Former premier Alison Redford intends to sue the government of Alberta for wrongful dismissal.
The former premier believes that because she was given a “work plan” by the leadership of the province’s Progressive Conservative government and then forced to step aside before actually having a chance to prove she could do the job as set out in the plan her lawsuit has a strong chance of success, said a spokesperson for the former premier.
“The ‘work plan’ was the equivalent of being on probation,” the spokesperson said. “You can’t put someone on probation and then just up and fire them without due process!”
The spokesperson, who cannot be named because like everyone else in Alberta she is determined not to be identified with the former premier, said Redford had considered suing the PC Party, but settled on the Alberta government “because they have way more money.”
“She will be filing a statement of claim as soon as possible,” the spokesperson said.
Redford, who for the moment remains the MLA for Calgary-Elbow, will be claiming compensatory damages for the impact of the dismissal on her future earning ability and for the loss of the custom-built apartment in Edmonton’s restored Federal Building, in which she had expected to live with her daughter.
In addition, the former premier will be seeking punitive damages for the harm done to her reputation by statements made by government MLAs, which the spokesperson said could have a negative impact on Redford’s current campaign to become Secretary-General of the United Nations.
“We expect the combined damages to be larger than the sum being sought by Allaudin Merali,” the spokesperson said. Merali, a former chief financial officer of Alberta Health Services who was fired by Redford’s government for approved expense claims properly filed to another employer, is seeking more than $6 million in damages.
Redford, who is travelling, could not be reached for comment.
Everyone settle down, please. This story, which is completely false and was written as an April Fools’ joke, also appears on David Climenhaga’s blog, Alberta Diary. You could argue it really belongs on WTFAlberta.ca.
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