Lawsuit alleges CBC North kept a ‘crying room’ for stressed-out employees

CBC North made national headlines Friday, as a former human resources employee at its Yellowknife office claims in a lawsuit he was forced to leave a work environment so toxic and discriminatory there was a designated “crying room” so employees could deal with office stress.

The National Post reported Friday that former CBC North senior specialist in talent acquisition Karl Johnston also alleges CBC management in its northern operations kept a secret “do not hire” list that disproportionately blacklisted marginalized, disabled and Indigenous people.

These allegations are from a statement of claim and have not been tested in court.

Chuck Thompson, the CBC’s head of public affairs in Toronto, told the Post the broadcaster disputes the allegations and intends to defend against the suit.

He said he could not answer specific questions about the allegations because they concerned an active lawsuit.

The National Post reported Johnston’s lawsuit states he was forced to quit his $125,000 in total compensation job in 2023, after five years, alleging he was “constructively dismissed” after being “subjected to a toxic work environment condoned by CBC.”

Johnston is suing for one year’s salary and $300,000 in damages.

When Johnston arrived to start his job at CBC North in 2018, the Post reported his claim states he walked past an empty office adjacent to the newsroom and asked if that was his new office.

A CBC human resource staff member laughed and told him the office was the “crying room” where employees would go to cry to help cope with workplace stress, he says in his statement of claim.”