CFN – With news of Cornwall Ontario Deputy Fire Chief Rob Hickley suing the City of Cornwall Ontario over Mayor Bob Kilger’s alleged Conflict of Interest we contacted Diane Shay, the other Whistle Blower recently in the news over her case against the city of Cornwall.
Ms Shay answered some questions for CFN Viewers:
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Why put yourself through the ordeal of being a whistle blower?
It was a moral, ethical and legal responsibility of the City and me as a nurse to protect the residents and the City by following the Ministry of Health & Long Term Care legislation to report abuse.
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If you had to do this all over again would you?
Yes, because the alternative was to become complicit which I could never be a part of.
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How has this ordeal impacted your life?
I have suffered from both physical and emotional issues as a result of the ongoing stress related to dealing with this and I am now on Long Term Disability which has greatly reduced my income.
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Has it impacted your family and if so how?
Yes, as a result of my medical condition affecting my quality of life has placed additional stress on my family (husband, children, sister etc.) who have been very supportive in some of the darkest hours of my life.
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Do you think you can ever work for the City of Cornwall again?
This will depend on my physician’s evaluation. Should I be deemed capable of returning to work I fully intend to return.
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Why do you think some of the city Managers you dealt with were so brutal with you?
I can only provide my motives for my actions; you will have to ask them what their motives were for the illegal retaliations against me they participated in.
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What has been the most surprising thing so far of your ordeal?
To be honest if this had not happen to me I would have difficulty believing that in this day and age such behaviour could be inflicted on anyone by people with so much power. The most surprising is that in 2013 I am still dealing with this issue and that the Whistle Blower Policy remains the same as in 2008 with no previsions to protect workers from issues involving the CAO.
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How has the public been toward you? Supportive?
They have provided a tremendous amount of support and I am very thankful for that.
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Was there moment that you felt if one person at City Hall had stepped forward all of this would have been resolved?
Not in June of 2008 since the highest ranking individuals at City Hall, the CAO and Manager of Human Resources who were later charged with retaliation against me there was nothing anyone else could have done. In early 2009 my position was eliminated while I was on Long Term Disability which involved the City’s legal counsel, (John Saunders of Hicks Morley) and through my statement of claim he would have been aware of the facts provided in a series of emails. Once charged by the Ministry of Health & Long Care if Mr. Saunders had given council advice based on the facts I believe they would have plead guilty and saved the tax payers all the additional legal fees incurred to prepare for a trial especially since at the eleventh hour they changed their plea to guilty and paid a fine.
I thank God for the Registered Association of Ontario who assisted me with not only my legal fees but their unquestioning support and without them and my legal counsel (Fay Brunning of
Sack Goldblatt Mitchell) I would not have been able to continue.
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In your opinion what does the City have to do to make sure there are no more “Diane Shay’s”?
I would like to see:
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The City creates a bylaw with a code of conduct for council and staff with ongoing training.
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An Amendment to the Whistle Blower policy to protect all employee should the CAO be involved in retaliation behaviour,
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Bylaws with precise protocol like Toronto’s a bylaw for an integrity Commissioner under the Municipal Act which will allow the City to recover legal fees and investigation cost form anyone who is found to have violated the law and provide for reasonable fees for the Whistle Blower.
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We know of Mr. O’Shaughnessy’s public apology to you. Have any other councillors ever reached out to you in a similar fashion?
About four months just before Christmas I ran into Glen Grant at Cornwall square and he told me that council was very supportive of me and that they were upset that they had not been giving all the information when they were making decisions.
As well, Mark McDonald who was a councillor at the time of the incident in 2008 attended the Court dates in 2011 and was very supportive as well.
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Would you feel comfortable having a relative reside at the Lodge?
The employees of Glen Stor Dun Lodge are wonderful people who provide excellent care and are caring to the residents in their charge. I would not be fair to apply the 2008 incident to the Lodge as whole.
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What would make you happy at the end of the day when your situation is all over?
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I would like to see the suggestions I have expressed in question 10 be enacted to ensure this situation never happens again.
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My legal fees paid to date.
