Hockey Canada is requiring minor team players to keep a “minimum attire” on when changing or use private bathroom stalls.
“To best promote inclusion and to respect the privacy of all participants on a team, Hockey Canada requires all participants to wear ‘minimum attire’ at all times in a dressing room or in dressing environments where more than one participant is present,” Hockey Canada said in a new policy, which will be in effect on Sept. 12.
The policy says that “all participants have the right to utilize the dressing room or appropriate and equivalent dressing environment based on their gender identity, religious beliefs, body image concerns and/or other reasons related to their individual needs.”
As a result, players and anyone else using the dressing rooms or dressing areas will be required to wear minimum attire or a base layer, the policy said.
According to the Hockey Canada policy, the base layer can include shorts, t-shirts, compression shorts, shirts, and sports bras.
Anyone who does not have a base layer on is required to use a private space, like a bathroom stall, to change before entering the team dressing room.
“It is the responsibility of all coaches and team staff to instruct players regarding the minimum attire rule and ensure that players are complying with this Policy.”
The base layer policy extends to showers as well, Hockey Canada’s policy said.
“When in open concept showers, it is encouraged that all athletes wear certain ’minimum attire' at all times, including swimwear. In order to facilitate this, participants could use a private restroom stall to change out of their base layer and into their swimwear prior to using the shower.”
Enforcing the Policy
To enforce the policy, Hockey Canada recommends that coaches or team staff supervise the dressing room.The organization has included the Rule of Two in its policy to ensure compliance.
“The ‘Rule of Two’ requires two trained and screened adults to be present in the dressing room or immediately outside the dressing room with the door propped open to monitor the environment and ensure it is free of any discrimination, harassment, bullying or other forms of maltreatment. The Rule of Two remains in place when showers are in use,” the policy said.
Hockey Canada has also prohibited violent or hazing-type activities in the dressing room areas, including boxing. It has also emphasized there are no recording devices permitted in the dressing room space, but the restriction does not apply to cell phones.
“To respect the privacy of participants, no videos, still photos, or voice recordings of any kind may be taken using any device with recording capabilities in a dressing room or dressing environment. Cell phones are only permitted to be used in a dressing room or dressing environment for the purposes of controlling music played in those spaces,” the policy said.
