A former Radio-Canada reporter is contesting her firing from Radio-Canada after she was elected as a member of Quebec’s legislature last March.

Now the province’s culture and communications minister, Christine St-Pierre was a reporter with Radio-Canada for thirty years. She was on a leave of absence and had requested an extended leave but says she was turned down.

St-Pierre is now fighting the decision with a grievance against Radio-Canada.

CBC/Radio-Canada policy says that reporters must quit when elected at the federal or provincial level. “Any employee elected to the House of Commons, the legislative body of a province … ceases to be to the employ of the company following the official results of the election.”

Before the campaign, Ms. St-Pierre requested a leave of absence, which was granted. A Radio-Canada spokesperson said the letter explained that if Ms. St-Pierre were defeated, she could return to a position that would not “represent a conflict of interest with her political commitment, and if she was elected it automatically caused her to lose her employment.”

Last year, St-Pierre she was suspended after writing an open letter in support of Canadian troops, which the network said contravened policies preventing reporters from expressing personal viewpoints on controversial issues.

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	Human Resources, Personalities