Mediacorp Canada has named this year’s Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, recognizing organizations across the country with standout workplace diversity and inclusion programs.
The 2026 list, now in its 19th year, was released Feb. 24 in a special magazine distributed through The Globe and Mail.
The competition is open to any Canadian employer, public or private sector, and evaluates initiatives supporting five groups: women, members of visible minorities, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender/transsexual peoples.
“Successful talent strategies prioritize individuals,” said Stephanie Leung, editor at Mediacorp. “Organizations that regularly engage with their employees develop a deeper understanding of what matters to them — and can use that insight to drive meaningful change that resonates across diverse communities, boosting both engagement and retention.”
Why inclusion matters to employers
Mediacorp’s editors say this year’s winners have focused on programs that produce measurable organizational benefits rather than treating diversity as a standalone initiative.
Kristina Leung, managing editor at Mediacorp, pointed to multigenerational workforces as one example of where inclusive thinking becomes a practical business tool. “Consider the challenge of five generations working side by side: designing benefits that serve everyone — from employees starting families to those navigating eldercare — requires exactly the kind of inclusive thinking these employers have made central to their culture,” she said.
About the competition
Mediacorp, founded in 1992 and based in Toronto, is Canada’s largest publisher of employment periodicals. The company has managed the Canada’s Top 100 Employers project since 1999, which includes 19 regional and special-interest competitions reaching millions of Canadians annually.
The full list of 2026 winners, along with detailed reasons for each selection, is available through the competition homepage and on Eluta.ca, Mediacorp’s Canadian job search engine. Last year, 2.4 million unique visitors used Mediacorp’s online platforms to research employers and explore job opportunities, according to the company.
This year’s winners
| Organization | Head Office | Industry | Full-Time Employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada | Ottawa, ON | Federal government | 5,669 |
| Air Canada | Saint-Laurent, QC | Air transportation | 36,337 |
| Amrize Canada Inc. | Calgary, AB | Concrete manufacturing | 6,102 |
| Aviva Canada Inc. | Markham, ON | Insurance services | 5,203 |
| Bank of Canada | Ottawa, ON | Central bank | 2,250 |
| BASF Canada Inc. | Mississauga, ON | Chemical manufacturing | 1,040 |
| BC Hydro | Vancouver, BC | Hydroelectric power generation | 7,837 |
| BC Infrastructure Benefits Inc. / BCIB | Vancouver, BC | Employment services | 92 |
| BC Public Service | Victoria, BC | Provincial government | 38,895 |
| BHP Canada Inc. | Saskatoon, SK | Mining | 549 |
| BNP Paribas | Montréal, QC | Banking | 1,616 |
| Borden Ladner Gervais LLP | Toronto, ON | Law firms | 1,571 |
| Bruce Power LP | Tiverton, ON | Nuclear power generation | 4,182 |
| Canadian Tire Corporation Limited | Toronto, ON | Retail | 12,936 |
| CBC / Radio-Canada | Ottawa, ON | Public broadcasters | 6,606 |
| Celestica Inc. | North York, ON | Electronics manufacturing | 1,348 |
| Children’s Aid Society of Toronto | Toronto, ON | Child and youth services | 658 |
| Co-operators Group Limited, The | Guelph, ON | Insurance | 6,595 |
| Communications Security Establishment / CSE | Ottawa, ON | Federal government, national security | 3,581 |
| D2L Corporation | Kitchener, ON | Software publishers | 866 |
| Dentons Canada LLP | Calgary, AB | Law firms | 1,391 |
| Desjardins Group / Mouvement Desjardins | Lévis, QC | Financial institutions | 50,908 |
| Emera Inc. | Halifax, NS | Electric power generation and distribution | 2,639 |
| Employment and Social Development Canada | Gatineau, QC | Federal government, social development | 41,081 |
| Export Development Canada | Ottawa, ON | International trade financing | 2,084 |
| EY | Toronto, ON | Accounting services | 9,000 |
| George Brown Polytechnic | Toronto, ON | Post-secondary schools, college | 1,579 |
| GHD Ltd. | Waterloo, ON | Engineering services | 2,051 |
| Gibson Energy Inc. | Calgary, AB | Oil and gas distribution | 454 |
| Health Canada / Santé Canada | Ottawa, ON | Federal government, public health | 10,046 |
| Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital | East York, ON | Hospitals | 683 |
| Hyundai Auto Canada Corp. | Markham, ON | Automobile wholesale | 282 |
| ICBC / Insurance Corporation of British Columbia | North Vancouver, BC | Automobile insurance | 5,541 |
| IGM Financial Inc. | Winnipeg, MB | Financial services | 3,557 |
| Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada | Ottawa, ON | Federal government, economic development | 6,619 |
| Jazz Aviation LP | Goffs, NS | Air transportation | 4,134 |
| Liquor Control Board of Ontario / LCBO | Toronto, ON | Liquor distribution | 4,620 |
| Loblaw Companies Ltd. | Brampton, ON | Supermarkets and grocery stores | 29,652 |
| Manitoba Hydro | Winnipeg, MB | Hydroelectric power generation | 5,188 |
| McCarthy Tétrault LLP | Toronto, ON | Law firms | 1,743 |
| McMaster University | Hamilton, ON | Post-secondary schools, university | 7,217 |
| Niagara Health | St. Catharines, ON | Healthcare services | 3,875 |
| Nunavut, Government of | Iqaluit, NU | Territorial government | 3,572 |
| OpenText Corporation | Waterloo, ON | Software publishers | 2,690 |
| Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP | Toronto, ON | Law firms | 1,426 |
| Ottawa, City of | Ottawa, ON | Municipal government | 14,088 |
| Pink Triangle Press | Toronto, ON | Periodical publisher | 51 |
| Procter & Gamble Inc. | North York, ON | Consumer products manufacturing | 1,792 |
| RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust | Toronto, ON | Real estate investment trusts | 505 |
| SAP Canada Inc. | Vancouver, BC | Custom computer programming services | 3,104 |
| SaskPower | Regina, SK | Electric power generation | 3,471 |
| SaskTel | Regina, SK | Telecommunications | 2,946 |
| Scotiabank | Toronto, ON | Banking | 41,943 |
| Staples Canada ULC | Richmond Hill, ON | Retail | 5,617 |
| Statistics Canada / Statistique Canada | Ottawa, ON | Federal government, national statistics | 6,010 |
| TD Bank Group | Toronto, ON | Banking | 63,935 |
| Thales Canada Inc. | Nepean, ON | Aerospace systems | 1,368 |
| Thinkific Labs, Inc. | Vancouver, BC | Online learning software | 271 |
| Toronto, City of | Toronto, ON | Municipal government | 25,791 |
| TransLink | New Westminster, BC | Public transit | 8,369 |
| UBC / University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC | Post-secondary schools, university | 16,599 |
| Unity Health Toronto | Toronto, ON | Hospitals | 7,228 |
| Université de Montréal | Montréal, QC | Post-secondary schools, university | 6,091 |
| University of Manitoba | Winnipeg, MB | Post-secondary schools, university | 5,461 |
| University of Toronto | Toronto, ON | Post-secondary schools, university | 13,313 |
| University of Victoria | Victoria, BC | Post-secondary schools, university | 3,220 |
| Vancouver Coastal Health | Vancouver, BC | Hospitals | 15,790 |
| Women’s College Hospital | Toronto, ON | Hospitals | 780 |
| YMCA of Greater Toronto | Toronto, ON | Individual and family services | 3,600 |
| York University | North York, ON | Post-secondary schools, university | 4,997 |


