Did GG’S old job foreshadow woes at Rideau Hall?
DOES HER EXCELLENCY’S STRIVING FOR EXCELLENCE GO TOO FAR?
Last week, after news broke that a dozen Rideau Hall staffers were alleging verbal abuse and a hostile work environment created by Gov. Gen. Julie Payette, the phone of a former employee at the Montreal Science Centre lit up.
“When the news came out, I got 15 or 16 texts from friends, coworkers, ex-coworkers: ‘Oh my god, your old boss!’ ” the former employee said.
Rideau Hall, the office of the Queen’s representative in Canada, is now in the extraordinary position of having a third-party workplace investigation after the Privy Council Office intervened due to the allegations aired in a CBC story.
But based on accounts given to the National Post, the people who may have been least shocked about Rideau Hall workplace turmoil were people who worked under Payette between 2013 and 2016, when she ran the Montreal Science Centre as chief operating officer.
For those who chose to speak for this story, they said their motivation is not to grind an axe years after the fact, but to point out that the
Prime Minister’s Office shouldn’t be taken by surprise that many Rideau Hall employees are having a very difficult time working for Payette. It’s all happened before.
The accounts give a nuanced picture of how Payette manages a workplace. She forms close bonds with people who she trusts, and pushes them constructively, according to some. Others say Payette would sometimes pick fights and level harsh criticism at them, but they could brush it off and still have a good working relationship with her.
But for some people, working for Payette was excruciating.
Just as in the CBC story about Rideau Hall, some science centre employees said they left conversations with Payette in tears and frequently felt humiliated in meetings where Payette targeted them.
“I’m going to say that when I read the news, nothing at all surprised me,” said one person who had worked at the science centre for many years, but quit directly because of Payette. “Everything sounded extremely familiar.”
“There was a line in the (CBC) story saying that there was always a victim in every meeting,” said another person who had stayed throughout Payette’s tenure. “It was the same thing at the science centre.”
The Post spoke to eight people who worked in various roles during this time, and all had some direct interaction with Payette. They would only agree to talk on the condition that the Post not name them, as they still work in the sector. The Post is only relating accounts where the sources have firsthand experience.
Not everyone had a negative experience. “I honestly never felt treated badly,” said one person. “I personally never witnessed her saying anything that was personally harmful in any shape or form. It was always work-based, never personality-based.”
Some people defended Payette, arguing she always had reasons to call out someone’s work. Payette has certain expectations of what needs to be done, according to this view, and people can be overly sensitive about criticism.
But even one person who enjoyed working with Payette had no hesitation when asked if people at the science centre had quit because of her: “Oh, absolutely.”
Another person who never felt targeted by Payette said they know many others who were. “She was not a good manager,” this person said. “She was not careful with people, she had a lack of empathy for people.”
Payette’s spokesperson Ashlee Smith, asked to respond to these accounts that seemed to show a pattern with Rideau Hall, said Payette has always “strived for excellence for herself and those around her,” and has “devoted her entire career to the principles of rigour, continuous improvement, teamwork, collegiality, and respect.”
“While I cannot respond to anonymous sources, rumours and innuendo, what I can say is that I have very much enjoyed my time working for the Governor General and appreciate her dedication to a high standard of work, her strong work ethic, and her commitment to respectful collaboration and discussions in the workplace, and have never personally seen anything even remotely like what is being alleged,” Smith said.
When Payette entered the job of running the Montreal Science Centre in the summer of 2013, the museum had recently changed ownership away from the federal public works department. It was now run by the Canada Lands Company, a self-financing Crown corporation that specializes in managing, developing and selling surplus federal property. There was widespread concern at the science centre about this move at the time, though it has now subsided.
When Payette was hired, she had no experience in running a museum. But as an astronaut with a sparkling resume in science, music and languages, she had celebrity status in Quebec and it was hoped her appointment would help bring in donations and sponsorships. Payette was a strong advocate for the museum within Canada Lands and fought for more resources, said one person who was otherwise critical of Payette’s management. She used her connections to help the science centre, including to acquire a 3.8-billion-year-old moon rock exhibit.
Payette did develop good relationships with some employees. Although one of her executive assistants left quickly, another stayed with her for almost her entire time there and they worked closely together.
But while every department clashed with Payette occasionally, it was the programs and exhibitions group that really bore the brunt of Payette’s withering criticism, sources said. Everyone the Post spoke to said the biggest departure due to Payette’s management was Carol Pauzé, the museum’s well-liked head of programming who had worked there since it opened in 2000. Pauzé, who now runs a museum in nearby Valcourt, declined to comment for this story and is not a quoted source.
People who worked closely with Pauzé told the Post she tried to make herself the buffer between Payette and the program staff. Pauzé left in the spring of 2016. “Carol couldn’t take it anymore,” said one person with close knowledge of it. “It was a very painful period for her.”
There were multiple staff departures in 2016, and although sources estimated between five and 10 were directly related to Payette, it is hard to say for sure. Some had other work opportunities come along. There was also a five-month strike in 2016 (unrelated to Payette’s management) that caused significant stress among the staff.
