When Toronto’s former fire chief was brought in to look at the workings of Vernon’s fire department in 2015 he found a list of problems, according to an unrelated arbitration decision.
The recent arbitration decision publicized the existence of William A. Stewart’s 2016 report and said it “identified problems in internal communication, training, relations between career and volunteer firefighters and relationships among representatives of career and volunteer firefighters and the employer.”
However, the City of Vernon said it can’t make that report public, even under Freedom of Information Act legislation, because “it would reveal advice and recommendations developed for the city,” and “would constitute an unreasonable invasion of third party personal privacy.”
The city noted that it’s concerned information related to work or education history, personal evaluations or character references could be disclosed if the report was released, or that the report could reveal information about an identifiable person in relation to “an investigation into a possible violation of law.”
Stewart was hired to write the report in 2015.
That year the city paid Stewart’s company Canadian Professional Management Services more than $208,000.
It is unclear how much of that sum went towards Stewart’s work with the fire department to produce his report.
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A city spokesperson said the money went towards “consulting services rendered including strategic management and ongoing general consultancy work.”
Stewart’s report is now more three years old and there has been significant leadership turnover at the fire department since that time.
The recent arbitration decision notes there in the interim there has been an improvement in the relationship between a union representing firefighters and fire department management.
The firefighters’ union also said career firefighters and volunteers now “have an excellent professional working relationship…We both work tirelessly for the citizens of Vernon.”
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