Introduction
The 2020 WFCA Conference in Prince George had some illustrative discussions about harassment and assault within the reforestation and related sectors. This page came about as a result of the recognition of the need to improve practices within our industry, and a desire to provide a collection of online resources for planting companies and their employees. For background, please take the time to read THIS ARTICLE from the CBC, and THIS STATEMENT from the Western Forestry Contractors' Association website.
Types of Harassment
This page will be concerned with harassment, violence, and bullying. Let's start with some definitions.
Workplace Violence - The attempted or actual use of physical force against a worker, or any threatening statement or behaviour that gives a worker reason to believe that physical force may be used against a worker. Within the context of a reforestation operation, workers may be subject to workplace violence from co-workers, supervisors, managers, employers, clients, or even strangers who visit our worksites. Workplace violence includes obvious actions such as assaults. It also includes fairly obvious actions including shaking fists, wielding weapons, pushing, and throwing objects. Workplace violence also includes non-physical interactions, such as uttering verbal threats, or communicating verbal threats through mediums such as emails, direct messages, texts, or written notes. Although workplace violence can result in physical injury, it can also result in anger, depression, anxiety, guilt, and post-traumatic stress. Above and beyond the regulatory requirements of maintaining a workplace free of violence, employers have a vested interest because workplace violence can impact productivity, result in poor performance, and lead to increased absenteeism and turnover.
Workplace Harassment - Any objectionable or offensive behaviour that is known or should be known to be unwelcome. Harassment includes bullying or other similar conduct, plus comments or displays that threaten the health and safety of an employee. Harassment includes words or statements that are offensive, embarrassing, demeaning, humiliating, or intimidating. Harassment can include indirect remarks, name-calling, jokes or innuendos, and offensive pictures or texts or emails. Workplace harassment also includes sexual harassment, which is a specific category of harassment.
Discrimination - Any unequal, stereotypical, or prejudicial treatment of persons. The Canada Human Rights Act, and the various provincial human rights acts, were all created to protect workers from discrimination based on grounds such as race, religion, age, or gender.
Sexual Harassment - This can include unwelcome sexual suggestions, sexual advances or requests, sexual comments, inappropriate touching, or other conduct of an inappropriate and/or sexual nature. These types of actions create an uncomfortable and hostile work environment. These actions can occur in person, through written communications, through telephone calls, and through the sharing of inappropriate pictures, such as sexual photos or pornography. Consensual banter and consensual relationships are not considered to be harassment, as long as all participants agree. However, engaging in such banter or relationships can be a slippery slope. Consensual banter between two individuals becomes a form of harassment if a third worker overhears the comments or conversation and it makes them feels uncomfortable. Also, if one of the persons in a consensual romantic relationship changes his or her mind, and the other persists, then the situation becomes one of sexual harassment.
Sexual harassment includes any conduct, comment, gesture, or contact of a sexual nature that is likely to cause humiliation to an employee. It can be perceived by that employee as placing a condition of a sexual nature on current employment or employment opportunities. Sexual harassment makes someone feel uncomfortable and/or ashamed. Sexual harassment can be motivated by power, and is often one-sided. Sexual harassment is not necessarily considered a sexual offense unless there is physical touching involved. Sexual harassment does not have to occur on company property or during work hours to be considered sexual harassment. If someone is harassed because of their gender, it may still be considered sexual harassment.
Sexual Assault - Sexual assault is a criminal offense. An incident is considered to be sexual assault if someone touches you in a sexual way on purpose, directly or indirectly, without your consent. This includes penetration crimes (penetration of a body part by another body part, or penetration of a body part by an object). Sexual assault includes contact with genitalia, breasts, buttocks, or other intimate body parts. Sexual assault also includes exposure of genitalia, breast, buttocks, or other intimate body parts.
Consent - You have to be sober to give consent. Words and behaviours should be considered when giving consent. You have the right to change your mind; consent must be continual. If you'd like to watch an excellent three-minute video that explains consent, check out: Consent Is Like A Cup Of Tea
Abuse of Authority - This can include improper use of position of power or authority. This can occur simultaneously with sexual harassment, but it can also occur as a stand-alone form of harassment, if a manager discriminates or is treating a subordinate unfairly.
