Why experts are calling Jennie Carignan’s promotion to defense chief a ‘glass cliff’

Canada’s subject will make history connected Thursday erstwhile Jennie Carignan is promoted to nan rank of wide and takes complete bid arsenic main of nan defense staff.

Her assignment to lead nan Armed Forces comes astatine a clip erstwhile nan institution is nether nationalist scrutiny, arsenic it tries to reverse what nan defense curate calls a “death spiral” successful recruitment while besides reforming a toxic civilization that gave measurement to nan 2021 intersexual misconduct crisis.

For nan past 3 years, Carignan has led those betterment efforts arsenic nan main of master behaviour and culture. But nan unit connected her is astir to grow, observers say.

“As affirmative arsenic it is to spot nan assignment of Canada’s first female arsenic (defense chief), it does look successful galore ways for illustration a ‘glass cliff’ situation, wherever a female is appointed during a clip of situation and extended challenges,” said Maya Eichler, a professor of authorities and women’s studies astatine Mount Saint Vincent University.

The alleged solid cliff is nan conception that galore women break done nan “glass ceiling” to elder positions only erstwhile an statement is already successful problem — thereby making it harder for them to succeed.

Charlotte Duval-Lantoine, a chap astatine nan Canadian Global Affairs Institute who wrote a book astir women’s integration into nan Canadian military, agreed that is simply a existent concern.

“I deliberation that 1 of nan 2 biggest challenges location will be, for america but besides for her, is managing expectations,” she said.

Duval-Lantoine pointed retired location were besides precocious expectations for Anita Anand, who became nan country’s 2nd female defense curate — and nan first racialized female to return nan occupation — successful precocious 2021.

At that time, nan subject had been embroiled successful ungraded for astir a year, pinch respective men forced retired of activity positions aft being publically accused of intersexual misconduct.

Anand was nan curate successful complaint erstwhile erstwhile Supreme Court justness Louise Arbor submitted her outer study connected nan military’s culture, which called for a raft of changes.

The authorities accepted Arbor’s recommendations, including creating nan master behaviour and civilization agency that Carignan was put successful complaint of. Anand has antecedently said that she sought to support nan record astatine nan halfway of her table astatine each times.

Wayne Eyre, who was named defense main successful 2021 aft Adm. Art McDonald was accused of misconduct, said stabilizing nan Armed Forces successful nan midst of that situation was his apical priority.

In precocious 2022, Eyre issued an bid directing nan subject to make reconstitution its apical priority. At nan extremity of past year, he told troops nan recruitment issues seemed to beryllium stabilizing but would apt return years to solve.

Officials estimate that much than 16,000 jobs successful nan military’s ranks are still unfilled.

Duval-Lantoine said unit is apt to beryllium nan apical rumor for nan military’s adjacent leader, and nan slow recruitment process “needs to beryllium fixed now.”

“The Canadian Armed Forces don’t request thief attracting group … You had 70,000 group past twelvemonth who applied. Only 4,000 made it in,” she said.

Trending Now

The national authorities has besides pledged to overhaul its notoriously slow defense procurement process arsenic it pours money into building ships and shipbuilding capacity, buying combatant jets and replacing aging equipment.

Defense spending has risen by 57 per cent since 2014, pinch nan 2024 fund astatine $29.9 billion.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s authorities is now targeting 2032 arsenic nan twelvemonth Canada will meet its agreed-upon NATO spending promise of 2 per cent of GDP — which by that clip will magnitude to astir $60 cardinal per year.

The defense chief’s domiciled is highly political, advocating for nan Armed Forces pinch nan civilian oversight successful National Defense.

A accordant constituent of hostility successful nan past respective years has been what Eyre and different elder leaders telephone nan expanding request from politicians to respond to much predominant earthy disasters successful Canada while besides boosting its beingness connected NATO’s eastbound beforehand successful Latvia and successful nan Indo-Pacific.

During past year’s grounds wildfire season, much than 2,000 subject members were deployed to conflict fires crossed nan state for 131 consecutive days.

This summer’s occurrence play has been acold little significant, but Armed Forces members were called successful support an removal of Labrador City complete nan play — nan first specified deployment for 2024 — and officials are informing that nan highest is yet to come.

Climate alteration is opening up caller shipping lanes and perchance caller vulnerabilities successful nan Arctic, arsenic Defense Minister Bill Blair often says, and it is besides starring to much predominant and much terrible utmost upwind events.

Blair and his colleagues successful nan Liberal furniture person been clear they’ll proceed calling successful nan subject for thief erstwhile needed.

Eichler said clarity from Carignan would amended relations betwixt nan subject and nan government, and thief Canadians amended understand nan challenges.

“What is really needed now much than ever is simply a broader nationalist speech astir what Canadians expect of their military, what roles they want nan subject to attraction connected and what benignant of organization civilization is champion suited to fulfill those roles,” she said.