Claiming racism, harassment, wrongful dismissal and punitive damages
TORONTO – Former CRTC commissioner Raj Shoan has filed a motion against the attorney general of Canada, the CRTC, Minister Mélanie Joly, the Governor-in-Council and various individuals, including former Commission chair Jean-Pierre Blais, for the sum of $8.4 million.
The 65-page statement of claim, filed with the Ontario Superior Court October 31st, retells much of the conflict between Shoan, who was hired as the CRTC’s Ontario Commissioner in June 2013, and various others including Blais, the chairman of the CRTC at the time, and former Heritage Ministers Shelly Glover and Joly.
Shoan was accused of workplace harassment, investigated and was eventually dismissed by Government through an Order-in-Council, not once (in June 2016) but twice (in May 2017). That second one came four days after he had been vindicated by an Ontario judge over the first one.
In this claim, and other prior ones, Shoan, who is of South Asian descent, claims racism was the heart of the matter. As readers can peruse in the links below, government officials have said otherwise.
Among other things, Shoan’s statement of claim asks the court to declare: “that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (“CRTC”) and Minister Melanie Joly (“Minister Joly”) and the Governor-in-Council (“GIC”) allowed and enabled the Plaintiff, the only Commissioner who was a visible minority, to be subjected to racist behaviour and differential treatment throughout his Appointment with the CRTC in comparison to all other Commissioners at the CRTC,” it reads.
The various elements of the story can be viewed in our prior coverage here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
The next step for this would be a statement of defence from the federal government. A court date for a trial is likely two years away.
