Prof says U of Winnipeg experience worse than cancer, sues university and faculty association

The University of Winnipeg is pictured in an undated image. (CTV News Winnipeg file photo)

A University of Winnipeg professor has filed a lawsuit against the university and its faculty union, alleging their actions left him without any forum to resolve workplace complaints. He’s now looking to get the court to assume jurisdiction to adjudicate the complaints.

In a statement of claim filed March 11 in the Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba, Professor Jeremy Frimer alleges the University of Winnipeg and the University of Winnipeg Faculty Association created what he describes as a “lawless space” where administrative and internal oversight processes are inaccessible.

Frimer, who identifies himself in the filing as a full professor at the university, argues the actions of the university, the union, and provincial bodies created a “jurisdictional vacuum” that prevented him from pursuing workplace complaints through normal channels.

According to the filing, which is partially redacted, the dispute dates back several years and involves internal workplace complaints he made through the university’s Respectful Work and Learning Environment Policy (RWLE).

Frimer alleges that in 2019 the faculty association told him the university intended to terminate his employment and that the union would not intervene on his behalf. He further claims the union acknowledged internal grievance mechanisms were “factually and legally compromised by systemic cronyism, bias and reprisal.”

The lawsuit also references a 2022 student complaint against him that he says was “substantively unfounded” and that he claims he was not given a meaningful opportunity to challenge the complaint.

Frimer alleges the Manitoba Labour Board later barred him from making further applications related to that complaint, while the university continued investigating him. He argues the decision prevented him from pursuing further action over related issues.

The claim also alleges the university discontinued one internal human-rights investigation and paused another, while the union declined to challenge those decisions, leaving his complaints unresolved.

Frimer, who is representing himself in court, has also filed a notice of motion seeking a publication ban on the unredacted statement of claim, affidavit, and several filed exhibits.

In a statement, Frimer said he could not provide specific details due to the university’s RWLE procedures and the collective agreement.

“This case is about a premeditated campaign to fire me regardless of my conduct and tenure as a professor, one that my clinical assessment characterized as a ‘war of attrition’ against my health,” Frimer told CTV News in a statement.

He claims a 2021 Supreme Court of Canada ruling—which gives unions exclusive jurisdiction over disputes arising from a collective agreement—left him “unprotected from a malicious, high-handed blacklisting campaign by the university and a deferential union.”

“The evidence suggests a unified institutional defense between the employer and the union that has operated to render all human rights, administrative, and internal oversight processes legally and actually inaccessible to me,” his statement reads in part.

“The university and union ruined my health, my career, and my life.”

Frimer claims he suffers from complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) which is attributed entirely to his workplace, and that a battle with near-fatal cancer in 2023-24 has left him permanently disabled.

“My experience at UW is worse than my experience with cancer,” he said.

Workplace safety dispute

According to the statement of claim, Frimer also says he exercised his right under provincial workplace safety law to refuse what he describes as dangerous work—specifically “direct administrative communication”—citing medical concerns related to mental distress.

He alleges the university continued contacting him directly despite the refusal and that the provincial workplace safety branch declined to issue a cease-and-desist order when he requested one.

The statement of claim alleges intentional infliction of mental distress, abuse of process, and gross negligence by the defendants.

It alleges his conduct has “at all times been governed by a commitment to academic integrity and the strict application of university policies.”

The filing is asking the court for an injunction preventing direct communication from the defendants and an order requiring any necessary contact to occur through a neutral third-party intermediary funded by the university and union.

The statement of claim further seeks an undisclosed amount in damages for what Frimer alleges were severe psychological and physical injuries, including CPTSD and related health issues.

The filing says Frimer unsuccessfully sought representation from 21 law firms from Manitoba and other provinces, all of which declined “mostly due to conflicts of interest or jurisdictional concerns.”

Frimer has been with the University of Winnipeg’s department of psychology since July 2012, according to his ResearchGate profile, a social networking site for scientists and researchers.

A spokesperson for the university declined to comment, but confirmed that he is still employed with the university.

CTV News has reached out to the University of Winnipeg Faculty Association for comment and is awaiting a response.

None of the claims have been tested in court, and no statements of defence have been filed yet.

This is the second lawsuit filed against the University of Winnipeg by a current or former employee in the past two months.