Canada’s infrastructure report card. Self-regulation in Alberta’s real estate industry. A whistleblower at Alberta’s energy regulator. And a decision from Quebec’s human rights commission. These were the most read stories from the media monitor in mid-October.
Infrastructure report card: Eight national infrastructure stakeholder organizations—including the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies – Canada (ACEC) and the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering—have released the Canadian Infrastructure Report Card, saying that a significant amount of public infrastructure in Canada is in poor condition.
Alberta real estate regulator: The Alberta government has moved to fire the entire board of the Real Estate Council of Alberta, which regulates the provincial real-estate industry, saying that it has failed to provide effective governance and oversight of the real estate industry.
Whistleblower: Investigations by the Alberta Ethics Commissioner, the province’s auditor general, and the public interest commissioner into the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) found that former AER CEO Jim Ellis displayed disregard for the proper management of public funds, and that staff described a culture of fear at the AER that deterred employees from speaking up. An anonymous whistleblower eventually did step forward with concerns.
Quebec human rights commission: The Quebec human rights commission has found that École de technologie supérieure failed to protect engineering student Kimberley Marin from discrimination and harassment. Marin was awarded $34,500 in punitive, moral, and material damages in March, four years after a group of men removed her skirt at a frosh party, leaving her half-naked in a roomful of people.
