What is a wrongdoing?

• Misuse of a public body’s funds or property;
• Damage or risk of damage to health or safety; 
• Serious breach of ethics and professional conduct;
• Mismanagement within a public body and abuse of authority;
• Ordering or advising a person to commit a wrongdoing;
• Serious contravention of a law or regulation applicable in Québec.

Examples of disclosures handled by the Protecteur du citoyen

Misuse of funds or property

• Using a company vehicle or taxi vouchers for personal purposes.
• Being reimbursed for unauthorized or unnecessary travel.
• Claiming expenses without authorization or supporting documents.
• Granting unpaid overtime or an unjustified bonus to increase an employee's salary.
• Buying goods at a cost inconsistent with the organization's needs and resources.

Serious breaches of ethics and professional conduct

• Holding a position on the board of directors of an organization whose interests are closely tied to the position held within a public body.
• Deliberately breaching the duty of professional secrecy inherent in the person’s duties or making unauthorized disclosures of information.
• Holding a position on the board of directors of an organization whose interests conflict with the director’s other professional activities.
• Actively participating in the selection committee leading to the hiring of a spouse or friend without declaring the situation beforehand.
• As a senior executive, taking actions that deviate from ethical standards concerning the democratic values of the State or the public service.

Mismanagement and abuse of authority

• Behaving inappropriately towards employees, refusing to take the team’s advice and making hurtful remarks repeatedly in the workplace.
• Systematically circumventing hiring rules to allow favouritism in awarding positions.
• Failing to establish the necessary administrative framework to eliminate favouritism in processing applications.
• Behaving aggressively and vexatiously towards members of staff, creating a toxic working environment.
• Doing nothing, taking late action or taking insufficient action in response to a situation or problem, when the warning signs should have led to action.

Damage or risk of damage to health or safety

• Failing to maintain public infrastructure.
• Careless planning, construction or renovation of public infrastructure (e.g. bridges).
• Contaminating the environment by spilling toxic products that pose a serious risk to the air, water or food.
• Neglecting to implement procedures or processes that protect people's physical or psychological health.
• Neglecting to give or follow the necessary training, thereby risking an individual's safety.

Serious contravention of a law or regulation

• Failing to carry out duties or responsibilities in accordance with the law.
• Failing to meet obligations as the person responsible for following up on disclosures.