Reasonable Conduct - Any reasonable conduct of an employer to manage workers during the course of employment is not considered to be harassment. Reasonable actions include job assessments or evaluations, implementation of dress codes, disciplinary action, follow up on absenteeism, changes in work assignments, minor disagreements between co-workers, or coaching and constructive criticism.
Duty to Protect - Employers have a general duty to protect all workers. Employers must take every reasonable precaution to protect all workers within the workplace. Employers are required to do risk assessments for harassment and violence within the workplace, and must create a written code of practice for each in order to deal with these problems. Employers must ensure that the written codes of practice are readily available to all employees. It is recommended that employees be given written and digital copies of these documents at or prior to the commencement of employment, and also that copies are posted in readily visible locations within the workplace. It would be appropriate to post copies of these documents on a camp bulletin board, and also to have copies available in each of the work vehicles. Employers are also required to instruct, train, and supervise persons in order to keep all employees safe within the workplace. The employer's training progress must address the required codes of practice.
Discrimination - This is another form of harassment. Discrimination involves the unjust and unfair treatment of a person or group of persons based upon characteristics such as their race, religion, age, or gender identity. Discrimination can include racial slang, slurs, nicknames, negative stereotyping, jokes, innuendos, photos, or images. All forms of discrimination are inappropriate.
Indirect Harassment - Involves any pattern of unwelcome conduct that is not directed at a particular individual, but which results in an uncomfortable or hostile work environment. Indirect harassment also includes conduct/remarks or malicious gossip about an employee that is not directed at him or her at the time. If the employee becomes aware of demeaning remarks or gossip, and is adversely affected as a result, then such indirect comments may constitute workplace harassment.
Rights of Workers
Workers have the right to know about existing or potential hazards in the workplace. This includes the possibility of being victimized by workplace violence, harassment, sexual harassment, and bullying. Workers have the right to ask questions, and the right to receive information and training about safe working procedures. Workers have the right to refuse unsafe work. Workers have the right to participate in safety activities, including the identification of work-related hazards. In turn, employees have the obligation to follow all applicable laws, and must follow the employer's policies and procedures, including codes of practice. Employees are required to report work-related hazards, and to report incidents of violence and harassment.
Reporting
Often, when an incident of violence or harassment occurs, a worker may be reluctant to report it. This can occur for any number of reasons, including but not limited to guilt, shame, intimidation, fear, belief that the report will not be acted upon, privacy concerns, and other reasons. It is the company's obligation to provide a safe environment, so the employees then feel safe. If an employee does not feel safe, the company has failed. Employees need to be able to report their concerns. Employers should create strong reporting systems, with several alternative reporting options for the worker.
When a worker reports violence or harassment, they should be able to do so without the fear of reprisal or retaliation. The onus of safety falls upon the company, not upon the victim or complainant. The reporting process should include procedures for workers to report a supervisor, crew leader, or any other designated person within the camp/crew or within the company. The reporting process should include multiple reporting options, including external reporting. Reporting should be confidential. Reports should result in follow-up actions and recommended support.
It is important to note that any incident which may be deemed to be extremely serious, such as sexual assault, should not be investigated by the planting company. It should be investigated by the police. An internal investigation performed within the company could actually compromise the case, if it moves to the court systems. Serious investigations should always be left to professionals. If a company starts to investigate an incident and becomes concerned about the potential severity of the case, the investigation can be suspended and referred immediately to professionals.
When an employer investigates violence or harassment, the investigator should be competent, impartial, and objective. The investigation should be prompt, well documented, and confidential. If the incident(s) include possible criminal offenses, the police can investigate criminal offenses under the Criminal Code of Canada (these can include physical assault, sexual assault, and stalking).
Follow-up actions can include corrective measures such as verbal warnings, written warnings, suspension with or without pay, and termination. Police intervention may be warranted. Support measures for the victim might include emotional support and counselling, employee assistance programs (EAP's), post-traumatic incident response procedures, paid leave or paid days off, access to rides to town, access to a hotel room, and assistance with travel arrangements to return home. There are many more potential support measures, but these are a few good examples.
Employers must perform an annual review of their bullying and harassment policies and procedures.
