Lesbian couple made to quit jobs for being ‘too gay’
Sheri (left) and Alyssa Monk. (Sheri Monk/Facebook)
A lesbian couple from Alberta, western Canada, have said they were driven out of their emergency services jobs for being “too gay.”
Lesbian couple Sheri and Alyssa Monk claimed that they were discriminated against and treated differently to their heterosexual colleagues.
The pair quit their jobs at Pincher Creek Emergency Services in Pincher Creek back in July 2017.
Lesbian couple told colleagues offended by use of word “wife”
The lesbian couple have since filed a complaint with Alberta’s Human Rights Commission about their treatment.
Speaking to CBC News’ Go Public investigative team, Sheri explained that she and Alyssa, one of five married couples in their detachment, were called into a meeting with then-deputy chief Margaret Cox in May 2017.
“We approached people and apologised for being too gay. We wanted to know what we had done wrong.”
—Sheri Monk
“The conversation started with, ‘This isn’t because you’re gay, but there are some people that will never accept same-sex marriage and are offended by the use of the word wife,'” she said.
“We asked would this apply to everybody … this manager said, ‘No, because you’re the only couple we’ve had complaints about.’ We were also the only gay couple.”
Lesbian couple Sheri and Alyssa Monk say they were pushed out of their jobs for being gay. (Sheri Monk/Facebook)
“We approached people and apologised for being too gay. We wanted to know what we had done wrong.”
The couple met at work in 2014 and got married in 2016.
They didn’t tell colleagues about their relationship until they moved in together in 2015.
After the May 2017 meeting, the couple started to record conversations with their colleagues to provide evidence of discrimination.
“I think public displays of affection, whether it’s physical or verbal stand out more—because you’re both women—than it does in the heterosexual population,” the women’s supervisor can be heard saying in one snippet, which was published by CBC News,
Pincher Creek Emergency Services has denied discriminating against Sheri and Alyssa Monk because of their sexual orientation. (Google Maps)
Emergency services department denies discriminating against lesbian couple
The lesbian couple admitted making inappropriate jokes and using explicit language at work, but said the comments were in line with remarks made by other employees.
A former co-worker has supported the lesbian couple’s claims.
Ex-colleague James Raffan said that some staff who were religious were “offended by their presence,” which he added “became more of a source of conflict.”
Pincher Creek Emergency Services has denied discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
