Is it too late now to say sorry? The mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville may soon be singing these lyrics as his deadline to apologize to staff for his controversial CSI-style wall draws near. Justin Altmann has until Dec. 22 to make a public apology for the unusual photo mural he put up of staff, councillors and citizens in his office washroom earlier this year. But his apology must be made during a council meeting and Tuesday’s session is the last one scheduled for the year.Altmann did not respond to numerous questions from the Star about when he will apologize, or why he hasn’t done so thus far. But Glenn Jackson, a spokesperson for the town, confirmed that “the mayor has not apologized in open session of council.”In September, Stouffville councillors adopted recommendations from the town’s integrity commissioner after a probe she launched in the wake of a staff member’s complaint. The probe concluded the creation of the wall breached the town’s code of conduct and was akin to “workplace harassment.” Suzanne Craig recommended Altmann be docked a month’s pay, or around $5,076.33 (the equivalent of a month of town pay and a month of car allowance), and be given 90 days to apologize to town staff. The recommendation in relation to the apology states that council: “request the respondent to issue an apology, in open session of council, for having created the wall in the office of the mayor’s washroom which was then viewed by staff, which was vexatious and disturbing to staff and amounted to a serious incident of workplace harassment.”Councillors say they have been waiting for an apology since day one. “The staff is deserving of the apology,” said Ward 3 councillor Hugo Kroon. “Staff has been, and in my mind, continues to be an unwilling and unnecessary participant in the mayor’s ongoing actions. They have been collateral damage, and did not deserve the treatment for ...
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