Bullying
Bullying is another form of harassment. Bullying occurs when the bully exercises power over the victim, perhaps through unjustified criticism or humiliation. This imbalance of power can occur between managers and workers, or between co-workers. Bullying usually involved repeated and aggressive behaviour, and can be verbal or physical. Bullyingincludes any actions by a person [towards a worker] that a reasonable person would have known would make the worker feel humiliated or intimidated.
Gossip
Gossip is a form of indirect harassment. There is a very fine line between confiding in a friend and spreading gossip about someone, regardless of the validity. Workers should be able to confide in a friend for a support, but must also ensure that this confidence does not result in unwarranted gossip. If you hear gossip, and you feel comfortable and safe about speaking up, you can help to reduce gossip by telling the speaker that you don't want to hear it.
Identifying and Assessing Risk
One early warning sign for potential workplace violence includes what are known as "disruptive behaviours." Such behaviours can include: excessive emotional outbursts or mood swings, acting inappropriately, inappropriate comments, aggression, criticizing others, complaints of unfair treatment, constant arguments, change in tone of voice or volume, violation of personal space, disruptive behaviour while under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, reference to access to weapons, or disrespect for authority. With appropriate training and instruction, supervisors and crew leaders can learn to recognize these warning signs early. This will allow them to know how to respond, and how to best keep a situation from eventually escalating to violence. Awareness and open communication are important. Ignoring these disruptive behaviours rarely results in them fading away of their own accord.
An employer assesses risk by taking a careful look at the nature of the workplace, the type of work, and the conditions of work. In general, employers typical do this as an overview before the season starts, and come up with a major written safety plan, perhaps referred to as the company's Safety Management System (SMS). However, supervisory staff including camp managers and crew leaders also need to do risk assessments on a daily basis, and at each new worksite.
A person may experience workplace bullying and harassment outside of the traditional workplace. The boundaries of the work environment are not defined by location, but by whether or not the behaviour is in some ways associated with employment. In the traditional world, there are many examples of environments in which someone may experience work-related harassment, including business trips, conferences, office parties, and social gatherings. A remote work camp is still considered to be a workplace. Various forms of harassment can occur in remote work camps, and employers need to take efforts to eliminate these situations. Harassment can be significantly reduced with proper education and training of management and workers.
Responding to Violence
If you are physically attacked, call out for help if you can. Yell or scream loudly. If other people are in the proximity, make a scene. If you are being pulled or dragged, drop to the ground and roll, and try to escape and run to safety. If you are on the block, can you blow a whistle or horn, or call for help on the radio? After the incident, it is very important to consider informing co-workers and management immediately. Nobody is obliged to make a report. It is always up to the victim to decide whether they want to report the incident, and if so, whom they should report it to. If there are bystanders or witnesses, those persons have the ability to report to a supervisor or other appropriate representative of the company. It is up to the victim to decide whether or not they want to make a report to the police. Regardless of whether or not the police are notified, a written incident report can be filed with the employer. This type of report can be useful for future evidence, and is a good part of due diligence.
If dealing with a potentially violent person, there are a number of actions that you should follow. Focus on the person, and show interest. Remain calm, and try to calm the other person down (however, it is not constructive to say "calm down" or give what appear to be commands). Speak quietly and simply. Stand in a non-challenging manner. Listen carefully, and ask questions. Acknowledge how the person feels. Try not to stand too close to the person. Do not confront, challenge, or antagonize the person. Try to ensure that you have support from nearby co-workers, if possible, without making the situation appear threatening to the person causing the problem. Notify management at the earliest possible opportunity.
Prevention Measures
As mentioned already, harassment includes any objectionable or offensive behaviour that is known or should be known to be unwelcome. Harassment includes words or statements that are offensive, embarrassing, demeaning, humiliating, or intimidating. Harassment can include indirect remarks, name-calling, jokes or innuendos, and offensive pictures or texts or emails. Harassment typically occurs more than once, and often involves repeated words or actions, or a pattern of harassing behaviour.
An employer should come up with specific lists of prevention measures that protect workers. Depending on various hazards, it is usually possible to come up with options that either eliminate the risk, or at least reduce the risk (possibly through the use of engineering controls or administrative controls). This approach is valid for all types of safety hazards, but it is important to remember that prevention measures can apply specifically to reducing the chance of workplace violence and harassment. Management need to be trained properly, to ensure that workers understand and take advantage of prevention measures.
