Upcoming Webinar: January 23, 2025 @ 12:30 P.M. (ET)  |  The Top 10 Workplace Investigation Cases of 2024 |  Register Today!

Serious insight for serious situations.

Serious insight for serious situations.

Post #MeToo considerations of sexual harassment: BC Human Rights Tribunal weighs in

Despite this opening sentence in her decision, Tribunal Chair Juricevic found that the complainant’s allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination were not substantiated.

As a workplace investigator, I am sensitive to the fact that conversations around #MeToo in the workplace have been an evolution; people are not always sure about “where the line is” when assessing whether conduct in the workplace amounts to sexual harassment. The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal recently chimed into this discussion. The decision¹ provides a detailed refresher on the legal test for claims of sexual harassment and draws a line in the sand regarding what is (or is not) considered sexual harassment.

Read More

What happened on the bus – bad faith complainant or victim of sexual harassment and assault? (Part 1)

An employee complained that she had been sexually harassed by her male supervisor. The employer conducted an internal investigation and concluded that the sexual encounter had been consensual, and therefore sexual harassment had not occurred. The complainant was fired for making a bad faith complaint. An arbitrator came to the opposite conclusion. He found that the complainant had, in fact, been subjected to sexual harassment and sexual assault. He reinstated her job and ordered compensation for lost wages and benefits.

Read More

Clarifying consent: New and innovative ways for teaching consent in the university and college environments

As an external investigator brought in to investigate allegations of sexual assault, it is often necessary to make a determination as to whether or not the particular activity was consensual. This is one of the most difficult determinations to make, as it requires an assessment of the complainant’s subjective mind at the time of the

Read More