Just the tip of the iceberg?
Specific details would highlight what cannot be tolerated in a workplace
Report describing ‘reign of terror’ at Rideau Hall comes as Ottawa grapples with crises at other federal workplaces,
OTTAWA—The federal Liberal government has a deepening workplace problem.
Despite all the promises, targets, legislation and regulations, and all the good intentions to bring equity, harmony and respect into the federal public service, things seem to have gotten worse, not better.
For years, news stories have documented harassment or “toxic” workplaces in the unlikeliest spaces, be it in the RCMP, the military or now at one of the top public offices in the country — the governor general’s.
An independent review has described a “reign of terror” at Rideau Hall under Julie Payette and her friend and top aide, Assunta Di Lorenzo.
Its conclusions were powerful enough to lead Payette and Di Lorenzo to resign last week.
And it was maddening to read, in black and white.
The report, rife with redactions to protect the confidentiality of workers who suffered their wrath, was full of adjectives to describe a nightmare work environment: “hostile,” “negative,” “poisoned.”
Employees described “walking on eggshells” and reported “yelling, screaming, aggressive conduct, demeaning comments and public humiliations.”
But by blacking out details of specific incidents, it missed an opportunity to do everyone in the public service — and beyond — a public service. It needed to “show, not tell” exactly what cannot be tolerated in a modern workplace.
Because clearly, people still don’t get it.
Other federal workplaces are undergoing a similar crisis.
Mark O’Neill, the president of the Canadian Museum of History and the Canadian War Museum, is currently on leave, and a review of complaints of workplace harassment is reportedly complete.
The Canadian Human Rights Museum in Winnipeg issued an apology and replaced its top executive after an independent review of complaints of systemic racism, homophobia and workplace issues.
The federal auditor general in 2019 criticized two other sprawling federal departments for failing to maintain respectful workplaces.
Investigations found the Canada Border Services Agency and Correctional Services Canada knew they had problems in the workplace, “yet neither organization had developed a comprehensive strategy to address them.”
“Employees feared reprisal if they made complaints of harassment, discrimination or workplace violence against fellow employees or supervisors. They also had serious or significant concerns about a lack of civility and respect in their workplaces,” the auditor general found.
It was only on Thursday — the day after the Payette report was released — that the parliamentary public accounts committee examined that 2019 audit.
“A lot of the culture we’re seeing coming out at the governor general’s is embedded in almost every aspect of the public sector,” said NDP MP Matthew Green, “and a good snapshot of that is in CBSA and CSC.”
In the past, Ottawa has tried to effect change, usually through legislation. In 2015, Justin Trudeau campaigned on a pledge to “take action to ensure that Parliament and federal institutions — including the public service, the RCMP and the Canadian Armed Forces — are workplaces free from harassment and sexual violence.”
His government passed legislation in 2018 to address harassment and violence in Bill C-65. New regulations under that law finally took effect this month.
The new law emphasizes employer accountability to prevent workplace harassment and violence. It defines harassment and violence, and expands the definition to include — as the Defence Department has informed its employees — “a full spectrum of unacceptable behaviours, ranging from teasing and bullying to sexual harassment and physical violence.”
On Thursday, by sheer coincidence, the federal Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety flagged three online training courses for all federal managers and employees on the new workplace regulations. Too late for Rideau Hall. The federal government has also set itself equity in employment goals using federal laws like the Employment Equity Act, yet it has failed to diversify the ranks of federal employees and managers.
An audit by the Public Service Commission published Thursday showed visible minorities, Indigenous people and people with disabilities are still not making it past the recruitment and hiring process.
Only women showed an increase in representation through hiring for the federal public service between 2016 and 2017.
The audit tracked more than 15,000 applications across 30 federal departments and agencies.
Disabled people saw the biggest drop, while among visible minority groups, Black Canadians fared worst.
It is likely the federal government wanted to get ahead of the dim picture painted by the Public Service Commission’s audit.
On Tuesday, it floated the notion of bringing in even more legislative changes to make the public service more diverse, this time through “possible amendments” to the Public Service Employment Act.
But the sad reality is, despite existing laws, even when women, visible minorities, Indigenous people and people with disabilities do succeed in getting their feet in the door, their work environments can be oppressive.
Green, the New Democrats’ government operations critic, said the time for talk is over.
“Trudeau is big on branding and very, very short on delivery,” he said in an interview. “Time and time again, we see policies that on their face look progressive, but as soon as we scratch the surface it’s clear that they’re not actually resulting in outcomes.”