Ottawa, ON — The following is a statement from Brian Sauvé, President of the National Police Federation, regarding Honourable Michel Bastarache’s final report released today on the Merlo Davidson settlement:

“We welcome the end of this legal chapter for the survivors, whose claims have now been settled, and we hope they find some healing and closure. The report contains details of unacceptable and unbearable actions and attitudes, and those responsible should be held accountable. We fully condemn this type of conduct and any type of sexual violence, harassment, or discrimination.

While the world has changed and evolved since this action was settled in 2016, there is still much work to do to achieve equality and respect for everyone. Regrettably, workplace harassment is an issue that permeates across too many sectors and organizations, no matter their size, their composition, or their location.

Employees in all organizations deserve a safe and inclusive workplace that enables people of all genders, races, backgrounds, and abilities to feel respected and empowered to succeed in their careers. And they deserve to feel confident that their organization will take all the steps necessary to establish an inclusive culture, make expectations clear, provide appropriate training and create an open, respectful, and fair environment and process to thoroughly review and address inevitable complaints.

The RCMP is taking positive proactive steps to address these issues, and we support this modernization. All forms of harassment and discrimination are issues that we are committed to address through our current collective bargaining process and other measures, as part of our mandate to provide strong, fair and progressive representation and enhanced rights to all front-line Members.”

About the National Police Federation:

The National Police Federation (NPF) was certified to represent ~20,000 front-line RCMP members serving across Canada and internationally in the summer of 2019. The NPF is the largest police labour relations organization in Canada, the second largest in North America and is the first independent national association to represent RCMP members. The NPF is focused on improving public safety in Canada by negotiating the first-ever Collective Agreement for front-line RCMP officers, and on increasing resources, equipment, training and supports for our members who have been under-funded for far too long. Better resourcing and support for the RCMP will enhance community safety and livability in the communities we serve, large and small, across Canada.

For more information: https://npf-fpn.com/.

Media contact:
Fabrice de Dongo
Manager, Media Relations
National Police Federation
fdedongo@npf-fpn.com
T:  647-274-7118