Police commission ordering audit of Calgary police workplace culture

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The Calgary Police Service’s office tradition might be topic to a third-party audit following public complaints from a former director of human sources, the Calgary police fee stated Wednesday.

The audit follows a lawsuit filed by CPS towards the previous worker. The service is looking for everlasting injunction barring Angela Whitney “from making any additional inappropriate posts or interviews in breach of the settlement,” claiming latest posts had been in violation of a resignation settlement.

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Police fee chair Shawn Cornett stated she and the fee haven’t seen the change at CPS’ office tradition it’s been looking for in recent times regardless of progress that’s been revamped the previous decade or extra.

“The latest public allegations made by a former worker … raised critical issues,” Cornett stated. “Our fee has been discussing this subject extensively over the previous months and we acknowledge it’s time for a extra fulsome analysis of whether or not the actions taken to this point are creating the specified change.”

The audit will decide tradition points on the police service which can be ongoing and what modifications will be carried out.

CPS lawsuit looking for order that each one feedback be faraway from social media and media protection

Whitney, who was director of human sources at CPS from 2019 to 2021, has posted on social media that she endured and witnessed ongoing harassment, amongst different complaints, throughout her time at CPS.

The lawsuit seeks a everlasting injunction barring Whitney from making additional posts or interviews, which CPS says is a breach of the resignation settlement.

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The police drive, by the workplace of the chief as its authorized consultant, can be looking for an order that each one feedback by Whitney that breached the settlement “be faraway from all social media platforms and media protection.”

CPS is just not looking for financial reward within the lawsuit.

Its assertion of declare filed final week alleges Whitney — who resigned from her place on June 15, 2021, and was given a severance cost in extra of $60,000 — started posting on social media final month data that breached the settlement.

“Given the delicate nature of the knowledge that Ms. Whitney had entry to concerning the staff of the CPS on account of her position as director of HR, the settlement included commonplace confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses,” it says.

These clauses included Whitney agreeing “that she has taken and can sooner or later proceed to take all acceptable precautions to safeguard such confidential and proprietary data,” it states.

She additionally pledged “to not make any public assertion, together with by means of social media or another type of media assertion, which can slander, defame or disparage the fame or operations of the CPS, or any of its administrators, officers or staff, until required by regulation.”

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“On or about Feb. 8, 2024, practically three years after the execution of the settlement, and in breach of the settlement and her common-law duties, Ms. Whitney started constantly posting on social media platforms together with X (previously referred to as Twitter) and LinkedIn, quite a few inappropriate posts concerning the CPS,” the declare says.

Among the many breaches of the settlement, the lawsuit claims, was Whitney posting “an open letter to Calgarians outlining alleged experiences on the CPS, together with being bullied, focused, threatened and discriminated towards.”

Whitney additionally “posted a letter to Calgarians detailing an incident through which she alleges {that a} intercourse toy was thrown in somebody’s face throughout a gathering, and the making certain HR investigation and its consequence.”

Together with the posts, Whitney was additionally quoted in a information media report through which she “stated she acquired complaints from LGBTQ2S+ officers who felt discriminated towards whereas within the office,” amongst different feedback, the declare states.

It says these feedback breach her settlement and “reveal and threaten to disclose confidential data regarding HR issues throughout the CPS.”

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An announcement of defence in reply to the unproven allegations within the CPS declare has not been filed.

Whitney, police chief argue one another’s actions can have ‘chilling impact’ on accountability

Presenting Wednesday to the police fee, Whitney requested intervention from Alberta’s minister of public security.

“Full transparency is in Calgarians’ greatest curiosity as our tax {dollars} are being wasted tremendously by permitting this dysfunction to fester,” she stated.

Talking to media, Calgary police Chief Mark Neufeld acknowledged that the drive stays male-dominated, including policing’s high-stress surroundings is “ripe for conflicts.”

Whitney’s social media feedback might create a “chilling impact” on present and former staff’ confidence that confidential data from their time with CPS will develop into public sooner or later, Neufeld stated.

“We’d like individuals who aren’t staff to have the ability to believe within the processes we’ve contained in the service — that if they arrive ahead with points, these points are usually not going to finish up on somebody’s social media web page, and that’s what’s occurred right here,” Neufeld stated.

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In her presentation, Whitney stated she believes the CPS lawsuit might create a chilling impact by sending the message that “in the event that they elevate their issues or report their abuse, they could face extreme private repercussions.”

Whitney has not filed a proper grievance with the fee regardless of inviting her to take action, Cornett stated.

The fee had been mulling a evaluate of CPS’ office tradition and its work round fairness and inclusion earlier than Whitney’s complaints, Cornett stated, however the former worker’s feedback “helped add to that dialog we had been having.”

The fee has not publicly named the auditor. Cornett stated additional particulars on the evaluate might be launched “within the close to future.”

KMartin@postmedia.com
X: @KMartinCourts

mscace@postmedia.com
X: @mattscace67

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