Firefighters union hires legal firm to deal with aftermath of racism allegations

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This article was published 28/03/2021 (1369 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The president of the local firefighters’ union says he has hired a law firm in connection with accusations of racism on a critical care call in the North End last fall.

United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg President Alex Forrest announced the move in a memo to his members Monday.

He claimed the firefighters accused of misconduct on the call had been the subject of “false allegations of racism” and have now been “publicly vindicated.”

“As such, we have retained a legal team from Fillmore Riley specializing in defamation, abuse of process and malicious prosecution,” Forrest wrote.

“We understand how this issue has impacted the whole Winnipeg Fire Department and as such we have made this one of our highest priorities at this time.”

The controversy began last October when an ambulance-based paramedic with the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service alleged some of his firefighter colleagues had failed to provide proper medical care to a seriously injured Indigenous woman.

When the allegation was raised to WFPS Chief John Lane and reported in the media, the City of Winnipeg hired a third-party consultant to review the matter.

The independent investigator ruled that implicit — or unconscious — racial bias, as well as racial animus, had factored into the conduct of firefighters on the call.

After temporarily being placed on administrative leave, the firefighters in question returned to work.

The city has declined to release details on what disciplinary actions were taken against any of the members involved in the controversy, citing privacy concerns.

— Staff