from the file, finding a private location away from curious eyes, unbuckling and dropping your 70-pound rucksack strategically near a strong looking tree trunk, visually clearing the target area for possible poison oak and ivy (very important in Ontario!), undressing, exposing and then relieving yourself.  

After redressing, you return to the rucksack for the "turtle" maneuver in order to replace your backpack solo. (i.e., lie face up on top of your backpack, strap back in, roll over onto your front, push up onto all fours, then "walk" your hands up that strategically selected tree trunk until able to balance and stand upright again). The mad dash is then made to the waiting group who, having spent all this same time resting and relaxing, spontaneously reforms into file to continue Marching as soon as they hear you returning.  

"Equal" treatment is the woman huffing and puffing to re-start the March as the sole platoon member with no rest break, no blister care break, no hydration break, or snack time.  

Is it any wonder why female soldiers are prone to more repetitive strain injuries? Or prone to chronic self-dehydration medical complications in their efforts to avoid entirely the above-described experience? 

So yes, women are already legally equal to men, but equal treatment in the military however doesn't always mean being treated fairly. There are times and places that being gender-blind to bona fide differences like the fact that some soldiers have outdoor plumbing, and some soldiers don't, just isn't helpful.  

Gender equality must include consideration of all the different supports needed for different soldiers to provide them an equal chance to complete the assigned military task. Whether that means physio consults to help women train their muscles for standing urination or standard supply provision of products like 'Shewee' – all soldiers still need a chance for rest, food, and urination.  

As poet Audre Lorde wrote: "It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." 

 

Update: 

  • 2024. Menopausal specific physical fitness programs are under development. A new “Joint Federal Research Program” funds research specific to improved understanding of pelvic floor injury prevention and care (including for stress incontinence and uterine prolapse).  

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

Military women from HMCS St. John’s visiting in Romania Photo Credit: LS Ogle, CAF/DND

Military women from HMCS St. John’s visiting in Romania 

Photo Credit: LS Ogle, CAF/DND 

Esprit de Corps Magazine March 2019 // Volume 26 Issue 2 

Let's Talk About Women in the Military – Column 1 

by Military Woman 

Welcome to a new guest column!  

With over 15% of the Canadian Armed Forces and 10% of all Veterans Affairs Canada clients now female, we approached Scott Taylor for space to add more of an active female voice to the Magazine, and surprise! he said… “Yes”! 

Having just celebrated its 30th year in print, Esprit de Corps started about the same time the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) started gender integration activities in earnest; moving from most combat related occupations being closed to women in 1989, to having women in all occupations today. Throughout this interesting and challenging journey for both men and women, there wasn’t a regularly featured female military perspective. Who knew that all we had to do was ask! 

So here are the rules of engagement. This is an opinion column. We will respond to questions as factually as possible but, in the end, all opinions expressed here are ours. You, dear readers, are free to agree or disagree with our opinions, although hopefully not with the facts. We look forward to hearing from you. In fact, we’re hoping this column will be a conversation starter – with us, with your family and friends, with colleagues – about questions on women in the military that come up even 30 years on.  

Let’s talk about pregnancy, maternity leave (and parental/paternity leave) and the impact on operations. Let’s talk about women’s recruitment and retention specific issues. Let’s look at the buzzwords of the day, like diversity, intersectionality, gender equality and gender equity, and talk about their relevance (if any) to today’s military.  

What are the women-related questions you have, but are afraid to ask in public? Some we’ve heard range from “Why do we still need Employment Equity?” to “How will we know when Op Honour has been successful?” We’ll do our best to answer them. We’ve been hearing these types of questions and concerns for a while now, sometimes as hallway muttering, so let’s have these conversations, even if they may be sensitive. 

Well, it’s March and there is a “women’s history month” theme to this edition of Esprit de Corps, so let’s start the first “Let’s Talk “with a question we got from a friend. We look forward to your questions. 

You asked:  

March 8th is International Women’s Day (IWD). Seriously. Why do we celebrate it? Aren’t women already equal? And speaking about equality – when’s “International Men’s Day”?  

We answered:      

Excellent questions.  

International Men’s Day is a real thing! It started in 1992 and is celebrated on November 19th in over 80 countries, including Canada (you didn’t know that did you, admit it). The day focuses on men’s health, improving gender relations, gender equality and promoting male role models. The first Canadian celebrations were in Vancouver in 2009, but it has been spreading across Canada since then. International Men’s Day is part of  “Movember” – a worldwide moustache growing charity event held every November to raise funds and awareness for men’s health. The Aussies have put together a great website of information at InternationalMensDay.com. Check it out! 

International Women’s Day is on March 8th. We have Soviet Russia to thank for these celebrations. On March 8, 1917, women gained suffrage in Russia and celebrations were held annually thereafter. This Russian holiday was made an international holiday by the United Nations in 1975. The day is set aside not only to acknowledge women’s achievements but to focus on elimination of all discrimination against women including barriers to women’s full and equal participation in society. Some people encourage wearing of clothing in the colour purple for this day. See InternationalWomensDay.com as one source for more information.   

The CAF has achieved so much in the last 30 years, with full occupational access and equal pay. Yet, there are still positions and ranks that women have not been appointed to. And there are still those who will greet the next breakthrough with the muttered comment, “Well, she only got that job/promotion because she is a woman.” That’s an example of why International Women’s Day is still important to the CAF.  

And did you know that it can still cost a woman more to be in the CAF than it does a man? We kid you not. It costs a woman more to dry-clean a uniform, to get a haircut, and even to shower, shampoo and use antiperspirant, just to name a few items on the “pink tax slip” – but we can talk more about that in a future column.