Alex Lambert, who lost his job in February after donating $50 to the ‘Freedom Convoy’ truckers’ protest, is suing for wrongful dismissal.
The former president and CEO of Group Health Centre, who was fired in February after donating $50 to the “Freedom Convoy” trucker protest in Ottawa, is suing for unfair dismissal, SooToday has learned.
Alex Lambert’s lawsuit seeks more than $1.7 million in lost wages and other damages, including $500,000 for alleged “bad faith” conduct by his former employer, a Sault Ste. Marie’s largest health care providers.
In his statement of claim, Lambert says he was “shocked” and “blindsided” by the Group Health Centre’s decision to fire him over “such a trivial matter”. He also accuses the organization of “humiliating” him in public and inflicting “a death sentence” on his career.
“After Defendant learned that Plaintiff had donated to the Freedom Convoy, Defendant chose to publicly attack Plaintiff’s personal views and donation preferences, rather than making Plaintiff’s termination a private matter,” the lawsuit alleges. “Within a few days, the plaintiff became persona non grata. His reputation was tarnished unfairly and without reason, and his career was in tatters.”
Lambert was named president and CEO in June 2014, overseeing an organization that serves more than 80,000 patients throughout the Algoma district. His annual salary was $286,000.
“[T]the plaintiff’s reputation has been ruined by the defendant,” the lawsuit continues. “The entire city now knows of his termination and many members of the community no longer want anything to do with him. It is almost certain that the plaintiff will have to move to another jurisdiction to get re-employment.”
Lambert’s statement further alleges that Group Health’s board of directors was well aware of its stance against vaccination mandates dating back to at least 2021, but “tolerated, or at least tolerate these personal opinions” because they “did not interfere with his job as CEO or his job performance.”
Lambert “always acted in the defendant’s best interests throughout the pandemic, including adopting all COVID-related protocols required by Public Health and/or the Government of Ontario and, in some cases, go beyond mandatory requirements, including with respect to COVID-19 vaccination requirements at the Group Health Center,” the lawsuit says. “Accordingly, Plaintiff asserts that it was wholly inappropriate for Defendant to terminate his employment because of a small donation or because of their personal views on vaccination mandates.”
The Group Health Center denies any wrongdoing, arguing in its defense that the organization treated Lambert “with dignity, respect and good faith.” His employment contract made it clear that he could be fired at any time without cause, provided he was given 12 months’ notice or pay in lieu of notice. While a dollar figure is not specified in the statement of defense, Group Health insists Lambert received “his contractual rights.”
Group Health also denies that it acted in bad faith, noting that the organization “was careful not to make any public statements” about Lambert’s $50 donation or his comments to the press supporting the trucker protests. “It was the plaintiff who spoke to two media outlets and publicized his views,” the defense statement said. “Any impact the events have on the plaintiff’s reputation is due to the plaintiff’s public statements.”
The lawsuit was filed April 4 in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto. Obtained by SooToday, the legal documents paint the clearest picture yet of what happened behind closed doors after Lambert’s donation was publicly disclosed, and after he gave multiple media interviews expressing his opposition to vaccine mandates and their support for the “inspiring” and “good”. cool” convoy of truckers.
If nothing else, the court documents are sure to reignite the public debate over whether a top healthcare executive deserved to be fired for what was supposed to be a private donation. Lambert’s dismissal prompted many strong opinions on both sides.
In the end, Group Health’s board of directors decided it had no choice but to sever ties with the organization’s top employee. “[Group Health] felt that it could not continue to employ the plaintiff in his role as CEO given his poor judgment in donating to the “Freedom Convoy” and, more seriously, choosing to speak to the media twice about his donation and his view on vaccination mandates,” reads the statement of defense.
Lambert “was aware that as the leader of a healthcare organization, he must support public health guidelines and measures,” the defense filing continues. “[Group Health’s] The board made it clear to the plaintiff on several occasions that he was expected to support public health guidelines and measures. [The board] never condoned or condoned Plaintiff’s personal views and certainly did not approve of Plaintiff speaking publicly about his views on the “freedom train” or mandatory vaccination.”
None of the allegations have been proven in court. When SooToday reached out to their lawyers, both Lambert and Group Health declined to comment.
The self-proclaimed “freedom convoy” arrived in Ottawa in late January, ostensibly to protest COVID-19 vaccination mandates for cross-border truckers. It quickly evolved into a movement against all pandemic public health measures, including government-ordered lockdowns and mandatory masking. Many Canadians rallied behind the cause, braving freezing temperatures to cheer and wave as the convoy traveled through their communities.
Truck drivers took over the center of the capital for more than three weeks, blocking streets and honking their horns incessantly. As the public would soon learn, some of the leaders were known conspiracy theorists and far-right racist agitators who dreamed of toppling the Trudeau government long before the onset of COVID-19.
On February 13, two weeks after the truckers’ blockade, a hacker breached the website of GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding site that was collecting millions of dollars in donations for protesters. The Boston-based company had gone under after GoFundMe shut down its Convoy fundraiser on February 4, citing its guidelines against “promoting violence and harassment.”
Along with freezing GiveSendGo’s website, the hacker illegally obtained and disseminated a list of more than 90,000 donors, including names, email addresses and zip codes. Among the entries was Alex Lambert of Sault Ste. Mary He contributed $50 on Saturday, February 5, the day after GoFundMe cut ties with the convoy.
Contacted by SooToday on February 15, Lambert confirmed the accuracy of the hacked data. (SooToday did not publish certain personal information, such as zip codes or email addresses, and did not report Lambert’s donation until it confirmed it was true.)
“It’s such an uncomfortable subject, especially considering the genesis of this list,” Lambert said at the time. “I didn’t expect to get this phone call when I donated $50, and I certainly didn’t reference the Group Health Center when I donated, but here we are.”
By then, the city of Ottawa had declared a state of emergency, the Ontario government had won a court order preventing anyone from accessing the money raised by GiveSendGo, and the prime minister had invoked the federal Emergencies Act.
“They’re protesting peacefully and I think they’re great, frankly,” Lambert told SooToday, during that initial interview. “I agree with the message. I think the time has come to end vaccine mandates and I’m glad they have strength in that message.”
Still, Lambert admitted that the optics of his donation may raise some eyebrows: a top executive at a health care organization backing a protest against public health measures, including vaccination mandates.
“It’s consistent with my position on vaccine mandates at Group Health,” he said. “We didn’t mandate vaccinations at Group Health for existing employees; we left it as a choice. As it happened, I think about 95 percent of the staff and doctors made the decision and that’s good for them and I think that’s how it should have worked everywhere.”
The next day, February 16, Lambert spoke to a reporter from the Sault Star, and reiterated his support for the truckers, but not all of their tactics, including the constant honking. “I don’t know if I like that ‘occupation’ terminology,” he said. “I don’t think so. Seems like a pretty peaceful protest. There are bouncy castles and the whole nine meters.”
Lambert also criticized Justin Trudeau’s use of the Emergency Act, which until then had never been invoked. “I think it’s more than unjustified,” he said. “I think it’s a little ridiculous.”
Like the rest of Sault Ste. Marie, Group Health board members learned about Lambert’s donation from SooToday. According to the statement, Lambert did not warn the board about his interview, or the next day’s conversation with the Sault Star. During those interviews, he also “did not indicate that his views were his alone or provide any context to depart from [Group Health] and his role as CEO,” the court filing states.
“Media appearances led to public criticism and concern that an individual opposed to public health measures would lead a public health organization,” the defense statement said. “The media appearances also created questions around the [Group Health Centre’s] opinion of the ‘Freedom Comboi’ and its support for…