'The most fundamental requirement of even an informal investigation had been ignored'
Canada’s Federal Senate has been ordered to reinstate a human resources director fired without cause in 2015, who claimed he was let go as retaliation for speaking up about racial discrimination.
Darshan Singh was the first person of colour (POC) to be hired onto the Senate’s executive team of public servants. He served for two years as the Senate’s HR director, but was “sidelined” during a reshuffling of upper management, according to the Canadian Press (CP).
Singh’s lawyer, Paul Champ, said that although Singh feels “vindicated” by the decision, he is not interested in returning to the Senate for the HR director role.
"It was quite a burden on him and his family to deal with this issue for so many years. But as a human resources professional, he thought it was important to follow through," Champ said. "Our client is hopeful that the Senate is going to, in future, try to be a model employer."
Singh said that a supervisor was undermining him due to racial prejudice, and that the probe into the matter at the time was insufficient.
The informal probe conducted by Quebec Conservative senator Leo Housakos – also the Speaker of the upper chamber at the time – found that Singh’s claims of racial discrimination had no merit. However, it was found that the probe didn’t include speaking with any POC. Most notably, Singh himself was not included.
Last fall the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board tribunal was ordered to revisit Singh’s case by the Federal Court, which stated "the most fundamental requirement of even an informal investigation had been ignored" in the probe. Another tribunal in 2021 had been dismissed by an adjudicator.
During the second tribunal, Singh requested the disclosure of two emails sent to him prior to his firing by senator David Wells and then-senator George Furey. However, lawyers prevented the disclosure on the basis of parliamentary privilege, which is meant to maintain parliamentarian independence from executive and judicial branches of government, CP reported.
The senate was set to vote on the disclosure of the emails, but before that could happen lawyers reached a confidential agreement which the Tribunal approved on December 28, 2024.
Choosing not to accept the reinstatement, Singh will continue to work at the Canadian Coast Guard, where he has been working during the eight years since he was terminated.
