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Bill C-65 and the prevention of harassment & violence | Part 2

May 14, 2020

2020 was supposed to be the year that Bill C-65, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (harassment and violence) came into force. The Bill promises to change how employers in federally-regulated industries prevent and address incidents of workplace harassment and violence. Employers have been waiting for the Bill to take legal effect for some time, but with more pressing matters on the national agenda these days, the federal government has not confirmed when this will happen.

Avoid opening Pandora’s box: Working with your external investigator before, during and after the investigation to safeguard neutrality

May 12, 2020

We have all heard of the myth of Pandora’s Box – a box containing many evils that once released into the world could not be put back. As a third-party workplace investigator, I often think of clients having a Pandora’s Box full of information that, if released, could be prejudicial and could lead to an eventual claim of bias.

A Q&A on writing workplace investigation reports

May 6, 2020 | By Liliane Gingras

I recently did a three-part webinar series on writing workplace investigation reports with my colleague, Janice Rubin. These were short half-hour sessions during which participants could submit questions to us in writing. We had clearly underestimated how much we had to say about writing investigation reports and didn’t have time to get to the questions. In this blog, I answer some of the really good questions that we received.

Case law round-up on fairness: Recent examples of getting it right…and getting it wrong in workplace investigations

May 4, 2020 | By Katharine Montpetit

Fairness is something that we talk about a lot as investigators, although we appreciate that the term can sometimes feel a bit nebulous. Here we have rounded up a couple of recent cases that put the concept into effect, and highlight the importance of ensuring a fair and unbiased investigation…

Think Respect at Work and Harassment Policies can be sidelined during the pandemic? Think again.

April 30, 2020 | By Christine Thomlinson

Racism is on the rise as a result of the global pandemic. Concerns about its prevalence prompted Marie-Claude Landry, Chief Commissioner for the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), to issue a statement earlier this month condemning the practice. Landry noted that minority groups, and in particular people of Asian origin, have been the victims of taunts, threats and intimidation in public and online. She went on to make clear that no one should feel threatened or unwelcome because of the colour of their skin or where they some from.

How flaws in an investigation may lead to a finding of racial discrimination

April 28, 2020

Evidence of racial discrimination can be hard to come by. In Ontario, it is settled law that discrimination will more often be proven by circumstantial evidence and inference; the law has also accepted the principle that racial stereotyping will usually be the result of subtle unconscious beliefs, biases, and prejudices.

A recent decision from the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario shows how an external review body may make such an inference based on flaws in an organization’s investigation.

Sometimes a comment is just a comment: Making out a prima facie case of discrimination or harassment

April 16, 2020

Standards of appropriate workplace behaviour have rapidly changed over the last few years, and conduct that was once deemed acceptable is no longer tolerated in the workplace. But as the following arbitration decision demonstrates, one fundamental requirement still remains: the need to demonstrate a prima facie case of discrimination or harassment before the obligation to investigate a complaint is triggered.

When catfishing comes to work: Assessing the authenticity of social media evidence in a workplace investigation

April 13, 2020 | By Elizabeth Bingham

As workplace investigators in 2020, we routinely deal with issues in investigations that relate to technology, especially social media applications. In any given investigation, some portion of the alleged bullying might have taken place over Facebook, or Slack messages might provide critical evidence of sexual harassment.

Serious insight for serious situations.