Under Ontario’s human rights jurisprudence, when an employee raises a complaint of discrimination, the employer has a duty to address that complaint. The employer’s response to a complaint, including the investigation it undertakes, must meet a standard of “reasonableness.”
A challenging question that employers may face is how to respond to historical complaints of harmful behaviour when such complaints arise and cause conflict in the workplace. It is not unusual for complaints to not be brought forward immediately. At times we see complaints of incidents dating back a few years, sometimes even over a decade.
In recent years, we have seen important shifts in how employers are working to prevent and address harassment, discrimination, and violence in the workplace. As part of their efforts, employers are increasingly implementing training on these topics as a proactive measure.
Workplace restoration is a developing area which is now being considered by many employers. One reason for the growing interest is the ongoing effort by employers to improve the work experience for their employees and to create a safe and harmonious workplace for them.
“How was I to know they were offended by my jokes? They never told me they were uncomfortable.”
Jokes between colleagues can be an important contributor to positive workplace culture. Unfortunately, some employees are subjected to jokes and teasing that is offensive or demeaning.
I was not shocked when I read a recent newspaper article that said, “Black student allegedly locked in a room at an elementary school.” For those reading this blog, you are probably wondering why. Simple answer: this was not the first time I heard about such a concerning story.
I recently investigated a case where I needed to assess whether the discriminatory conduct that I found contributed to a poisoned work environment (PWE). This topic was explored in a previous blog post by RT, but I felt it was time for a more recent and in-depth look.
In 2017, Rubin Thomlinson conducted the Workplace Bystander Survey to gather insight into workplace bystanders (individuals who personally witnessed, heard of, or heard about harassment and discrimination in their workplaces).
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