A former RCMP officer who was awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars for abuse she suffered while in uniform is having a large part of her settlement clawed back by the federal government.
The woman – who CTV News Edmonton has agreed not to identify – calls it a revictimization, which is deepening resentment of the force she was once proud to be a part of.
Like many of Canada’s officers, her journey started at the RCMP Academy, Depot Division in Regina. What inspired her to join the Mounties happened years earlier, but left a profound impression.
“When I was 14, my sister committed suicide and the RCMP officer that attended at our house was fantastic,” she recalled. “And from that moment on, it was something I wanted to do. I wanted to be a positive role model in my community, just like he had done for us.”
Her experience at Depot was what she expected, with respect and camaraderie driving her to excel. A symbol of those fond memories is the necklace pendant she received upon graduation.
“If you have the right group, it’s great. It’s fantastic. Then you’re dispersed all over Canada and away you go,” she said.
‘WASN’T PREPARED TO BE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED’
But being on the force lost its lustre fast, she remembers, as feelings of being unsafe at work set over her.
“(Within) three months I felt like a shell of who I was when I went there.”
She was trained to protect her community, and equipped for each day in uniform interacting with the public, she said, but she wasn’t ready for the politics or the abuse.
“I certainly wasn’t prepared to be sexually assaulted by a colleague and I certainly wasn’t prepared to be sexually harassed by a supervisor,” she stated.
For years, the officer kept her silence before she said she was forced to retire after an on-duty car crash.
She then learned she wasn’t alone in suffering abuse.
The Merlo Davidson class action lawsuit drew together thousands of people alleging systemic gender-based discrimination, bullying and harrassment in the RCMP.
From years as an investigator, she said she knew that being a victim and sharing what happened to her would be tough.
“It was arduous. I know, having dealt with sexual assault victims, it’s something you don’t force upon them till they’re ready to deal with it.”
‘…TIL I DIE I GUESS’
She ended up qualifying for $220,000, the highest tier of the lawsuit’s compensation, and after legal fees, she received $182,875.
Her lawyers then suggested she apply for a disability pension for veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Then a letter from Veteran Affairs arrived, informing her that half of her settlement was recoverable, including about $6,000 right away and an additional $288 a month, which was being clawed back from every cheque.
“For the purpose of making this decision, Sections 25 and 26 of the Pension Act were considered,” a federal employee wrote.
To her, it’s re-victimization and further abuse from the system she served.
But it’s also the letter of the law. In a statement, Veterans Affairs Canada told CTV News Edmonton that the pension act provides no discretion.
“If an individual receives a class-action settlement for the exact same condition/incident for which they receive a pension, it is considered compensation,” a spokesperson wrote in a statement.
‘UNJUST SITUATION’
The veterans affairs minister declined to be interviewed for this story, but a Conservative MP in British Columbia wants changes.
“If there is no way around it in the legislation, then consider enacting legislation so that this unjust situation is remedied and remedied as soon as possible,” Frank Caputo, the shadow minister for Veteran Affairs, said.
In 2018, the first-ever female RCMP commissioner was named. The class-action lawsuit had been settled and Brenda Lucki promised to reform the force.
“I will not have all the answers but I definitely plan on asking all the right questions,” she said at the time.
Lucki also declined to answer specific questions about the clawback in this case.
The RCMP instead sent a statement, where officials expressed regret for what happened to the officer, but said they are unable to intervene.
“If additional compensation is awarded for the same condition/incident, the monthly pension amount will be reduced until the compensation is covered in full,” it said.
‘I DO NOT THINK THAT WAS DISCUSSED’
An official report into the Merlo Davidson lawsuit and the culture at the RCMP was written by Justice Michael Bastarache. He’s a retired Supreme Court Justice who was given the role of administering the settlement.
“My decisions cannot be reviewed by the RCMP, or appealed by the parties,” he said in 2016.
Given news of the clawback, Bastarache wrote to the officer in this story.
“I remember that discussions leading to the agreement indicated there would be no pension clawback,” his letter reads. “I do not think that was discussed and believe all parties were convinced there would be no clawback of any sort.”
With many legal options tried and failed, the officer is now hoping for legislative change, so victims like her are able to move on while feeling like they were treated fairly.
“I just want my life back. I want them to leave me alone. I want them to let me heal,” she said.
For now, she feels more regret that she exposed herself to a process that injured her again.
The dispute is a constant reminder that her RCMP dream was destroyed by her experience.
“I’m taking off this (graduation) pendant today, and I will never wear it again. And this is a job I wanted to do to honour my sister. I could care less if I wear this ever again,” she said.
With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Geoff Hastings and Katie Chamberlain
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.