Workplace Harassment + Workplace Violence

Recent amendments to Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) mean that “workplace harassment” and “workplace violence” need to be identified, assessed and controlled -- just as we would any other workplace hazard.

Further to the amendments, Confederation College has adopted the Campus Safety + Security policy, and the Reporting + Investigation of Incidents of Campus Violence procedure.

The Workplace Violence Prevention Program outlines how the College will identify, assess and control the factors associated with an elevated risk of workplace violence.

1.0 Legislation

The complete text of the amendments can be viewed at the Canadian Legal Information Institute at: https://www.canlii.org/en/on/laws/stat/rso-1990-c-o1/latest/rso-1990-c-o1.html

2.0 Definitions

Under OHSA, both “workplace harassment” and “workplace violence” have very specific meanings:

“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”.

“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; or, (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.”

3.0 Examples

Workplace Harassment Examples:

A staff member is repeatedly called offensive names and taunted in front of other staff by a co-worker.

A staff member posts a compromising photograph of a fellow worker on the internet for the purpose of causing ridicule among co-workers. Over a period of a month, the same photo is released in hard copy in the office, as a poster in the photocopy room and posted in a lunch room with various comments written on it.

Workplace Violence Examples:

A staff member states the following to his supervisor, “If you don't get off my back, you'll regret it.”

In an e-mail, an employee receives the following message from a student with whom he had an appointment earlier in the day: “You’re going to be sorry that you messed with me. You better watch your back. I’ll be looking for you.”

An Admissions Officer informs a prospective student that he cannot be admitted to a particular program. The individual becomes immediately aggressive, using loud profanities to address the staff member. Before leaving he slams his hands on the desk in front of the worker and, pointing at her with one hand, slowly moves the index finger of his other hand across his throat.

During a heated argument between a faculty member and a student over grades, the student pushes the faculty member up against a bank of lockers.

Two students engage in a verbal exchange that ultimately results in fisticuffs in a public corridor. A passing staff member witnesses the two students, now fighting on the ground, and proceeds to try to break up the fight. As he pulls one of the students off the other, the student, still swinging at the other student, punches the staff member in the face, resulting in a broken jaw.

4.0 Policy

The key points in the “Campus Safety + Security” policy are:

• all members of the College community have a right to an environment free of campus violence and the threat of violence,
• all community members who believe that their safety or security is threatened have a responsibility to report such circumstances,
• the College is responsible for investigating and resolving such incidents,
• prevention and education are cornerstones,
• prevention includes the identification, assessment and control of factors that contribute to a greater risk of workplace violence.

To access the College's Campus Safety + Security policy, click here.

5.0 Procedure

The College's Reporting + Investigation of Incidents of Campus Violence procedure identifies six key activities:

• requesting urgent and immediate assistance,
• reporting an incident of violence,
• implementation of interim measures + assistance to parties,
• investigation of an incident of violence,
• resolution of an incident of violence, and
• appeal procedures.

Reporting incidents of campus violence is the responsibility of complainants (“victims”); witnesses; and other persons having knowledge of the incident of campus violence.

Addressing incidents of campus violence is a shared responsibility, with the manager acting as the lead. The responsibility is shared by “stakeholders”: employees who have a “need to know” of a reported incident of violence in order to perform their duties. Campus Security Partners are one of the stakeholder groups. They act in a supportive role to the manager.

To access the College's Reporting + Investigation of Incidents of Campus Violence procedure, click here.

To view a diagram describing how incidents of violence are addressed, click here. (Note: This chart is intended to be printed on 11 inch x 17 inch paper.)

Incidents of workplace harassment and workplace violence are reported to the manager, who completes the following form with the employee: WH/WV Report.

6.0 Workplace Violence Prevention Program

To assist managers in identifying, assessing and controlling the risk of workplace violence, the College has developed the Workplace Violence Prevention Program.

The program consists of:

6.1 Identification + Assessment of Risks.

To facilitate the development of appropriate controls to address factors associated with an elevated risk of workplace violence, the College has developed two risk assessment tools.

6.1.1 Employee Survey and Risk Assessment. The first assessment tool was a mandatory survey, completed by all employees between March and July 2011.

By answering a series of questions, employees identified the risk factors for workplace violence that were associated with their specific work. (Survey respondents were required to identify themselves and their jobs on the survey.)

By asking employees what they had experienced, and what they had witnessed, the survey also helped us to understand the nature of workplace harassment and workplace violence in our workplace in the year prior to the survey.

Access to the on-line survey is now closed.

6.1.2 Managers' Workplace Violence Identification Survey. The second risk assessment tool is a mandatory survey for managers launched on June 3, 2011.

Having reviewed the results of their employees' surveys, and using their own knowledge of the work and the conditions of work, managers identify the specific risks of workplace violence in the workplaces over which they have control.

In Part B of the Managers' Survey, managers determine which factor(s) pose the most serious risk to employees, taking into account how much, or how often, an employee is exposed to a particular situation or conditions and the potential for harm that the factor represents.

6.1.3 Sharing Results. The results of the risk assessments will be shared with all employees, with Joint Health and Safety Committees, and with Health and Safety Representatives.

6.2 Control of Risks.

Working first with the factors that represent the greatest risk of workplace violence, managers examine controls to address those factors. In many cases, controls were already in place; in other circumstances, additional controls were identified.

6.3 Training + Instruction.

The OHSA amendments require that all employees be provided training and instruction on the policy, the procedure and the program to implement the policy.

All employees are required to complete mandatory training.

In addition, managers are responsible for ensuring that any instruction that is required further to the controls that are implemented in their specific workplaces, is delivered. For example, if “panic alarms” are used, the manager will be responsible for ensuring that the employees receive training in the use of such alarms.