Sexual Assault Archives - Rubin Thomlinson

Jocks and locker room talk? Lessons for workplace investigators from research on student athletes and sexualized violence

March 26, 2024 | By Elizabeth Bingham

Over the past several years, high profile allegations, investigations, and findings of sexualized violence in sports have garnered significant media attention, both within Canada and around the world. As a workplace investigator who focuses on investigations and assessments in the education sector, these incidents have gotten me thinking about the intersection between secondary and post-secondary institutions, athletes, and misconduct.

Milligan v. Maczak Holdings Ltd. – Sexual harassment, and the perils of a policy-less workplace

November 14, 2023 | By Flora Vineberg

On September 29, 2023, the Human Rights Commission of Prince Edward Island (“PE HRC”) rendered its decision in the matter of Milligan v, Maczak Holdings Ltd. , a case involving sexual harassment of a restaurant worker at Smitty’s Family Restaurant (“Smitty’s”) in Charlottetown, PEI.

Sex, lies, and celebrities: What employers can learn from the Russell Brand allegations

October 10, 2023 | By Melody Jahanzadeh

In recent weeks, allegations have been raised about actor/comedian Russell Brand regarding various instances of sexual assault, emotional abuse, and bullying from four anonymous women. As outlined below, this story provides several important takeaways for employers and investigators who deal with these issues.

The importance of fairness in regulatory AND workplace investigations

June 12, 2023

I recently had the privilege of being a speaker at an webinar event hosted by the Society of Ontario Adjudicators and Regulators (SOAR), to deliver training on fairness issues in investigations.

Sexual Misconduct in the Military, Part III – The New Battle Plan

March 29, 2023 | By Zoë King

When organizations retain a workplace assessor to help reveal employee experiences of workplace harassment and sexual harassment, they usually ask the assessor to make recommendations as to what the organization should do next.

Sexual Misconduct in the Military, Part II – The Flawed Battle Plan

January 25, 2023 | By Zoë King

This is the second of a series of three posts in which I summarize what independent workplace assessments have revealed about the Canadian Armed Forces’ struggle to address sexual misconduct in the profession of arms.

Sexual Misconduct in the Military, Part I – The Preliminary Battle Plan

January 10, 2023 | By Zoë King

Canada’s Defence Minister Anita Anand recently advised Parliament that she has ordered the Canadian Armed Forces to plan significant operational changes, meant to ground the cultural transformation required to reduce the CAF’s high rate of sexual misconduct amongst service members.

A primer on sexual assault investigations in the workplace

October 4, 2022 | By Katharine Montpetit

Some of the most serious forms of workplace or institutional investigations will involve the investigation of allegations of sexual assault. For post-secondary institutions (“PSIs”), incidents of sexual assault are, unfortunately, not uncommon. As evidenced by recent stories in the media, incidents of sexual assault can also arise in a variety of other workplaces and organizations.

Serious insight for serious situations.