Montreal police union to challenge firing of seven officers

The union representing Montreal police officers says it will challenge the dismissal of seven officers, arguing the force used a method that has never been applied in its labour relations history.

Yves Francoeur, president of the Fraternité des policiers et policières de Montréal, told La Presse on Tuesday that a grievance will be filed in the coming days before an arbitration tribunal under the officers’ collective agreement. “We will contest this way of doing things so the police service is forced to back down,” he said (translated from French).

Francoeur said such a dismissal would normally go through a convened disciplinary committee. He said the officers involved did not get a chance to give their version of events, which he called unprecedented.

In an internal memo to members, reported by CBC News and La Presse, Francoeur wrote that the firings “raise fundamental questions of law” and that labour law “cannot be unilaterally rewritten” by the employer (translated from French). He added that the decision “could be detrimental to you in the future.”

The memo also said that if the allegations were true, they “deeply violate” the values of Montreal police officers, according to the reports.

Police chief Fady Dagher announced the dismissals on Monday after an internal disciplinary investigation into alleged racist and discriminatory conduct at Station 39 in Montréal-Nord and Station 21 in Ville-Marie. He said criminal investigations are continuing. The allegations have not been tested in court, and the union has not said whether the officers deny them.

The union had declined to comment on the firings when they were announced, as we reported on Monday. The grievance marks its first public move against the decision. The firings also come as the force faces a separate court challenge over a bylaw banning insults to police.

The Montreal police service has not said how it will respond to the planned grievance.

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Sources: La Presse and CBC Montreal reporting on the union memo and interview.