Thursday, March 28, 2024
ADVT 
National

Tribunal Rules Ex-B.C. Jail Guard Faced Racism In 'Poisoned Work Environment'

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 08 Jul, 2019 09:40 PM

    VANCOUVER - A former jail guard has won his discrimination complaint against the British Columbia government for being forced to work in what the human rights tribunal concluded was a "poisoned work environment."

     

    Levan Francis, who is black, filed a complaint to the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal in 2012, alleging colleagues and supervisors at the North Fraser Pre-trial Centre in Port Coquitlam used racial slurs and stereotyped him.

     

    During a 12-day hearing the government claimed that Francis used accusations of racism as a shield when his performance was criticized and fabricated allegations for his human rights complaint.

     

    But adjudicator Diana Juricevic ruled Francis was subjected to racism that only got worse after he made the rights complaint when he was called a "rat" who had a "target on his back."

     

    No settlement or award was issued, but the chair said she would retain jurisdiction of the dispute to complete that process.

     

    Francis left his job nine months after making the human rights complaint, and Juricevic says in her ruling there seemed to be no other option for him but to leave.

     

    "Taken together, my findings of discrimination and retaliation lead to the inescapable conclusion that Francis was subject to a poisoned work environment by July 2013," she says.

     

    No one from the Public Safety Ministry was immediately available to comment on the ruling.

     

    Juricevic says in her ruling the work environment at the pre-trial centre was not characterized by teamwork and mutual respect, contrary to the evidence of a number of witnesses at the hearing.

     

    There was an "almost alarming" lack of respect between fellow employees at the high-security remand centre for men, she says.

     

    The remand centre manages accused who have been ordered detained by the court while they await trial.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    RCMP Look For Killer And Robber Who Escaped From A Victoria-Area Prison

    RCMP Look For Killer And Robber Who Escaped From A Victoria-Area Prison
    Armitage is 30, five feet 10 inches tall, weighs 179 pounds, has brown eyes and black hair, and is serving time for robbery, aggravated assault and other offences.    

    RCMP Look For Killer And Robber Who Escaped From A Victoria-Area Prison

    Memorial Held For Members Of Surrey's Homeless Community Who Have Died

    Memorial Held For Members Of Surrey's Homeless Community Who Have Died
    Former residents of a tent encampment in Surrey, B.C., gathered Sunday to remember community members who have died and to send a message that even though the so-called "Surrey Strip" has been dismantled, homelessness has not been solved.

    Memorial Held For Members Of Surrey's Homeless Community Who Have Died

    B.C. Civil Liberties Association To Release CSIS Papers On Environmental Groups

    B.C. Civil Liberties Association To Release CSIS Papers On Environmental Groups
    The British Columbia Civil Liberties Association is set to release what it calls a "trove" of heavily redacted documents disclosed by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service on Monday morning.

    B.C. Civil Liberties Association To Release CSIS Papers On Environmental Groups

    Women Who Worked Or Volunteered With The RCMP Reach Sexual Harassment Settlement With Force

    Women Who Worked Or Volunteered With The RCMP Reach Sexual Harassment Settlement With Force
    VANCOUVER - Women who experienced gender or sexual harassment while working or volunteering for the RCMP may be eligible for compensation under the settlement of a class-action lawsuit, a lawyer said Monday.

    Women Who Worked Or Volunteered With The RCMP Reach Sexual Harassment Settlement With Force

    Suspicious Fire In Surrey, B.c., Critically Injures Two Children

    Police Say Surrey House Fire That Badly Injured Two Children ‘Suspicious’

    Suspicious Fire In Surrey, B.c., Critically Injures Two Children

    Ninth Homicide Of The Year: Brampton Man Found Dead Identified As 54-YEAR-OLD AJAY CHIBBER

    The victim, AJAY CHIBBER, a 54 year-old man from Brampton was pronounced dead at the scene.

    Ninth Homicide Of The Year: Brampton Man Found Dead Identified As 54-YEAR-OLD AJAY CHIBBER

    PrevNext