Appointment of Payette On July 13, 2017,
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his recommendation of scientist and former astronaut
Julie Payette to succeed
David Johnston as the 29th
governor general of Canada. Payette was formally appointed by
Queen Elizabeth II on October 2, 2017. The role of the governor general is to represent the
monarch of Canada when he or she is not in the country and includes granting
royal assent to legislation passed by
Parliament and dissolving Parliament for an election on the advice of the prime minister. Trudeau's method of selection for the role was criticized for failing to appropriately
vet candidates, as the
Advisory Committee on Vice-Regal Appointments, established in 2012, was left dormant following Trudeau's taking office in 2015. Following the 2021 resignations, critics alleged that "when he picked the former astronaut, Mr. Trudeau and his advisers were apparently so enthralled with ticking those symbolic boxes, of installing the candidate who neatly fit the image, that they obviously didn’t do enough to check on who she really was", blaming the government and the
Privy Council Office (PCO) for "failing to spot red flags before Payette’s appointment, and then failing to act once the media had highlighted them."
Toxic workplace allegations On July 21, 2020, CBC News reported that staff at
Rideau Hall, which hosts the office and staff of the governor general, faced
harassment and
verbal abuse by Payette. Sources detail that early into her tenure, Payette would question staff regarding topics unrelated to what was being discussed at meetings, such as by "put[ting] staff on the spot by quizzing them about outer space". Payette was alleged to also have thrown tantrums in her office, yell at and belittle employees, and refer to their work as "shit". Staffers were seen leaving her office in tears.
Secretary to the Governor General Assunta di Lorenzo, who manages the Office of the Governor General, also was reported to bully staff, calling them lazy and incompetent.
Reactions When asked about the harassment allegations against Payette on July 24,
Conservative leader
Andrew Scheer declined to comment, but said he hoped there would be a “comprehensive” look at other allegations in the
Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
New Democratic Party (NDP) leader
Jagmeet Singh commented that "I think the first step would be to follow up on complaints and then there could be a thorough investigation of these. And if there were enough evidence to warrant suspending the Governor General from her duties, then that would be assessed at that point".
Rideau Hall response After the story broke, Rideau Hall's press secretary said her office "strongly believes in the importance of a healthy workplace, we have taken many steps to foster this, we will continue to do so and will work at constantly improving," and called for a review. Current and previous employees were invited to be voluntarily interviewed about their experiences at Rideau Hall. The PCO's independent report found that Payette and Di Lorenzo presided over a toxic work environment, detailing “yelling, screaming, aggressive conduct, demeaning comments and public humiliations.” During the investigation, CBC News reported that the Prime Minister's Office failed to conduct checks with Payette's previous employers prior to her appointment as Governor General. Sources who previously worked with Payette at the
Canadian Space Agency, the
Montreal Science Centre, the
Canadian Olympic Committee and the
Canada Lands Company described similar experiences working as the complainants at Rideau Hall, as well as previous departures from the Montreal Science Centre in 2016 and Canadian Olympic Committee in 2017 following complaints and investigations into similar matters. == Resignations of Payette and di Lorenzo ==