155 women awarded $9.5M in Leduc harassment class-action lawsuit

The class-action lawsuit of female firefighters against the City of Leduc has finished its claims process.

According to the BD&P law firm, the total payout was $9,527,500 — one of the highest per-person payouts in Canadian legal history for workplace sexual misconduct.

The lawsuit alleged systemic discrimination and harassment had taken place toward female firefighters between 2002 and 2023.

In total, 155 women who had worked a the City of Leduc came forward and had their claims approved.

The settlement meant the end of a three-year battle for Christa Steele, who was one of the first women to sue the city in 2022 for sexual harassment and bullying, detailing years of sexual remarks, groping, and a culture of silence.

“When I started this journey, my goal was simple: to bring the truth to light. Because the truth, above all else, is what brings validation. It’s what gives people peace. As we moved forward in the lawsuit, we also wanted to ensure that class members would receive compensation they were entitled to as part of the class action. Over the past year, we have worked hard to reach as many women as possible and this has resulted in 155 women making claims and receiving over $9.5 million in settlements,” said Steele in a statement.

“I continue to be amazed at the bravery of all the women that have come forward. We hope these settlements can help with their long process of healing and let them know that they are not alone. Moving forward, we will continue to work and advocate for women to ensure that their voices are heard and to seek transparency and real change. I am grateful that we set a precedent and made history. We left a mark and I am proud of what we accomplished together.”

On July 4, 2023, the Court of King’s Bench approved a settlement which would provide compensation to the women.

This led to a hearing on Jan. 31, 2025, where the Plaintiffs reportedly asked to “disclose the total number of claimants and the amounts paid out, the City of Leduc asked the Court not to allow the release of these numbers.” However, on March 31, the Court dismissed Leduc’s request, and the numbers were disclosed.

“Throughout this class action, we have been amazed by the strength of the women that have come forward. This continued throughout the settlement process, with so many women telling their story and making a claim. We recognize how hard this was for them and the bravery it took. We hope that through these settlements we have helped provide some small measure of recompense for these women,” said Robert Martz, BD&P’s lead lawyer on the case, in a statement.

Other conditions of the settlement include an apology from Leduc’s mayor, which he made last year.

Steele is confident that change will come to Leduc fire halls.

“We need to be aware of the ‘suck it up’ culture. Just because it is a good shift and good pay doesn’t make for a safe work environment,” said Steele.

“We have students that come on board and we’re introducing them to this toxic work culture, and it just continues. We need to start putting a stop to these things, stop saying ‘Yes, we’re going to suck it up.”

Now, she hopes to be an advocate for more women coming forward.

“This stuff is happening and it’s happening in your communities, guaranteed. To make these changes, it takes one person and then this little things will happen over time.”