4,600 at war with military
Misconduct, discrimination claims filed
OTTAWA — About 4,600 people had filed claims about facing sexual misconduct or gender discrimination in the Canadian military and the Defence Department as part of a compensation deal that will cost taxpayers $900 million.
Present and past serving members of the Canadian Forces and the Department of National Defence are eligible to make the claims as part of a settlement reached in 2019.
DND spokesperson Dan Le Bouthillier said that as of April 9, the number of people who had filed claims was about 4,600. That number is up from March, when a little more than 4,000 had filed such claims as part of the settlement of class-action lawsuits by survivors of sexual harassment, gender discrimination and sexual assault in the Canadian Forces.
That settlement calls for $800 million in compensation for current or retired military personnel.
Another $100 million was set aside to compensate civilian employees.
Some of the claims involve incidents dating back to the 1980s.
Over the last several months, the Canadian Forces have found themselves dealing with a new round of sexual misconduct allegations.
Those allegedly took place years ago, but details are only now emerging.
That has resulted in the current chief of the defence staff, Admiral Art McDonald, being placed under police investigation and temporarily stepping aside from the top military job.
Another police investigation has been launched into the alleged actions of his predecessor, Gen. Jonathan Vance.
No information has been provided on when the investigations will wrap up.