Arbitrator: Nunavik school board defamed teacher who talked to reporters

The Kativik School Board made defamatory comments about a teacher who went public about violence at Iguarsivik School in Puvirnituq, an arbitrator has determined. (FILE PHOTO)

An arbitrator has awarded a former Nunavik teacher $15,000 for defamatory comments made about him by his employer, the Kativik School Board, after he talked to news organizations about violence in the region’s school.

According to information about the judgment, obtained by Nunatsiaq News, the complainant taught at a Nunavik school where he was “brutally assaulted by two students.”

He then went to the media to denounce the lack of support and resources available to staff to cope with violence at the school.

Le Journal de Montreal, and other news organizations (including Nunatsiaq News), ran stories reporting his comments, responses provided by the school board and comments from union officials.

The KSB, in public comments, alleged the teacher had a bad attitude, was unable to manage his class, had difficulty adapting to the northern environment, and showed lack of respect and professionalism.

The KSB also said the teacher failed to use internal processes and did not request assistance.

A complaint was then filed on behalf of the teacher, claiming damages under Article 49 of the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms for injury to his dignity and reputation.

Arbitrator Maureen Flynn upheld the complaint. She concluded that the teacher’s statements about acts of violence in school, corroborated by several of his colleagues, were true.

The arbitrator found that teachers had complained in vain about the situation and that, under the circumstances, filing a grievance with the union wouldn’t have changed anything.

The arbitrator found that certain statements provided by the school board violated the dignity of the teacher as well as his reputation.

Stories published in the media indicate that “the school board held the complainant responsible for the situation he had complained about,” the arbitrator said.

The arbitrator determined that “many of the assertions of the school board were false and they constitute defamation. These statements have undermined the dignity of the complainant.”

An allegation by the KSB that the teacher was violent “is not only false but directly affects his teaching reputation.”

“Evidence showed that [the complainant] was affected by attacks by the KSB when it was his employer,” the arbitrator said

“I believe that the sum of $ 15,000 is reasonable in the circumstances.”

The judgment refers to an incidents that occurred in Puvirnituq in April 2010, when after getting punched in the stomach by two students, Iguarsivik teacher Pierre-Luc Bélisle was then surprised to see the students back in school two days later.

Bélisle, who had already filed a police report on the incident, went to a doctor who put him on a two-week leave.

Bélisle then contacted his union, the Northern Quebec Teaching Association, as well as newspaper reporters, in a last-ditch attempt to improve conditions in the school.

At the time, the KSB blamed teachers for the violence.

The problems at the 260-student school in Puvirnituq developed because some teachers tried to “take matters into their own hands” and tried to make their students “perfect,” the school board claimed.

This is what happened, the KSB stated, pointing to Bélisle, and the group of mostly first-year teachers, about 13 of the 34-member staff, who disagreed with how the school administration handled violence.

“They were very authoritarian; it was common for many of their students to be sent to the principal’s office on a daily basis. The administrators patiently explained that each case is dealt with individually, with the punishment taking into account the student’s home life, recent traumatic experiences, and the effect of a suspension on a student’s drop-out risk.

“This new group refused to listen to seasoned advice, and ganged up not only on the principal, but on the rest of the teachers who didn’t agree with them.”

The KSB claimed these rookie teachers didn’t ask for help: “the new teachers were described by their colleagues as unprofessional and disrespectful. There was no middle ground. It was their way, period. They said that 90 per cent of the problems were caused by poor class management,” the school board’s statement.

The KSB alleged these teachers would punish a student who came to class tired.

Many of those remarks by the KSB were found to be untrue and defamatory in the arbitrator’s decision.

Earlier this year the KSB issued a retraction about a commentary they made slamming a research paper by Nunavik lawyer Joey Flowers.

The retraction admitted that the KSB published remarks about Flowers that could be perceived as defamatory.