JULIE PAYETTE AND HER FUTURE

THE GLOBE AND MAIL - JANUARY 21 -2021

An independent review of Rideau Hall harassment will challenge Governor-General Julie Payette’s tenure, sources say An independent review of workplace harassment allegations made by former and current staff at Rideau Hall has been completed, with confidential sources who have been briefed on the review saying it paints a very negative picture of the work environment in the Governor-General’s office since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tapped former astronaut Julie Payette for the vice-regal role in 2017. 

Multiple sources say it may make it difficult for Ms. Payette to remain in the job amid growing signs the Prime Minister has lost patience with her after accepting the report, which outlines allegations of bullying.  

The Globe and Mail is not identifying the sources because they were not authorized to speak about the matter publicly. 

Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic Leblanc has been tasked with stickhandling the report. 

If Ms. Payette is unwilling to resign or refuses to leave when asked, Mr. Trudeau could call on the Queen and request that the Governor-General be dismissed, although experts say that would be a last resort. 

 

The federal government hired an Ottawa-based private company inùffice of the Secretary to the Governor-General (OSGG). 

 “Both current and former employees of the OSGG will be invited by the firm to voluntarily and confidentially share their perspectives,” the Privy Council Office (PCO) said at the time. 

Sources said the firm interviewed between 80 and 150 people. 

 

The independent investigation also spoke to former and current employees about the behaviour of the secretary to the Governor-General, Assunta Di Lorenzo, who is a long-time friend of Ms. Payette. Ms. Di Lorenzo has hired a lawyer to deal with the PCO, sources said. 

The review was first commissioned in July after CBC News cited sources saying Ms. Payette had created a toxic environment at Rideau Hall by verbally harassing employees to the point where some had been reduced to tears or left the office altogether. 

 

CBC and Postmedia have also reported that hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent on designs and renovations at Rideau Hall, some allegedly to ensure Ms. Payette’s personal privacy and accessibility. 

 In 2018, The Globe reported that Ms. Payette was frequently at odds with the RCMP over security issues, such as going for a jog by herself without informing her security detail. 

Sources said the confidential report has been delivered to the PCO, which oversees the federal bureaucracy and reports directly to the Prime Minister, and some of the findings are expected to be released as early as this week. 

 

On July 23, Ms. Payette said in a statement that she takes “harassment and workplace issues very seriously” and “welcomed the independent review.” 

 

The PCO said in September that the independent reviewer would inform participants of the contents of the report, including a description of the nature of the incidents and whether they meet the legal definition of harassment. The PCO said the report would also include recommendations on next steps. 

Employees of the Governor-General’s office are part of the core public service and as such are covered by federal anti-harassment rules. 

 

New regulations for federal workers came into force on Jan. 1. They include provisions such as employer obligations to take corrective measures based on the results of an investigation. The legislation, passed in 2018, defines harassment as “any action, conduct or comment, including of a sexual nature, that can reasonably be expected to cause offence, humiliation or other physical or psychological injury or illness to an employee, including any prescribed action, conduct or comment.” 

The 2019 Public Service Employee Survey, which measures federal workers’ attitudes about their jobs, suggested that 22 per cent of the Governor-General’s employees said they were the victims of harassment on the job – one of the highest rates of on-the-job harassment of any federal agency or department – with most of those instances coming from someone with authority over them.

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