If you are harassed in the workplace, speak up and let the harasser know how you feel. Ask the harasser to stop. You should only have to do this a single time.
If you are harassed, document all incidents. Confide in a trusted co-worker or a designated contact person. All camps/crews should have at least two persons that are designated as listeners or contacting for reporting purposes. Report the incident. Your company should have a clear and detailed set of reporting procedures and options, which is accessible to all employees. The best approach is for the company to both reporting procedures and also to share copies of the procedures with each employee in printed and digital form. Know your company's policy and procedures. Ensure that an incident report is filed, either by submitting one yourself or asking a co-worker or manager to help you submit a report. Most importantly, do not blame yourself, and do not retaliate.
In most jurisdictions, it is mandatory for the employer to implement procedures for a worker to make a report to an appropriate investigator when the employer, supervisor, or person acting on behalf of the employer is the alleged bully or harasser.
Companies should attempt to discourage members of management from fraternizing with employees, and from entering into romantic or sexual relationships with employees. These types of relationships can include a power dynamic that could have catastrophic results if anything goes wrong.
If you see someone else being harassed at work, you should not ignore the issue. Report the incident to an appropriate person within the camp, to ensure that the incident comes to the attention of management. While reports cannot always be made anonymously, depending on the specifics of the incident, there should always be an option whereby you can make a report to a designated harassment and safety officer within the camp, who can then pass the report along to management in an anonymous manner. It is always important to speak up. If you say nothing, the harassment may continue, and the harassers will think that you agree with their actions. Lead by example and stand up for the victim. In most jurisdictions, workers are required to report bullying or harassment if observed or experienced in the workplace. For example, in British Columbia, this duty to report is enshrined in section 116(1)(a) of the Workers' Compensation Act.
You have the right to work in a workplace that is free of harassment.
Additional Resources
Bullying Canada - A resource organization. Visit www.bullyingcanada.ca or call 877-352-4497.
RCMP - A reporting agency. Contact the RCMP for complaints that involve physical violence and/or assault. Assault involves an imminent threat or attempt to physically touch or strike a person in an offensive manner, regardless of whether or not contact has been made. The RCMP does not accept criminal reports submitted digitally/online. You must report crimes related to harassment/assault to your local detachment. For emergencies, call 911. More info: www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/relationship-violence/information-sexual-assault-survivors
WorkSafe - A reporting agency. If you are a worker and have witnessed or experienced bullying or harassment in your workplace, you must report it to your employer. If your employer does not take reasonable steps to address the incident, you can call the Canadian Prevention Information Line at 1-888-621-7233 to talk to an officer. Let them know which province the complaint originated in.
Victims' Help Lines - VictimLink BC is 1-800-563-0808. Alberta's One Line is 1-866-403-8000. Ontario's is 1-888-579-2888. Google "victims help line" plus the province name for numbers in additional provinces.
211 - This is a nation-wide number (similar to 411 or 911) that works in all provinces, which is meant to provide information and referrals to health, human, and social service organizations.
Lawyer - A resource to help you pursue legal options. Visit www.cba.org/For-The-Public/Find-A-Lawyer and look for a lawyer in your area that specializes in Human Rights issues in the dropdown menu.
Human Rights Commissions - Each province has its own Human Rights Commission. For example, British Columbia has www.bchumanrights.ca - The Human Rights Commissions are reporting agencies that you may contact if you have a complaint about discrimination or harassment. In Alberta use www.albertahumanrights.ab.ca/Pages/default.aspx and in Ontario use www.ohrc.on.ca/en - you can google the links for each additional province.
NSDP - The Northern Society for Domestic Peace is a resource organization, and is also involved with awareness and training in planting camps. Visit www.domesticpeace.ca to learn about the many resources that they share.
Sharp Workplaces - Sharp Workplaces is another organization dedicated to eliminating workplace harassment, and is based in BC. There are a lot of resources on their website, and their organization receives financial support from the Canadian Department of Justice. Visit www.sharpworkplaces.org to learn more.