A former assistant fire chief has filed a complaint with the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal, alleging Prince George Fire Rescue discriminated against him because of his age.
According to a BCHRT reasons for decision issued this week over whether to defer the matter, Elden Gjerde's performance as the incident commander during a May 2015 fire came under review.
Told by his union representative that if he retired, the investigation would go away, Gjerde chose not to because he did not think he did anything wrong. He was subsequently fired from the job.
Gjerde claims he was intimidated and bullied into considering retirement and was told that if he took the step, "this all goes away," which he submitted is the very essence of discrimination.
He also claims that PGFR fire chief John Iverson told his union rep that if he did not retire, "they would come down hard on me" and, in addition to the verbal threats, he was denied his accumulated sick time pay out.
Gjerde is seeking to get his job back and to receive compensation for lost wages and the impact on his reputation.
"I want to be made whole, resume my career and retire when I choose," Gjerde also said according to the reasons for decision. "I want this discrimination to come to a halt and older members to not feel at risk."
In the decision, BCHRT member Catherine McCreary complied with PGFR's request to defer a hearing until the grievance process has been completed.
Gjerde had contended the matter should not be deferred because the process will not address his human rights complaint.
But McCreary noted a hearing by the BCHRT has not been scheduled and likely would not occur for another six months to a year, while an arbitration is scheduled for September.
Gjerde's complaint was deferred to March 31, 2017 or earlier if the arbitrator renders a decision before that date. The parties were directed to contact the BCHRT after that date to determine next steps.
