Julie Payette quit after top officials received the findings of an independent inquiry into reports of verbal abuse and bullying.
Canada’s governor general – the Queen’s representative – has resigned amid allegations she presided over a toxic work environment in which staff were bullied to tears.
Julie Payette quit just hours after senior officials received the findings of an independent inquiry into reports of verbal abuse and bullying by the 57-year-old.
It followed a report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in which dozens of anonymous staff claimed Ms Payette threw “tantrums in the office and on foreign trips, berated staff to the point of tears and called one employee’s work ‘s***'”.
One told CBC that Rideau Hall – the residence and workplace of the governor general – had become a “house of horrors” under Ms Payette’s leadership, causing long-time staff to leave in droves.
“I have come to the conclusion that a new governor general should be appointed. Canadians deserve stability in these uncertain times,” Ms Payette said in a statement announcing her departure, adding she was sorry for tensions that had arisen with staff.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – who picked her for the role in October 2017 for a five-year term – said the workplace concerns raised by staff during the review would be addressed.
He notably did not thank her – having described her last year when the probe was launched as “an excellent governor general”.
