Public Safety Minister Vic Toews confirms that there is a "workplace assessment" underway that stems from a feud involving RCMP Commissioner William Elliott and his senior subordinates.
Elliott, the first-ever civilian director of the RCMP, has reportedly become the subject of formal complaints from senior Mounties who take issue with the way he conducts himself on the job.
Toews would not comment any further on the assessment, saying only it relates to internal management of the RCMP.
On Tuesday, CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife spoke to a senior Mountie who described the beef senior officers have with their commissioner.
Fife quoted the unnamed Mountie as being "fed up" with Elliott's behaviour, describing it as "abusive, ignorant" and "bullying."
Recently, senior staff members have been keeping detailed notes on Elliott's behavior, which will likely be submitted to the assessor.
"So at the end of the day, when that report is done, he may lose his job," said Fife.
Elliott was apparently sent to a leadership training seminar in Arizona recently, which cost taxpayers $44,000, sources told CTV News.
Elliott has so far said little about the reports about his relationship with senior Mounties. He also declined to appear on CTV to discuss the matter.
"He will not comment publicly, he will not come on camera, we've made that effort," said Fife.
"But sources tell me that he has been working behind the scenes to try to dampen things down."
Sources say Deputy Commissioners Raf Souccar and Tim Killam are two of the Mounties involved in laying complaints against Elliott, along with four assistant commissioners: Francois Bidal, Pat McDonell, Mike Cabana and Mike McDonell, who quit in frustration.
His appointment as a civilian never went down well with the police officers in the RCMP, and defenders of him say his detractors may be angling to replace him, according to many reports.
"People who support him say . . . ‘He's honest, he's committed to improving the situation in RCMP . . . and that these allegations are made by people who were hoping he'd leave after three years . . . and these people have their own ambitions,'" Fife said.
Elliott is the 22nd person to serve as commissioner of the RCMP -- and the first non-Mountie to do so. He began serving as commissioner just over three years ago.
Elliott began working for the Canadian government in 1988.
Linda Duxbury, a professor who has studied the RCMP extensively, said that the new problems are indicative of deep-seeded problems at the agency.
She said that at an organization like the RCMP, a culture of trust among staff is crucial.
"I don't see how Bill Elliott will be able to trust his senior leadership team," Duxbury said in an interview.
Worse, given the obvious tensions, it may be too late for a simple fix, such as removing certain staff members or shaking up the leadership.
"I don't see how they can fix it up right now. The genie's out of the bottle."
Politically speaking, the Prime Minister's Office is also in a difficult spot, as thousands of RCMP personnel across the country will be closely scrutinizing the PMO's response to the departmental fight.
"The Prime Minister's Office is stuck between a rock and a hard place," she said.
