Former fire chief sues Renfrew for $1.35M
Renfrew’s former fire chief has filed a lawsuit demanding $1 million or his job back while blaming “small-town political considerations” for his forced retirement at age 61.
With other damages, Guy Longtin is seeking $1.35 million in the suit, filed Thursday in Superior Court in Ottawa.
He also wants damages for the town’s refusal to extend benefits that cover costly drugs for a family member with a life-threatening illness and for the town officials to take “mandatory human rights sensitivity training.”
Longtin was the town’s fire chief for 26 years, during which he maintains that he “met or exceeded every job-related requirement,” giving him the reasonable expectation he’d have the job until he chose to retire, according to the statement of claim.
In “excellent health,” he’d contemplated working until “at least” age 70, heading the department of 11 full-timers and 16 volunteers.
But Renfrew council voted behind closed doors in May to include the chief’s position in a policy to enforce mandatory retirement for all fire personnel at age 60. According to reports, council cited the provincial Fire Protection and Prevention Act, which mandates a retirement age of 60, but “only … to salaried firefighters involved in front-line firefighting duties.”
Other municipalities, including Ottawa and nearby Arnprior — which recently hired a 60-yearold fire chief — have not imposed mandatory retirement on chiefs.
But Renfrew Reeve Peter Emon said that when the town reviewed the mandatory retirement clause for active firefighters, the chief ’s job description and past human rights tribunal decisions, they felt they “had to act” in order to “manage the affairs of the town effectively and in accordance with the law.
“We continue to provide a safe environment with a well-trained fire department to ensure that our community is protected and that is our primary goal at this point,” he added.
Emon called the lawsuit “unfortunate,” maintaining that the town has paid Longtin the severance owed under his employment agreement and extended his benefits for two years.
“That said, the town intends to vigorously defend itself and we intend to file our own defence in the next few weeks,” he said.
According to Longtin’s statement of claim, the former chief didn’t fight fires — he wasn’t even issued a respirator — and only rarely assumed incident command. Before May 7, Longtin said he was never told that the town was considering his removal, even though he was on its senior management team.
Longtin’s statement of claim charges that he was really forced to retire because of other factors — including his written harassment complaint against the town’s mayor in March — and alleges the town wanted to curry favour with the firefighters’ union by redistributing his paid duties.
The town has 20 days to file a legal response.