Bethany Paquette won't back down on human rights complaint against Amaruk Wilderness, lawyer says
Company hit headlines this week after CBC News reported on Trinity Western grad's job rejection
The lawyer representing a Trinity Western University graduate says she will proceed with her human rights complaint against Amaruk Wilderness, despite questions over the company's existence.
The company hit headlines this week after CBC News reported on the case of Bethany Paquette, who claims her application to work for the company was rejected — in a series of offensive emails — because she's Christian.
Responding to that story with a statement, Amaruk Wilderness rejected that claim, saying the Trinity Western grad was eminently unqualified for the position for which she applied.
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However, since Paquette's complaint was reported, CBC News has heard from other women who received bizarre and inappropriate responses to their job applications to the wilderness company.
And efforts to reach the company's CEO Christopher Fragassi-Bjornsen have left CBC News questioning whether the business and its jobs even exist.
On Friday, Paquette's lawyer Geoffrey Trotter issued a news release responding to the latest CBC report on Amaruk Wilderness, saying the revelations will have no impact on her decision to go forward with her human rights complaint.
"Bethany is a hero for standing up to Amaruk. By taking a stand against the discrimination she encountered and by going public with her human rights complaint, Bethany has emboldened others to come forward," Trotter writes.
He goes on to say that Amaruk Wilderness Corp. is legally registered in British Columbia and Christopher Fragassi is listed on that corporate registration.
"Neither he nor the company have denied sending the e-mails to Bethany, which were published by the CBC on Tuesday," Trotter writes.
He expressed his view that "whether or not some of the emails were sent under pseudonyms, or whether or not Mr. Fragassi has exaggerated the size or capabilities of his company, both the company and Mr. Fragassi himself will need to answer to the Human Rights Tribunal."
CBC News has sent questions to several Amaruk email addresses about the latest allegations made against the company. Calls to several listed numbers reached no one. Their lawyer says these are simply allegations. The company has not made any comment.