Human Rights Board rules against Leon’s in racial discrimination case

A Human Rights Board of Inquiry has ruled in favour of a woman who complained that she experienced racial discrimination while a sales associate at Leon’s in Dartmouth.

Garnetta Cromwell, an African Nova Scotian woman, complained that she faced ongoing discipline for workplace infractions. The Board says that was excessive. The board says ten incidents were racial harassment.

Management discouraged her from applying for management positions and she was subjected to teasing and other racially-based comments.

The Board is ordering Leon’s to pay the woman $8000 in general damages, plus 18-months of lost earnings minus income earned during that time.

Cromwell says she feels that justice has been done.

“The treatment I experienced was dehumanizing and caused me great personal and professional loss,” said Cromwell. “I feel validated and proud of the fact that I spoke up about what I felt was racial discrimination, a problem that remains far too common in workplaces and communities in Nova Scotia.”

The full text of the board of inquiry’s decision has been posted online.

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