The rag is burning at the Administrative Housing Tribunal (TAL). Alerted by the excessive workload of judges and denunciations of a “climate of terror”, the Association of Administrative Judges is calling for the intervention of Quebec to manage the “crisis”. Pointed out for his inaction, the president of the TAL will make a “declaration” on Wednesday.
Posted at 5:00 a.m.
This unprecedented appeal by the Association of Administrative Judges of TAL (AJATAL) to the government stems from a file published in The Press last month, which lifted the veil on the internal war which is tearing apart the judges of the former Régie du logement. On condition of anonymity, judges accused the president, Mr.and Patrick Simard, to create a “climate of terror”.
PHOTO FROM THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE HOUSING TRIBUNAL
Mand Patrick Simard, President of the Administrative Housing Tribunal
A judge dismissed for sexual misconduct, Mand André Gagnier, but who claims to be the victim of a vendetta by Mand Simard, filed a psychological harassment complaint against the president. He describes him as an “angry” man who threatens those who do not share his opinion with sanctions.
These denunciations must be “taken seriously and deserve a follow-up”, but “no action” has been taken by the management, deplores Marc Forest, president of AJATAL in a letter obtained by The Press and sent at the beginning of the month to Benoît Grenier, head of the Secretariat for Senior Employment, a body affiliated with the Ministry of the Executive Council.
In the letter, the Association refers to the testimony of a judge in The Press on “the importance of statistics for management, to the detriment of the health of administrative judges”. More than 22,000 applications from tenants or landlords were pending processing last year, according to the annual report.
“This situation is experienced by almost all of the judges and has been repeatedly denounced to the management. The administrative judges of the TAL are literally at their wit’s end due to a heavy workload. No solution has been proposed by the management”, denounces the president of AJATAL, who represents the vast majority of TAL judges.
However, President Patrick Simard refuses to intervene to resolve these problems, despite the Association’s requests. In addition, the president holds the executive of the Association “responsible for the umbrage given to the Tribunal” in the case of The Pressgiven the lack of “positive feedback” about him, the letter states.
The Association is thus calling for a “rapid intervention” from the Secretariat for Senior Employment to resolve the current “impasse”.
“We remind you that Mr.and Simard himself did not respond to reporters in his own defense. It is not the responsibility of the board of directors of AJATAL to manage this crisis”, slices the Association in the missive sent on April 4th.
Also, the Association severely criticizes the comments of administrative judge Micheline Leclerc, who described her own colleagues as a “gang of non-judgment” in an interview with The Press. Such remarks “discredit our tribunal” and constitute a “serious allegation, seriously overshadowing the work carried out by the members of the TAL”, considers the Association, which once again underlines the absence of reaction from the management.
In response to our interview request, TAL spokesperson Denis Miron limited himself to saying that Mr.and Patrick Simard would make a “declaration” on Wednesday, without giving more details.
Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Andrée Laforest, who is responsible for the TAL, refrained from commenting on the case on Tuesday due to the ongoing legal process. Same response from the Secretariat for Senior Jobs and the office of Prime Minister François Legault, who heads the Ministry of Executive Council.
“Smear Campaign”
The former administrative judge Mand André Gagnier, whose mandate ended in mid-April, is indeed fighting in court to keep his job.
Mand Gagnier believes he is the subject of a “disguised dismissal” and a “smear campaign” by the TAL leadership. “Nothing stops the president of the TAL to [le] destroy,” he pleaded in a court document.
The head of the Secretariat for Higher Employment, Benoît Grenier, chose not to renew Mr.and Gagnier, last January, because of “misconduct of a sexual nature committed against a colleague”. According to an investigation launched by the TAL, André Gagnier touched the chest of a colleague during a party Christmas between judges. An allegation denied by Mr.and Winner.
“This is the orchestration, carried out with a vengeance by the president of the TAL, of an illegal maneuver aimed at opposing the renewal of the mandate of [Me Gagnier] “, indicates a request from Mr.and Winner.
Last week, the Superior Court refused to renew his mandate for one year, without however ruling on the merits of his appeal. The case will be heard by the Court of Appeal next week.
With the collaboration of André Dubuc, The Press