Manitoba cabinet minister harassed college employee in past job, external investigation concluded

Recently appointed national furniture curate Rebecca Chartrand harassed a former employee astatine Winnipeg's Red River College Polytechnic over a play of respective months successful 2019, according to an outer probe commissioned by the assemblage and conducted by a Winnipeg instrumentality firm.

Chartrand, elected successful April arsenic the Liberal subordinate of Parliament for the bluish Manitoba riding of Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, was appointed by Prime Minister Mark Carney successful May arsenic the curate of bluish and Arctic affairs and the curate liable for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency.

According to documentation provided to CBC News successful April — but archetypal reported this week by Canadaland — Chartrand was the taxable of a harassment probe during the last months of her two-year stint arsenic enforcement manager of Indigenous strategy for RRC Polytech, a Winnipeg post-secondary instauration with yearly enrolment of astir 21,000 students.

In a ailment filed with RRC Polytech nether its favoritism and harassment policy in September 2019, a erstwhile college employee claimed she was "targeted, undermined, bullied and harassed" by Chartrand implicit a play of 8 months.

The harassment took the signifier of threatening the employee's position, undermining her enactment and her absorption of different staff, interfering with her career, negatively impacting her reputation, expanding her workload and imposing unreasonable deadlines, according to the complaint.

In a missive dated Dec. 19, 2019, RRC Polytech human resources manager Curtis Craven informed the erstwhile worker that investigators with the Winnipeg instrumentality steadfast Rachlis Neville LLP substantiated the harassment complaint.

The instrumentality steadfast recovered Chartrand's behaviour "amounted to idiosyncratic harassment in that implicit a play of time, the mode successful which she engaged with you and the attack utilized to delegate enactment and negociate your show constituted conduct which was severe," Craven said successful the letter.

"Such behaviour could reasonably origin an idiosyncratic to beryllium humiliated oregon intimidated and was repeated, and had a lasting, harmful effect connected you," helium wrote.

However, "given that Ms. Chartrand is nary longer with the college, the assemblage volition not beryllium taking immoderate further corrective actions arising from this investigation," Craven's missive said.

Chartrand was employed by RRC Polytech from June 2017 until December 2019, erstwhile she resigned, assemblage spokesperson Emily Doer said successful a statement.

Chartrand was not disposable to talk astir her clip astatine the college, spokesperson Kyle Allen said this week.

"Minister Chartrand is committed to fostering a steadfast enactment situation for each persons successful the workplace, characterized by collegiality and communal respect," Allen said successful a statement.

RRC Polytech besides declined to code Chartrand's clip astatine the post-secondary institution.

"In keeping with privateness authorities and assemblage policy, we bash not sermon unit matters regarding existent oregon erstwhile employees," Doer said successful a statement.

'Months of intelligence warfare': erstwhile employee

The erstwhile assemblage worker who filed the harassment ailment near RRC Polytech successful 2020. In an interview, she said she had nary volition of disclosing the investigation until Chartrand was nominated by the Liberal Party arsenic its campaigner for Churchill-Keewatinook Aski.

The employee, whom CBC News is not identifying retired of concerns astir the imaginable interaction connected her employment, said she archetypal attempted to interaction Liberal Party officials astir her acquisition but was unsuccessful.

"I truly did just privation to hide astir this and determination on," said the erstwhile employee, who describes herself arsenic a Liberal supporter.

"I was voting for Mark Carney. I did not privation what happened to maine to hap to anybody successful Ottawa. I didn't privation Mark Carney to beryllium wounded by immoderate further actions, whether something of this quality ever happened again."

Liberal Party spokesperson Jenna Ghassabeh said the enactment does not remark connected the specifics of the campaigner vetting process.

"Canadians expect each governmental parties to bash their owed diligence connected each prospective candidates, and the Liberal Party of Canada has a rigorous process to appropriately behaviour specified reviews," Ghassabeh said successful a statement.

The erstwhile RRC Polytech worker said she yet contacted respective media outlets astir her acquisition aft Chartrand made societal media comments relating to her ain clip astatine the college.

The erstwhile worker said she came to cognize Chartrand successful 2015, erstwhile the now-MP made an earlier tally for bureau successful Churchill-Keewatinook Aski. She came successful 2nd successful that contention to the NDP's Niki Ashton, who Chartrand then defeated successful April's national election.

The erstwhile worker said she near different occupation to enactment nether Chartrand at the assemblage and had a bully moving narration until 2019, erstwhile a nine-page survey was prepared to find the needs of incoming students successful the Indigenous studies program.

The former employee said the survey was amended to see questions astir cause and intoxicant use, against the recommendations of an outer consultant. The assemblage did not disclose that the responses to these questions mightiness find whether respondents would person fiscal assistance, the erstwhile worker said.

The survey was withdrawn pursuing complaints from prospective students and prompted an apology from Chartrand, according to a Global News communicative successful 2019.

The erstwhile worker said aft she advised against including the questions successful the survey, what had been a affirmative moving narration with Chartrand deteriorated into harassment.

"It was similar months of intelligence warfare," the erstwhile worker said.

"I've conscionable tried to determination connected from each of my ain idiosyncratic grief and trauma astir this due to the fact that it has impacted maine personally and professionally, and I wanted to conscionable hide astir it and move on. But it hasn't gone away."

In a Facebook station connected predetermination night, a erstwhile nonmigratory of Churchill-Keewatinook Aski named Kyle Ross drew attraction to the RRC Polytech survey issued during Chartrand's clip astatine the college.

In a since-deleted station of her own, Chartrand accused Ross of engaging successful "lateral violence" and sought accusation astir his whereabouts.

"If anyone has immoderate accusation connected wherever this idiosyncratic works oregon resides, delight scope retired publicly," she wrote.

Chartrand spokesperson Allen said the curate regrets the post.

"Regarding the societal media station referenced, Minister Chartrand profoundly regrets the connection and code she expressed. She unreservedly offers her apologies for the connection of the post," Allen said successful a statement.

Ross said successful an interrogation helium would person preferred a nonstop apology for trying to discern wherever helium lives and works.

"I consciousness similar a direct message would beryllium nice," helium said.

Appointment raised during question period

During question play successful the House of Commons connected Thursday, Manitoba Conservative MP Raquel Dancho (Kildonan-St. Paul) asked whether Prime Minister Mark Carney was alert of the harassment probe anterior to appointing Chartrand to furniture and whether helium chose to disregard it.

"What connection does this nonstop to victims that if your brag engaged successful months of intelligence warfare, the premier curate tin beforehand you to the highest bureau successful the land?"

Government House person Steven MacKinnon (Gatineau), answering on Carney's behalf, defended Chartrand.

"My workfellow is simply a idiosyncratic of integrity who has been progressive successful nationalist work connected galore levels who has opted to service the nationalist successful galore ways," helium said.