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Sask. female Mounties part of class-action lawsuit

Jun 2, 2015 | 5:13 PM

About 20 female employees accusing the RCMP of harassment in a massive class-action lawsuit are from Saskatchewan, according to the law firm arguing the case. 

Klein Lawyers is representing 363 former and current female Mounties who allege they were discriminated against, harassed and bullied while working with the force

The five-day hearing to certify the lawsuit began Monday in B.C. Supreme Court. 

Janet Merlo, a 19-year RCMP veteran from Nanaimo, B.C., went public with her own experience of ongoing discrimination before launching the suit in March 2012.

At 22, Quebec native Joanne Mayer said she was greeted at her first RCMP posting in Gibsons, B.C., with a handshake and a blunt statement from the sergeant: “We don’t think women should be in the force, and especially not French-speaking ones.”

Mayer said that along with her regular duties, she spent over two years doing “sexist” chores including making coffee, ensuring there was an ample supply of cream and sugar, and cleaning police cruisers.

-with files from the Canadian Press

kyeske@rawlco.com

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