Respect in the workplace

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  Recognizing workplace harassment

  Harassment is any conduct or comment by a person that the person knew or reasonably ought to have known would cause another person to be humiliated or intimidated and have a demonstrable negative impact on the workplace or individual.  

  Our Respect in the Workplace Policy PDF file (242 KB) includes harassment connected to the protected grounds under the Human Rights Code (for example, based on Indigenous identity, race, religion, physical or mental disability, or gender identity or expression). 

  Harassment may:  

  • Consist of a single serious incident, though it is often repeated inappropriate behaviour  
  • Be written, verbal, non-verbal, in-person, or online
  • Be directed towards one staff member or a group
  • Be intentional or unintentional

  Some examples of harassment include:  

  • Threatening someone
  • Bullying or humiliating someone
  • Spreading rumours or gossip
  • Making offensive comments about someone’s identity, such as gender
  • Making sexual comments
  • Retaliating against someone for raising a concern under this policy

Overview

The following sections provide an overview of what you can do if you have a concern and what happens next. 

• Review the complete Respect in the Workplace procedure PDF file (212 KB)
• Review a summary of the procedure PDF file (143 KB)

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  What to do if you experience harassment or disrespectful behaviour

  It is stressful and challenging to experience behaviour like this at work. We provide various avenues to support staff and to address issues.

  If you experience or observe harassment or disrespectful conduct, you can address it directly if you’re comfortable, or reach out to any of the following:

  • Your manager or supervisor
  • Your department’s Human Resources Consultant (HRC)
    • You can email benefits@vancouver.ca to ask who the HRC is for your department
  • The Equity Office at equityoffice@vancouver.ca
  • Your union representative. They can support you to bring a concern forward on your behalf. 

  You are encouraged to bring a concern forward as soon as possible and within 12 months of the last event of harassment, unless there are extenuating circumstances. 

  Addressing other unwanted workplace behaviour

  If you experience behaviours that may not be considered harassment, you can still reach out to your manager, supervisor, HRC, or the Equity Office. Examples include one-off incidents of careless or rude comments, unintentional stereotyping, or interrupting or failing to acknowledge someone.

  If the conduct makes you feel disrespected or uncomfortable, it should be addressed to prevent further hurt. Typically, these incidents are dealt with using restoration processes or other informal remedies, such as a casual, mediated conversation, or coaching on how to address the behaviour if it occurs again, as opposed to investigations.

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  Next steps 

  When incidents happen, it’s important to address them. We strive to be an organization where we are capable of repairing relationships with one another.

  When raising a concern about a coworker, your manager, Human Resources, or the Equity Office will help you with the next steps, which may include:

  • Exploring the issue and support options
  • Suggesting a restoration process or other informal remedy
  • Making a harassment complaint and requesting an investigation

  Handling complaints made against you

  In the event that a complaint is made against you and an investigation proceeds, an investigator will contact you to let you know that a complaint has been made and request a meeting. They will let you know what you can expect throughout the process. You will have an opportunity to respond to the information in the complaint. 

  The City will communicate with you and those involved regularly throughout the investigation process.

  Addressing concerns with external parties

  If the concern is about the behaviour of a non-staff member, such as a member of the public, you can also make a complaint. You should bring that concern forward to your exempt supervisor or manager.

  If the complaint is about a member of the public, we may not be able to compel the person to take part in an investigation process. However, leadership in your department has a responsibility to help prevent further harm by addressing the incident to the extent possible.

  Depending on the circumstances, there may be protective measures put in place to support you. Your department’s occupational safety professional may also support you and your manager in implementing local controls (such as signage or altering processes) to deter future harm.

Summary of restoration, investigations, and informal remedies

These are different ways respect in the workplace concerns can be addressed when they are raised to the City. Typically, incidents that do not rise to the level of harassment are addressed using restoration processes or other informal remedies. 

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  Restoration processes

  Led by	Purpose	Typical process
  Workplace Restoration team within the Equity Office	Focuses on parties coming to an understanding about impacts, repairing relationships, and reducing the likelihood of harm happening again in the future	Processes are voluntary and require willing participating from all parties Processes are designed with input from those involved Examples include:  Facilitated conversations Circles, ceremonies, or other culturally relevant and appropriate processes Facilitated apology Training  Information icon A restoration process on its own does not lead to disciplinary action.

