Policies

Violence, Discrimination, and Harassment

POLICY TITLE

Workplace Violence Program

PURPOSE

Workplace violence is a health and safety issue and is considered to be a serious misconduct. HSPI will strive to prevent violence in the workplace and clearly advise all employees in the workplace that violence will not be tolerated.

POLICY

HSPI will take reasonable measures to prevent employees from being the subject of any foreseeable act of violence. HSPI will not tolerate any act of violence carried out by employees and will respond to such actions in a timely and appropriate manner.

Any employee or contractor who is at risk of violence in the course of their work with HSPI, will be notified. Measures will be implemented to keep the workers safe, as necessary.

HSPI supports employees who are the victims of domestic violence. These cases will be managed in consultation with Women in Crisis, and each safety plan will be individualized to the situation.

DEFINITION

“Workplace violence” means,

(a)  the exercise of physical force by a person against a worker, in a workplace, that causes or could cause physical injury to the worker,

(b)  an attempt to exercise physical force against a worker, in a workplace, that could cause physical injury to the worker,

(c)  a statement or behaviour that it is reasonable for a worker to interpret as a threat to exercise physical force against the worker, in a workplace, that could cause physical injury to the worker.

PROCEDURE

  1. In the event of an act of violence, HSPI staff will attempt to de-escalate the situation, providing that the HSPI staff member does not put themselves at risk.
  2. If a physical assault occurs, employees will remove themselves from the situation and notify the Police and President immediately.
  3. The victim will be assured that there will be no recrimination for the complaint.
  4. If an injury occurs the appropriate policies will be followed (See First Aid, Reporting Injuries, Incident Investigation, and Early and Safe Return to Work).
  5. Investigations will follow these guidelines.
  • All incidents of workplace violence must be reported to and investigated by the President.
  • The complainant(s), and the alleged offender(s), will be informed that an investigation is being conducted.
  • The investigation will begin with a review of all relevant documentation.
  • The facts pertaining to the incident will include the:
    • Dates
    • Times
    • Name of Offender(s)
    • Name of Victim(s)
    • Nature of Violence
    • Victim(s) and Witness(es) Statements – Narrative
    • Statement of Offender(s) – Narrative
    • Supervisor’s Statement – Narrative
  • An interview will be held separately with both parties, as soon as possible, in order to establish respective views of the incident.
  • All witnesses must be interviewed.
  • If it is deemed necessary, interviews will be held with both past and present employees to determine if violence had occurred previously.
  • The incident will be accurately and completely documented with findings discussed with the complainant(s) and the offender(s).
  • A decision will be rendered and the complainant(s) and offender(s) advised of the outcome.
  1. Employees who have committed an act of violence will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including discharge.
  2. All acts of violence will be documented.
  3. In the event of an act of violence, HSPI staff will attempt to de-escalate the situation, providing that the HSPI staff member does not put themselves at risk.
  4. If a physical assault occurs, employees will remove themselves from the situation and notify the Police and President immediately.
  5. The victim will be assured that there will be no recrimination for the complaint.
  6. If an injury occurs the appropriate policies will be followed (See First Aid, Reporting Injuries, Incident Investigation, and Early and Safe Return to Work).

 TRAINING

Employees will be trained to recognize and report any incidents of violence.

COMMUNICATION

This policy will be communicated to employees as part of safety orientation, and whenever necessary afterwards.

POLICY TITLE

Harassment Program

PURPOSE

HSPI is committed to providing a work environment in which all workers are treated with respect and dignity.

POLICY

Workplace harassment will not be tolerated from any person in the workplace including customers, contractors, clients, and other employers.

The workplace harassment program applies to all workers including managers, supervisors, temporary employees, students and subcontractors.

Reasonable action taken by the employer or supervisor relating to the management and direction of workers or the workplace is not workplace harassment.

Workers are encouraged to report any incidents of workplace harassment to the appropriate person. Management will investigate and deal with all complaints or incidents of workplace harassment in a fair, respectful and timely manner. Information provided about an incident or about a complaint will not be disclosed except as necessary to protect workers, to investigate the complaint or incident, to take corrective action or as otherwise required by law.

Managers, supervisors and workers are expected to adhere to this policy and will be held responsible by the employer for not following it. Workers are not to be penalized or disciplined for reporting an incident or for participating in an investigation involving workplace harassment.

If a worker needs further assistance, they may contact the President for further information.

DEFINITIONS

Workplace harassment means engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct against a worker in a workplace that is known or ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome or workplace sexual harassment.

Workplace sexual harassment means:

  1. engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct against a worker in a workplace because of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, where the course of comment or conduct is known or ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome, or
  2. making a sexual solicitation or advance where the person making the solicitation or advance is in a position to confer, grant or deny a benefit or advancement to the worker and the person knows or ought reasonably to know that the solicitation or advance is unwelcome;

 PROGRAM

 A. Reporting workplace harassment

 How to report workplace harassment

 Workers can report incidents or complaints of workplace harassment verbally or in writing. When submitting a written complaint, please use the workplace harassment complaint form When reporting verbally, the reporting contact, along with the worker complaining of harassment, will fill out the complaint form.

