THE PRESIDENT of an Ottawa Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) local has filed a human rights complaint against his union on religious freedom grounds. Treasury Board employee David MacDonald, who works for Industry Canada, claims he has been “discriminated against and harassed based on my religious beliefs.”

As a Catholic, MacDonald objects to PSAC’s public advocacy of same-sex marriage and the union’s ‘anti-heterosexism’ policy – which, he maintains, violates his conscience and deeply-held religious beliefs.

“The hostility towards Catholics is very open,” MacDonald said, saying this “adds to the feeling of being uncomfortable within the workplace.”

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The president of Local 70160 has also included the Treasury Board in his complaint to the Canadian Human Rights Commission because it refused his request to divert his dues to charity.

MacDonald said he sees no contradiction in remaining president of his local. “What the local does is in fact what a union is supposed to be doing: fighting for workers’ rights, doing grievances, all the things one would expect a union would be doing.”

He also stressed he would as quickly defend the rights of a gay employee as he would those of religious believers.

– Deborah Gyapong, Canadian Catholic News

December 2007