  Learn more about the restoration process

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  Respectful workplace investigations

  Led by	Purpose	Typical process
  Human Resources, an exempt manager with the assistance of Human Resources, or an external investigator When choosing an investigator, Human Resources considers the needs and requests of the people involved	Formal process to determine if a breach of this policy has taken place, and through which corrective action and discipline may be imposed	If an investigation is required, Human Resources will determine an appropriate investigator to gather and examine all the relevant facts regarding the incident The investigator assesses the evidence and determines whether the findings support or refute a breach of the policy

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  Informal remedies

  Led by	Purpose	Typical process
  Human Resources, your manager, or the Equity Office	Address behaviours – sometimes indirectly	Examples include: Speaking privately with the people who caused the issue Facilitating training for an entire team Notifying department leads of patterns of

Additional information and support

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  Resolving incidents: timelines and outcomes

  
  How incidents are resolved depends on the nature of what happened. Many concerns can be resolved by a discussion with the other party, or with a manager, your department HRC, or with support from the Equity Office.

  Some issues can be handled informally and quickly with support from the first person you speak to. Others may require more extensive inquiry, such as an investigation. 

  There isn’t an exact timeframe for a restoration process or investigation. Timelines are influenced by many factors, such as the complexity of the process, number of people involved, availability of participants and investigators. However, recognizing it can be difficult to be involved in investigations, we aim to conduct them in a prompt and timely manner and commit to communicating with you regularly throughout.

  If you have feedback on your experience with an investigation or restoration process, you can provide it by emailing the Equity Office at equityoffice@vancouver.ca or the Chief Human Resources Officer at andrew.naklicki@vancouver.ca.

  If you are not satisfied with the outcome of a City-led process, you can pursue other remedies outside of our policy and procedure, such as a grievance, where applicable, a complaint with the BC Human Rights Tribunal, or a claim with WorkSafeBC.

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  Available support

  If you have experienced harassment, you are encouraged to reach out to your manager, supervisor, HRC, the Equity Office, or your union representative for support. They can guide you through the next steps and available resources.

  The role of a support person

  Bringing a concern forward or participating in an investigation can be difficult. Complainants and respondents involved in an investigation can have a support person attend meetings with them. This person may not answer questions, advocate, or speak on their behalf, but they can check in with you and suggest a break or other adjustment to the meeting as needed. Respondents may consult with their union, if applicable, about representation in an investigation process.

  Examples of support people include:

  • Friends
  • Family members
  • Elders
  • Trusted colleagues
  • Union stewards
  • Business agents

  Homewood Health and other resources

  To make sure you have support for your well-being when you’ve experienced harassment or disrespectful behaviour, you can reach out to Homewood Health External website, opens in new tab, our employee family assistance program. Homewood provides confidential professional services for health and wellness. They are available 24/7 at 1-800-663-1142. Dial 1 if you need crisis care.

  You can also explore other mental health and well-being resources for all staff and managers.

  Support for managers addressing incidents within their teams

  If you have questions about an incident or concern that a staff member has raised, or need support, reach out to your HRC. They can provide guidance or suggest team-based remedies such as group training initiatives. HRCs will also support exempt managers in conducting investigations.

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  Privacy and confidentiality

  Not everyone who raises a concern to their manager, Human Resources, or the Equity Office wants to participate in additional steps to address their concerns. Some staff may only want support and information that will assist them in dealing with the current situation or future similar situations. You are always encouraged to reach out to talk to your manager or supervisor, your department’s HRC, the Equity Office, or your union representative, to discuss your options. 

  However, depending on the seriousness of the concern and the risks posed to individuals and the work environment, we may be required to address the situation, even if you choose not to make a complaint. If this occurs, the Chief Equity Officer or Chief Human Resources Officer may appoint an investigator or take other reasonable action regarding the incident. You would be advised before an investigation is initiated, and will not be identified as a complainant. To the extent possible, your name would not be disclosed. However, there may be circumstances where you may need to be identified in order to address the allegations or as required by law.

  In investigations, we balance the rights of the respondent and complainant, which is why details on potential corrective actions or discipline will not be shared with the complainant. It’s important that anyone involved in investigations or restoration processes maintain confidentiality.