Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Systemic Discrimination Against Black Federal Workers

A $900 million class action lawsuit alleges Black federal public service employees in Canada have been uniquely affected by systemic discrimination.

The systemic discrimination class action lawsuit has not been certified. The statement of claim reportedly lists more than 50 departments and agencies.

Class Action Lawsuit May Include Thousands of Black Federal Workers 

According to the systemic discrimination class action lawsuit, Canada’s efforts to combat racism and inequality have effectively hidden the marginalization of Black Canadians and deprived them of equal access to opportunities.

The proposed class action lawsuit was filed by 12 plaintiffs on behalf of Black federal public service employees who faced systemic discrimination related to hiring and promotions since 1970. That was the year that Canada ratified the United Nations international convention on the elimination of racial discrimination.

Around 30,000 Black civil servants have allegedly been deprived of “opportunities and benefits afforded to others based on their race” since the 1970s.

The plaintiffs allege that the Employment Equity Act sought to prevent discrimination but in reality there has allegedly been “a de facto practice of Black employee exclusion throughout the public service because of the permeation of systemic discrimination through Canada’s institutional structure.”

Class Action: Canada’s Laws Fail to Adequately Address Racism Against Black Workers

According to the systemic discrimination class action lawsuit, the Employment Equity Act does not address the systemic racism that Black employees experience compared to other disadvantaged groups.

Toronto lawyer Courtney Betty reportedly said in a statement that Black Canadians are vastly underrepresented in the top public service positions.

“This systemic practice of Black employee exclusion has for decades turned the dreams of many Black employees into a lifetime of pain and suffering,” Betty said.

“Our exclusion at the top levels of the public service, in my view, has really disenfranchised Canada from that talent and that ability and the culture that Black workers bring to the table and that different perspective,” plaintiff Nicholas Marcus Thompson told CBC News.

Thompson says he was hired by the Canada Revenue Agency about six years ago, but soon learned that the experience at the agency was not as he expected.

“When I became a Canadian citizen many years ago, I remember the citizenship judge saying that Canada is a place where freedom abounds and opportunities are endless,” Thompson told CBC News. “But When I joined the CRA, that was my expectation that I could join, start at any position and climb the ranks.”

“I quickly realized that the agency was not, you know, as I thought it would be: all inclusive and diverse.”

Thompson says the work environment was toxic and that his doctor recommended a workplace accommodation to help him with the illness he allegedly developed as a result. Thompson said his employer told him to clean closets because no other work was available.

Plaintiff Alain Babineau says he worked in narcotics investigations for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for about 10 years. He also reportedly served as part of the security detail for three prime ministers.

Babineau says he first applied to the RCMP in 1981 and was asked by the recruiting officer how he would handle being called a notoriously racist word. He did not get the job at that time, but reapplied for a position with the RCMP in 1984. He was rejected from that job as well, and he subsequently learned that he had been allegedly “racially profiled” as a drug dealer in his hometown.

“He put that in my file because he could,” Babineau told OttawaCitizen.com. “He characterized me as something I was not.”

Babineau filed a complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission. In 1988, he was hired by the Ontario Provincial Police and was later employed by the RCMP.

He says he continued to face barriers while he was employed.

“We get to the academy and it’s automatically assumed that the only reason we’re here is because we’re Black,” Babineau reportedly said. “And it follows you throughout your career.”

“Is it still going on? One hundred per cent it is, but it’s more insidious.”

Class Action Lawsuit Seeks Improved Policies, Compensation Fund

The systemic discrimination class action lawsuit asks the federal government to adopt a policy that ensures the number of Black employees is representative of the percentage of Black people in the general population and that they are represented at all levels of employment.

In addition, the systemic discrimination class action lawsuit wants the government to establish a compensation fund for the psychological pain and suffering and financial losses suffered by Black employees over the years.

“Systemic racism and discrimination is a painful lived reality for Black Canadians, racialized Canadians and Indigenous people,” Bianca Healy, a spokesperson for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, said in a statement.

“The government has taken steps to address anti-Black racism, systemic discrimination and injustice across the country.”

This isn’t the first systemic racism class action lawsuit to be filed this year in Canada. A systemic racism class action lawsuit was filed against RCMP for allegedly discriminating against Indigenous people. 

Educators organised a two-day strike earlier this year to call for an end to systemic racism against Black and Indigenous populations. 

Have you or someone you know experienced discrimination as a federal public service employee? Tell us your story in the comments section below.

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