“I respectfully submit my resignation. When I received this signal I was full of pride,” Megan Wright said during a meeting Monday, which was broadcast online. “Now when I look at it, it’s just a symbol of my trauma and an unsafe workplace,” she said before leaving her mark on the boardroom and leaving. Leduc Fire Services is facing a lawsuit filed by two other former female employees, who claim to have been discriminated against and abused at work. Wright served for nearly a decade as a paramedic and firefighter. He claims that he made many attempts to express concerns about harassment and abuse, but was not taken seriously. “What is your character? Are you lying? Are you making it up? Are you trying to move on?” She said as she described how her claims were accepted. “Physical, sexual, bullying, mental abuse, (they) basically told us that we are the ones with the problem.”
“IT’S REALLY SAD. IT’S A SHOCK “: MAYOR
The lawsuit, which has not been proven in court, argues that the abuse was systemic. “The fire brigade has created a system and culture where the abuse of women firefighters was systemic, common and tolerable,” the statement said. Attorney Robert Martz is awaiting the judge’s approval to certify the case as a class action. He did not give an exact number of how many victims he claims exist, but believes there are more than two. “They hope to bring these problems to light and ensure that it does not happen to any other woman again,” he told his clients. Leduc fire chief George Clancy resigned last month. The city director described it as a “personal decision”. “We have accepted the resignation of the leader, you should contact him to find out the reasons,” said Mayor Bob Young. At the meeting, the mayor described Wright’s allegations as “worrying” and explained that he was limited in what he could say because of the lawsuit. Young added that the city is “committed to providing a safe and respectful work environment”. He said Leduc has taken disciplinary action and is committed to an external review of the department’s culture. “It’s really sad. It’s shocking. This is something our council is committed to here, we’re going to do a top-down investigation,” Yang said. CTV News Edmonton contacted Clancy to comment on the story. With archives from Chelan Skulski of CTV News Edmonton and the Canadian Press
