Question Period Note: HARASSMENT AND VIOLENCE IN FEDERAL WORKPLACES

Labour Program initiatives to address harassment and violence, including domestic violence, within the federally regulated sector.

The Government of Canada is taking steps to create healthier workplaces free from harassment and violence through the ratification of Convention ILO 190, and the enforcement of the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations (the Regulations), which came into force on January 1, 2021. This historic piece of legislation created a more robust and integrated regime to protect employees from harassment and violence in federal workplaces – including the federally regulated private sector, the federal public service, and parliamentary workplaces.

Under the Regulations, federally regulated employers, including Ministers, are required to take steps to prevent, protect against, and respond to occurrences of harassment and violence in the workplace.

Employers have specific obligations including: conducting a workplace risk assessment; developing a workplace harassment and violence prevention policy; developing or identifying training on harassment and violence; and, following a resolution process when responding to notices of occurrence.

In 2019, the Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Fund (the Fund) was established to support culture change related to harassment and violence in federally regulated workplaces. Seven new multi-year projects have begun this year.

According to a study published in April 2022 by Western University and the Canadian Labour Congress, over 71 per cent of Canadian workers have experienced at least one form of harassment and violence or sexual harassment and violence in their workplace in the last two years.

Mandate letter commitment

One of the priorities in the Minister of Labour’s December 2021 mandate is to “continue to support employers and unions to strengthen harassment and violence prevention measures in federally regulated workplaces”.

Bill C-65: Harassment and Violence Regime

Bill C-65 amended the Canada Labour Code to create a single, integrated regime to protect federally regulated employees from harassment and violence in the workplace. More specifically, the regime:

Expanded on the previous violence prevention requirements under Part II (Occupational Health and Safety) to ensure that employers take the necessary steps to prevent and protect against both harassment and violence in the workplace;

Repealed the sexual harassment provisions that were formerly found in Part III (Labour Standards);

Required employers to investigate, record and report occurrences of harassment and violence, subject to regulatory requirements;

Protected the privacy of employees who report occurrences of harassment and violence in order to encourage potential victims to come forward;

Narrowed the grounds for exemption from the establishment of a workplace committee;

Extended coverage of Part II of the Code to cover staff in ministers’ offices, also known as “exempt staff”;

Incorporated by reference Part II of the Code within the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act to ensure that parliamentary workers benefit from the same occupational health and safety protections as other federally regulated workers; and

Provided the Minister of Labour with the power to establish pilot projects to test new amendments under the Code to determine if they would lead to better outcomes for employees and employers.

In Budget 2018, the Government committed $34.9 million over five years, starting in 2018-19, and $7.4 million per year ongoing to support activities included in the regime under Bill C-65. This funding is being used to assist workplace parties in resolving harassment and violence complaints, operating an outreach hub to support employees, supporting enforcement activities, and funding other initiatives related to harassment.

Budget 2018 also contained several other measures to support victims of violence, including amendments to the Canada Labour Code to provide a total of five days of personal leave per calendar year, with the first three days paid, to workers in the federally regulated private sector for reasons including treating an injury or illness, caring for any member of a worker’s family or their health obligations, and managing any urgent situations that concern the worker or their family member. This paid leave builds on the 10-day unpaid leave for victims of family violence that was introduced in the Code and came into force September 1, 2019. This will assist employees in protecting their financial security while they seek support. Research shows that financial dependence is one of the most significant reasons why victims of family violence stay with or return to their abuser.

Enforcement of Harassment and Violence Regulations (Bill C-65)

The Labour Program investigates complaints regarding non-compliance with the Code and prescribed regulations, not occurrences of harassment and violence.

While investigations pertain to a specific complaint, inspections are used to determine compliance rates with the Code and Regulations in particular workplaces or industries.

Since January 1, 2021, monetary penalties can be issued when employers commit a violation under the Code or its prescribed regulations, including the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations.

Employers must report annually to the Head of Compliance and Enforcement with the aggregated data on all occurrences as outlined in the Regulations. The Labour Program analyzes the annual reports to determine higher-risk sectors and employers to inform compliance, enforcement, and promotion activities.

The inaugural annual report for the period of January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021 has been published online and is publicly available on Canada.ca.

The Canada Labour Code requires a review of the harassment and violence provisions every five years, starting January 1, 2026. This will provide an opportunity to evaluate the success of the regime and identify any potential improvements.

There are other measures put in place to support victims of violence, including guidance documents and a roster of investigators.

The Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Fund

The Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Fund (the Fund) provides $3.5M annually to projects aimed at creating safer workplaces that comply with the provisions and ensure physical and psychological health and safety for workers.

In 2019, the Fund supported multi-year projects that co-developed sector-specific tools, resources and training materials related to workplace harassment and violence for federally regulated sectors across Canada. We have reached workplaces in the marine, trucking, banking, performing arts, uranium mining, telecommunications, and air and railway transportation sectors, as well as workplaces in First Nations communities.

Seven new multi-year projects have begun this year. These projects expand the Fund’s sectoral and geographic reach within the banking, uranium mining, telecommunications, and air and railway transportation sectors, and Indigenous organizations. To date, the Fund has supported 14 projects across Canada.

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