The report of the incident should include the following information:

  1. Name(s) of the worker who has allegedly experienced workplace harassment and contact information
  2. Name of the alleged harasser(s), position and contact information (if known)
  3. Names of the witness(es) (if any) or other person(s) with relevant information to provide about the incident (if any) and contact information (if known)
  4. Details of what happened including date(s), frequency and location(s) of the alleged incident(s)
  5. Any supporting documents the worker who complains of harassment may have in his/her possession that are relevant to the complaint.
  6. List any documents a witness, another person or the alleged harasser may have in their possession that are relevant to the complaint.

To whom to report workplace harassment?

An incident or a complaint of workplace harassment should be reported as soon as possible after experiencing or witnessing an incident. This allows the incident to be investigated in a timely manner.

Report a workplace harassment incident or complaint (to the President of HSPI.

All incidents or complaints of workplace harassment shall be kept confidential except to the extent necessary to protect workers, to investigate the complaint or incident, to take corrective action or otherwise as required by law.

 B. Investigation

Commitment to investigate

The President commits to an and fair investigation as soon as she becomes aware of an incident of workplace harassment or receives a complaint of workplace harassment.

Who will investigate?

The President will determine who will conduct the investigation into the incident or complaint of workplace harassment. If the allegations of workplace harassment involve the President, the employer will refer the investigation to an external investigator to conduct an impartial investigation.

Timing of the investigation

The investigation must be completed in a timely manner and generally within 30 days or less unless there are extenuating circumstances (i.e. illness, complex investigation) warranting a longer investigation.

Investigation process

The person conducting the investigation whether internal or external to the workplace will, at minimum, complete the following:

  1. The investigator must ensure the investigation is kept confidential and identifying information is not disclosed unless necessary to conduct the investigation. The investigator should remind the parties of this confidentiality obligation at the beginning of the investigation.
  2. The investigator must thoroughly interview the worker who allegedly experienced the workplace harassment and the alleged harasser(s), if the alleged harasser is a worker of the employer. If the alleged harasser is not a worker, the investigator should make reasonable efforts to interview the alleged harasser.
  3. The alleged harasser(s) must be given the opportunity to respond to the specific allegations raised by the worker. In some circumstances, the worker who allegedly experienced the workplace harassment should be given a reasonable opportunity to reply.
  4. The investigator must interview any relevant witnesses employed by the employer who may be identified by either the worker who allegedly experienced the workplace harassment, the alleged harasser(s) or as necessary to conduct a thorough investigation. The investigator must make reasonable efforts to interview any relevant witnesses who are not employed by the employer if there are any identified.
  5. The investigator must collect and review any relevant documents.
  6. the investigator must take appropriate notes and statements during interviews with the worker who allegedly experienced workplace harassment, the alleged harasser and any witnesses.
  7. The investigator must prepare a written report summarizing the steps taken during the investigation, the complaint, the allegations of the worker who allegedly experienced the workplace harassment, the response from the alleged harasser, the evidence of any witnesses, and the evidence gathered. The report must set out findings of fact and come to a conclusion about whether workplace harassment was found or not.

Results of the investigation

Within 10 days of the investigation being completed, the worker who allegedly experienced the workplace harassment and the alleged harasser, if he or she is a worker of the employer, will be informed in writing of the results of the investigation and any corrective action taken or that will be taken by the employer to address workplace harassment.

Confidentiality

Information about complaints and incidents shall be kept confidential to the extent possible. Information obtained about an incident or complaint of workplace harassment, including identifying information about any individuals involved, will not be disclosed unless disclosure is necessary to protect workers, to investigate the complaint or incident, to take corrective action or otherwise as required by law.

While the investigation is on-going, the worker who has allegedly experienced harassment, the alleged harasser(s) and any witnesses should not to discuss the incident or complaint or the investigation with each other or other workers or witnesses unless necessary to obtain advice about their rights. The investigator may discuss the investigation and disclose the incident or complaint-related information only as necessary to conduct the investigation.

All records of the investigation will be kept confidential

Handling Complaints

HSPI must set out any interim measures that may be taken after the complaint is received and during the investigation. The employer must also set out how they might deal with the complaint of harassment if harassment is found. This may include discipline up to and including termination.

FORMS

HSPI-016 Form A Workplace Harassment Complaint as located in Appendix A

HSPI-016 Form B Workplace Harassment Investigation Form as located in Appendix B

TRAINING

Employees will be trained on the harassment policy/program

COMMUNICATION

This policy will be communicated to employees as part of safety orientation, and whenever necessary afterwards.