Friday, August 13th, 2010
I recently read in the news a classic case of unaddressed harassment claims that led to the worst form of workplace violence. This case may stem from the US but all the same principles and warnings apply in Canada as well. The case involves the death of nine people (including the suspected gunman) on Tuesday August 3, 2010, in a shooting rampage at a beer distributor in Connecticut.
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, July 13th, 2010
As a human rights advisor and educator I was encouraged to overhear this educational conversation about harassment at Tim Hortons. I was concerned however that part of the message this group was hearing was incorrect and misleading.
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
Ontario Ministry of Labour health and safety inspectors discuss employers’ responsibilities around workplace violence and harassment…
Read the rest of this post »Friday, May 28th, 2010
Last chance to register for the First Reference 11th Annual, Ontario Employment Law Conference, on June 2, 2010…
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, May 25th, 2010
I got a call the other day from a relieved client. She and her management team have, after months of hard work, put the finishing touches on their new workplace harassment and violence policies in compliance with Ontario’s Bill 168…
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, May 12th, 2010
My colleagues and I recently made fun of the possible employment law issues that could come out of the implementation of full-body scanners as a form of screening device for airport security. But I never expected this, and so soon.
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
There is training, and then there is engaging training…
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, May 4th, 2010
On May 3, 2010, the Ontario Ministry of Labour released new resource tools to help prevent violence and address harassment in the workplace in light of the new requirements under the Occupational Health and Safety Act that come into effect on June 15, 2010. The MOL workplace violence tool kit and accompanying guide are additional resources that assist employers in complying with these new requirements by helping them to:
Read the rest of this post »Thursday, April 1st, 2010
Ontario’s upcoming occupational health and safety violence and harassment rules require that employers implement violence and harassment prevention policies. Manitoba and Saskatchewan also require OHS policies for both workplace hazards. When drafting or updating your violence/harassment policies to meet legal OHS requirements (e.g., Ontario’s Bill 168), are you creating individual policies or integrating your policies? That was the question asked in the most recent HRinfodesk poll. According to the results of the poll, out of 155 responses, 84 (~54%) respondents intend to comply to the letter of the law, while 71 (~46%) respondents have taken another approach by integrating both policies into one.
Read the full article on HRinfodesk.
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Bill 168 is intended to address concerns of workplace violence and harassment in the context of health and safety. It provides definitions of both workplace violence and workplace harassment, and then requires that organizations undertake a risk assessment, draft workplace violence and harassment policies, and develop programs to implement those policies. Furthermore, Bill 168 requires training and instruction of employees regarding the new policies and programs, and creates a positive obligation on the part of employers to take reasonable precautions for the protection of workers when the employer is aware that they may be exposed to domestic violence. Bill 168 also requires that employers provide personal information to employees regarding persons with a history of violent behaviour. Finally, Bill 168 expands the existing right to refuse work, so that it now applies where there is a risk of imminent danger due to workplace violence.
Does the Bill go far enough in addressing workplace violence? Too far? How do we reconcile the reporting obligations with privacy rights?
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
Anyone who thinks that the days of individual and systemic racism in Canada are behind us should think again. It might not be nice to think about, but across the country, Canadians and visitors to Canada face racism every day.
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, February 17th, 2010
I think most people recognize that racism—even overt racism—is still a factor in Canadian culture, but these strategy and news item make it clear: we’ve come a long way and can now openly say that racism exists and is something we want to eliminate; but we have also a long way to go yet before the Canadian dream of a multiculturally diverse society moves beyond mere tolerance toward true acceptance and equality.
Read the rest of this post »Friday, January 29th, 2010
I have been busy at the HRPA Annual Conference and Tradeshow this week where I had the pleasure of presenting, “Protecting Your Organization from the Workplace Bully.” I can report that, based on the buzz among HR Professionals and decision makers I have talked to, employers are really aware of their obligations and challenges under the amended Occupational Health & Safety Act. Employers, for the most part, also have a renewed interest in reaching up and pulling down from the shelf, those plans for training in the areas of harassment prevention!
Read the rest of this post »Friday, January 29th, 2010
One other session I attended at the 2010 Ontario HRPA conference was Andrew Lawson’s on Protecting your organization from the workplace bully. He made a couple of good points on the topic of workplace harassment that I would like to share with you.
Read the rest of this post »Thursday, January 28th, 2010
On January 27, 2010, I attended the HRPA annual conference. I was most interested on the session titled, Violence in the Workplace: An Update on Bill 168 from the Ministry of Labour. I needed some clarification on possible exemptions to the new violence and harassment prevention law and the application of certain measures in the bill.
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