The company overseeing Winnipeg’s Thermea spa has retracted a customer survey containing what one client deemed as “extremely inappropriate” inquiries, such as inquiring about the impact of immigration on “the purity of the country.”
Amelia LaTouche, a Thermea patron, expressed her discontent with the survey to CBC News, stating that while surveys seeking diverse opinions on political or cultural matters may be relevant, the questions posed in this instance were unsuitable for a spa survey.
Following her visit to Thermea in late December, LaTouche received an email this week labeled “Your opinion matters — Groupe Nordik (Thermea Spa Village Winnipeg).” The email, apparently from “Groupe Nordik — CROP,” disclosed that CROP, a third-party research firm, collaborated on the survey.
The email included a survey link, purportedly designed to help Thermea enhance its services based on customer feedback. Initially focusing on spa experiences, the survey later delved into agreement levels with various statements.
LaTouche shared screenshots of the survey questions with CBC, revealing inquiries like “Society would be better off with more government involvement” and “Overall, there is too much immigration. It threatens the purity of the country.” She criticized the survey for its disrespectful tone and problematic language, particularly objecting to the term ‘purity’ and gender-specific language used.
The absence of skip options or preferences for question avoidance further fueled LaTouche’s dissatisfaction. She highlighted the contradiction between the survey’s content and Thermea’s diversity promotion efforts and diverse workforce, calling the survey a covert nod to racism.
In response to LaTouche’s concerns, Groupe Nordik issued an apology, acknowledging the discordance between the questions and their values. They admitted insufficient scrutiny of the survey’s values-based questions and pledged internal corrective measures to prevent such oversights in the future.
Alexandre Boileau, Groupe Nordik’s marketing and sales senior director, conceded the company’s oversight in approving the survey content. Boileau reassured guests of enhanced survey approval processes and checks to align with their inclusive environment goals.
Despite the apology, LaTouche seeks further dialogue with Thermea. She questions the necessity of such questions in surveys, emphasizing the ethical responsibility of companies to avoid promoting harmful opinions.
This incident echoes a similar controversy involving CROP in a 2018 Aeroplan survey, raising concerns about the firm’s survey practices and the implications of provocative questions. LaTouche maintains that companies should not facilitate racist or hurtful opinions through surveys.
The survey’s withdrawal underscores the importance of ethical survey practices and respect for diverse perspectives in customer feedback processes.