Black firefighters get inquiry

Halifax city hall to answer to N.S. human rights commission board

By MICHAEL LIGHTSTONE City Hall Reporter

Halifax city hall is going to be scrutinized for how its black firefighters have been treated on the job.

An enduring human rights complaint is proceeding to a formal public hearing where allegations of work-related racism will be covered, a fire department official confirmed Friday.

The complaint from the Halifax Association of Black Firefighters is being referred to a board of inquiry appointed by the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission.

Commission officials haven’t appointed the lawyer who’ll act as the inquiry board, but the city is going to eventually have to defend itself against bigotry allegations.

"We received a letter this week notifying us that this complaint will proceed to a board of inquiry and we will be prepared to address the matters of fact before the adjudicators at that time," said Roy Hollett, deputy chief director with the Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Service.

African-Nova Scotian firefighters have for years alleged the fire service treated them differently from other firefighters. In 2008, members of the black firefighters’ group complained to the human rights commission.

Other black employees with Halifax Regional Municipality, including police officers and a building inspector, have also alleged they’ve been victimized by racism at work.

The inquiry board will decide after the hearing if there was discrimination in the workplace. The dispute is to be heard in the Halifax region.

"Complainants and respondents are cross-examined and the process is open to the public. A hearing can last many days," the commission’s website says.

The chief judge of the provincial court is to nominate a candidate to act as the inquiry board. That nomination has to be approved by the province’s human rights commissioners.

One of the firefighters alleging racism is involved in more than one dispute with his employer. Blair Cromwell, who has alleged municipal managers have been discriminating against him and harassing him and who is embroiled in a defamation lawsuit with the city’s fire chief, was sacked in August 2010.

He was fired for alleged insubordination and allegedly being insolent, among other things. Cromwell’s union is trying to get his job back; the matter is currently in arbitration.

Documents filed with the human rights commission more than three years ago name nine black firefighters as complainants, as well as the Halifax Association of Black Firefighters and Local 268 of the International Association of Firefighters.

The complaint, a copy of which The Chronicle Herald has obtained, alleges the Halifax fire department failed to respond adequately to black firefighters’ concerns for a year after being provided in 2007 with a report called The Struggle for Acceptance, which outlined several alleged instances of racism dating back five years.

Hollet said the municipality "prides itself on our inclusive and respectful" workplaces.

"When our employees feel this has not been their experience in the workplace, they have internal and external avenues to address their complaints," he said in an email message. "We respect the role of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission in providing an opportunity for employees and employer to present their case."

Fire Chief Bill Mosher told The Chronicle Herald in 2009 the firefighters’ complaint did not paint an accurate picture of the department.

"We had met with them and came up with an action plan," Mosher said of the black firefighters. "But a couple on the group weren’t happy with the progress we were making, so they decided to take their complaint to the rights commission."

Some African-Nova Scotian firefighters reported to the commission that they’ve faced harassment from managers at work for filing the complaint, a firefighter has said.

Cromwell declined comment Friday.

In 2008, details of a $50,000 settlement between the municipality and a female employee — a former senior manager — were approved by regional council during a closed-door meeting. They show the city was ordered to hold a gender discrimination workshop for staffers and that compliance with the agreement was to be monitored by the human rights commission.

( mlightstone@herald.ca)


(2011-10-8/TheChronicleHerald)