Canadian Navy will change rank ‘seaman’ to be more ‘inclusive’ towards women

The woman responsible for the personnel policy in Canada’s navy is Cmdr. Deborah-Lynn Gates. She said that the navy is now taking new steps to become more inclusive and diverse.

"We appreciate tradition," Gates said when speaking with The Canadian Press. "And we’re not downplaying tradition absolutely at all. But it’s truly a matter for us to show that we are progressive and that we are listening and we are really, truly representative of Canadian society."

The term "seaman" has been used by Navies across the world for many many years and the Canadian Navy uses terms like "master seaman," "leading seaman," "able seaman" and "ordinary seaman."

The changes will be implemented by labour day, according to Blacklock's Reporter.

Vice-Admiral Art McDonald said the change was "far from symbolic" and was instead to make the navy more "inclusive and welcom[ing.]"

“We need to do more, individually and collectively, to be diverse, inclusive and welcoming,” said McDonald.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said of the matter: “By adopting gender-neutral designation for junior members of the Royal Canadian Navy, we demonstrate to all Canadians that the Canadian Armed Forces will welcome anybody who wants to serve their country and uphold the values of inclusion and diversity... We will continue to work to build a diverse force that is representative of the Canadians they protect.”

in a statement, the Canadian Navy said they were "continuing to work to create a more inclusive environment within the workplace."