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My health improves allowing me to return to work.
Take Care,
Diane Shay
CFN will be updating the Whistle Blowing cases as more information comes to light. It just shows a consistent malignant bullying that has gone on at City Hall and that the bullying did not end just as the door of former CAO Paul Fitzpatrick, but at the Mayor himself and council cannot be let off the hook for condoning and covering up the scandals that have led to the loss of employment of several city managers and literally millions of dollars in legal bills and settlements that have caused taxes to consistently go up nearly 3% or more per year recently.
Where will this end? You can post your comments below.
What bravado this fine, dedicated lady must have had deep in her character of integrity and conscientiousness.
All Cornwall citizens aught to be proud of Diane for having the courage of her convictions enough to stand tall against such great odds.
It reminds me so much of the movie scenario of Walking Tall when the new sheriff had to teach the administration, former mayor and a gaming house, all full of corruption, hat the rules
aught to be. Time and again he had to muster his courage to set things right.
Keep up the fight Diane. Your health and peace of mind is worth everything to your family and friends, far more than any amount of money.
Diane….congratulations for standing up to what you believe in. You paid a heavy price but by the same token, you will be setting a precedent for future employees which in trun will make a better working environment for you and your colleagues. You need to be commended for this.
Your reponse to #5 re: returning to work for the city speaks volumes about your character. Usually after this type of situation, returning to the same employer takes courage. I guess it would be safe to say you are a courageous person. Hopefully when you return to work, your 5 concerns will be resolved.
Diane good-luck to you. I sincerely hope that all turns out in your favor and that soon you can get back to what you love doing….taking care of the elderly.
Thank You Ms Shay for enlightening us on this discussion. It is people like you that make a difference in our communities and make them better places to live.
I wish you well in the future and hope that your health returns so you can return to the work that you enjoy.
To the legal establishment, this cruel BS is their bread and butter.
This is not the first time these legal beagles and firms have squared off with one another (Hicks-Morley, Sack-Goldblatt-Mitchell, …et al.) …or golfed together probably.
Even the disgraced Robert Menagh was a labour lawyer.
(http://www.ropergreyell.com/FYI/pdf/RG_Newsletter_September_2007_Workplace_Harassment.pdf)
Never-the-less justice has been done, and it seems, is still being done thanks to the example and tenacity of Diane Shay.
Good for you Diane (and us), and good luck to those that continue to expose the callous, and self-interested scum that are relentless at insinuating themselves into positions of trust.
Diane you are an inspiration to many and most likely there will be others coming forward about the scandals going on in Cornwall and congratulations and at the same time I am rooting for you and everyone who comes forward. We have to get rid of Kilger and his gang as soon as possible. There is no other way and Kilger is going to bankrupt Cornwall and I have said this over and over again and I mean that fully. Bare Ass Bob is “narcistic” and has to go as soon as he can pack a bag and out the door for good. The same holds true with all the rest of his crooks on the loose.
It’s a sign of troubled times when the concept of pressure becomes an acceptable excuse for ethical shortcuts and moral shortcomings = City of Cornwall and decision makers.
Pressures are just temptations in disguise and it’s never been acceptable to give in to temptation
Ethics is about the way things ought to be, not about the way things are.
When it comes to ethics, motive is very important. A person of character does the right thing for the right reason. Compliance is about what we must do; ethics is about what we should do. Ethical people often do more than the law requires. The test is doing the right thing. Diane, I commend you for coming forward, we need more people like you.
Diane Shay your answers to Q1 and Q2 speak well of your character and commitment as a professional. Your answers to Q3 and Q4 speak volumes of the reality of having character and commitment in to days professional environment where all to many individuals turn a blind eye.
Thank you for more than I could possibly say in this forum.
Just thank you very much indeed and your family for providing the support to see you through this ordeal.
Thank you Diane for the strength in your convictions to be the best possible nurse that you can be and that means to be an advocate for those in your care & not to allow anyone to abuse a senior, hard to believe that you had such a tough hill to climb from mayor…his own mother lived there!!! What does that say about him?