14 may 2004

Guild argues to keep CBC included
in whistleblowing legislation

Canadian Media Guild | TNG Canada Local 30213

The Canadian Media Guild has recommended that CBC be included in proposed federal legislation designed to encourage employees who work for Crown corporations to be able to blow the whistle on wrongdoing, despite an attempt by the CBC to be excluded.

Lise Lareau, president of the CMG, appeared Thursday before a Parliamentary committee studying Bill C-25, commonly referred to as the whistleblowing legislation. (Click here to download the PDF file of the Guild's brief: http://www.cmg.ca/briefbillc25EN.pdf)

The Guild argues that the CBC as an institution should be covered by the Bill, and is proposing an amendment separating out the journalistic, creative and programming functions of the CBC.

The amendment was designed to address concerns raised by CBC president Robert Rabinovitch and others who say the Bill sets a dangerous precedent for CBC's journalistic operations because the Bill refers to its employees as "public servants".

The Guild has long argued that the CBC needs a more open and accountable management culture. "We believe the CBC needs to be subject to whistleblowing legislation, partly for its own good. Employees should not be denied the right to speak out about wrongdoing," says Lareau.

At the hearing, Rabinovitch said the CBC would be prepared to draft its own internal whistleblowing mechanisms. Lareau responded by saying that the Guild is concerned the Corporation would end up with an inferior process than that debated and instituted by Parliament. In response to a question by the Liberal chair of the committee, Paul Szabo, Lareau said: "In some ways, it's counter-intuitive for any senior manager or board anywhere to write their own whistleblowing policy."

The CMG also supported proposals to strengthen the Bill brought forward by a group of media lawyers called Ad Idem.

The CMG was appearing with Daniel Raunet, the president of the Syndicat des communications de Radio-Canada (SCRC), two representatives of the Fédération nationale des communications and an association representing RCMP employees.

Bill C-25 will die on the order paper when the federal election is called, which is widely expected to happen in the next two weeks. However, Szabo said it will probably be re-drafted and re-introduced in the fall.

(This story first appeared on the Canadian Media Guild web site.)