By Sheryl Smolkin
The Star
OTTAWA — A gay, former Ottawa prison guard has been awarded $98,000 in damages for harassment related to his sexual orientation.
The July decision by the Grievance Settlement Board, which handles complaints from Ontario public servants, is the largest amount ever awarded for a breach of the Ontario Human Rights Code and breaking a collective agreement.
The Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services was ordered to pay Robert Ranger $45,000 for the rights code violation and another $53,000 because it took several years to find him a new job. The decision ends a decade-long odyssey for redress by Ranger.
“The harassment and discrimination that created a poisoned workplace at the Ottawa-Carlton Detention (Centre) was vile,” board vice-chair Deborah Leighton wrote in her decision. Ranger started working at the Ottawa jail in 1998; in December 2002, he filed a complaint with the board seeking $3.5 million in damages.
He claimed his employer did not prevent fellow employees and managers from discriminating against him, thereby creating a homophobic and poisoned work environment. As a result, Ranger became depressed and suicidal. He went on disability for three years, from February 2002 to March 2005. The hearing into the matter took 66 hearing days over 4.5 years.
Full story: Gay prison guard gets $98,000 for discrimination