“I left because of her, like a few other people,” said one person who spoke to the Post. “People would leave her office crying. I left her office crying ... The way she talks to people, she can be very intimidating.”
In part the tension was due to Payette’s determination to be very hands-on and in control of every aspect, despite her highlevel management job. If something was not done how Payette wanted it to be done, the person would be reamed out for it, it was claimed.
It is not clear whether any formal complaints were filed against Payette. Neither Payette, nor the science centre, nor the Canada Lands Company would say. However, the people the Post spoke to said they did not file a complaint with human resources (almost all weren’t in the union). Pushed on this, some said it did not seem worth it to launch formal complaints, given Payette ran the whole operation. It was better to try to just ride it out, or leave.
One person who worked there throughout Payette’s leadership said there wasn’t always a direct attack of the type that would justify a formal complaint.
“It’s more subtle than that,” this person said. “In each meeting, we would go into the meeting and think, okay, who is she going to pick on this time? ... She would make you feel inadequate. I think that’s the way it is. And of course, some people are more sensitive than others. Others are tougher. And yes, people would sometimes walk out of the meeting in tears.”
Still, the apparent lack of formal complaints is why some are skeptical of the stories coming out in the media now. “It’s not always black and white,” said one person who agrees that Payette was very hard on people, but says she often had legitimate reasons to do so.
It does raise the question, though, of whether someone with this kind of management style should have been appointed to a diplomatically sensitive job like being governor general.
“When you hire someone, usually you do your due diligence and see how they were managing other people,” said one former science centre employee.
Payette left her job running the science centre in October 2016, about six months before she was in consideration for governor general. Her departure from the science centre is often referred to in euphemistic terms. A Globe and Mail profile of her after being appointed governor general included this line: “She spent three years as chief operating officer of the Montreal Science Centre, leaving abruptly in 2016.”
Her departure came after a prolonged strike, and according to one source with direct knowledge, Payette told people after she left that she had tired of the battles that came with the job.
It was Payette’s decision to leave, said Canada Lands spokesperson Manon Lapensee, adding that Payette “contributed greatly to the Science Centre’s success and we tremendously appreciated her ideas and vision.”
“Her Excellency left the Montreal Science Centre of her own volition to pursue other endeavours,” said Payette’s spokesperson Smith.
Smith also asked that the Post speak to two people in order to get another view of Payette. Although both have travelled with Payette in international delegations, neither has worked for her.
Sheldon Levy, a former president of Ryerson University, said he could not speak to any of the accounts that have been published in the media. But he wanted to tell a story of when he travelled with Payette to Estonia last year, and saw Payette make sure she introduced all of her staff members before speaking to an audience. “I saw someone who wants to have others applaud the work of (her staff), and for her staff to be recognized,” he said.
The second person, Pierre Lassonde, gave a more fiery defence of Payette. Lassonde, who just wrapped up a five-year term as chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, said he’s known Payette for 25 years and she’s always asked more of herself than she has of anyone else.
“There’s no more driven individual than her,” he said. “I mean, you don’t get to be an astronaut by being a wuss, okay?”
He said that as far as he can tell, the complaints about Payette from Rideau Hall staff are from people who don’t like that she’s trying to change things. He views the media stories about Payette as grossly unfair, and questioned if they would be written about a man in her position.
“Is she perfect? No,” he said. “But does she deserve to be crucified like that? I don’t think so.”
In the summer of 2018, when the Post conducted a lengthy investigation into Payette’s first year at Rideau Hall, government sources said the Prime Minister’s Office was so enthralled with the idea of having a female astronaut as governor general — someone who could be a role model to young women in particular — that it did not spend enough time on the question of whether Payette’s temperament was a good match for the highly unusual environment of Rideau Hall, with its emphasis on diplomacy, ceremony, tradition and often quirky protocol.
Some who worked at the science centre compared it to their own situation, where Payette was a fantastic symbol of what the museum wanted to stand for, but a much more difficult fit in practice.
“In science, she’s an idol,” said one person who said she left because of Payette. “She loves to give speeches and she’s absolutely stunning at it. It’s unbelievable how good of a spokesperson she can be.”
Another person said Payette is a “great role model” when it comes to encouraging young people to pursue science, but managing a workplace is another story. “I don’t want to sound vengeful, but I’m happy this is coming out,” this person said about the CBC report, saying they hope it helps the situation at Rideau Hall.
A third source said that ultimately, Payette is a conundrum. She has accomplished remarkable things and is a rightfully inspiring figure for Canadians. But she seems to end up in situations that are just not suited for her.
“The (science centre) mission was the most important for her, bringing science to kids, you know, creating that spark so that they also would want to be astronauts or researchers or anything else for that matter,” this person said. “The intentions were good. But then again, maybe she was not the right fit for the right environment. I would think it’s the story of her life after being an astronaut.”
SHE WAS NOT CAREFUL WITH PEOPLE, SHE HAD A LACK OF EMPATHY FOR PEOPLE.