No English or Spanish, even during breaks, ex-manager of Laval housing authority says workers were told
Walter Romeo Rivera Tamacas plans to file human rights complaint over treatment
A former manager at Laval's housing authority is pursuing legal action after he says he was forbidden from speaking Spanish and English in personal conversations with colleagues, even on breaks.
Walter Romeo Rivera Tamacas is planning to file a complaint to the Quebec Human Rights Commission against the municipal agency, citing discrimination based on ethnic background and language.
At a news conference Tuesday, Tamacas described a work environment at the Laval Municipal Housing Authority (LMHA) that became toxic in 2016 after new management put in place what he called "discriminatory" practices.
Spanish- and English-speaking employees were told that languages apart from French would not be tolerated during working hours, apart from lunch, Rivera Tamacas said.
'An evil request': former LMHA employee
"It was hurtful," Rivera Tamacas said at a news conference alongside Fo Niemi, the executive director of the Centre on Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR), which is assisting Tamacas with the file.
"When somebody's telling you, 'Romeo, from now on, you're not allowed to express part of your identity — we're just going to pretend you're not Hispanic — I find that an evil request."
He said other employees in the office would make comments mocking him and his Spanish- and English-speaking colleagues' use of their languages.
The workers were told Spanish was only for "vacations down South," and that, "in Quebec, we work in French," according to a statement issued by CRARR.
Rivera Tamacas left his job in May 2016.
'Keep it French as much as possible': housing authority
The director of the housing authority, Isabelle Pépin, told CBC News that there is no French-only directive in place, but that people are asked to switch to French when discussing work issues.
"There was no rules about personal conversations. We just asked to keep it French as much as possible, just to help everybody to understand," Pépin said.
She added that after asking people in the workplace about the issue today, no one reported a problem. People from many different countries of origin work at the housing authority, Pépin said.
In the coming weeks, she said meetings will be held to make sure language is not an issue.
"We're going to ... make sure that we understand the reality of the people, and if we did something wrong, we'll work on it."
With files from Elias Abboud