Saint John man says he was paid unfairly because he's Black

For 20 years, Normand Hector "absolutely loved" working for Xerox in Saint John. Then he found out he was making less than managers who were white. 

"I was paid unfairly and treated unequally," said Hector, who quit the company in distress in September 2019.

Hector was making $59,000 a year as a sales manager, but says he learned some managers made as much as 15 per cent more.   

"And these were people who were promoted after me and some managed smaller teams than me," Hector said.

In June 2020, Hector filed a complaint with New Brunswick's Human Rights Commission, alleging discrimination on the basis of race and colour. 

The Commission says complaints based on race and related grounds, such as ancestry and place of origin, increased significantly between 2015 and 2020. The increases ranged between 63 and 80 per cent.

The Commission assigned him a mediator, who attempted to broker a meeting with Xerox. Hector is still waiting for that meeting.

"That's all I want," he said. "I want to sit at the table with a mediator and someone from Xerox, and let's look at the numbers together. Let's just have a conversation."

Last year, Xerox Canada was listed by Mediacorp Canada Inc., which publishes employment-related periodicals, as one of the top 100 employers in the Greater Toronto Area for progressive human resource policies.  

In 2009, Xerox made history as the first Fortune 500 company to have a Black woman as CEO. Ursula Burns held that role for seven years.

It's a company that is "praised for its diversity," Hector said.

"They should be steps ahead. Why are they afraid to talk to me?"

Hector said he joined Xerox in 1999 at its Saint John call centre, selling copiers over the phone. 

He later travelled for business and won several trips and awards for being a top sales performer, he said.