Program Summary:
This 1.5 day session approaches the investigation of harassment complains from a number of perspectives - the employer's responsibilities under the collective agreement, WorkSafeBC and the BC Human Rights Code, as well as the essential elements of a fair and thorough investigation.
Significant focus is placed on skills development through interactive practice sessions that will prepare participants to conduct full and proper investigations, including avoiding common mistakes,. Critical areas of focus include assessing credibility, dealing with conflicting evidence or testimony, and finding ways to corroborate or refute allegations in the absence of witnesses and/or where the stories conflict.
Participants will receive instruction in how to prepare a harassment report; we include direction on report structure, content and reasoning. This session also includes an update on outstanding issues, recent decisions, and the Dorsey report disclosure process.
In view of the current COVID-19 landscape, we will be offering this course via Zoom. Particpants will be supported and coached online as they work through exercises and sector specific case studies to enhance the learning.
Instructors
Debbie Craig, Director, Labour Relations, BCPSEA
Debbie is a seasoned practitioner with 20 plus years of experience in the field of human resources and labour relations. Debbie has worked for crown corporations and various public sector environments. Debbie worked for many years with the City of Vancouver in various HR and LR roles, including working as the Director of Labour Relations. Debbie joined the Education Sector in 2007 as the Director of Labour Relations for the Surrey School District. Debbie spent 7 years in her role with Surrey Schools overseeing the correct interpretation/application of several collective agreements, grievance and arbitration work, investigating allegations of employee misconduct and harassment, as well as participating in collective bargaining processes. Debbie joined BCPSEA in April of 2017 as a Director of Labour Relations providing advice and support to several member school districts as well as overseeing BCPSEA’s Learning Series. Debbie has a degree in liberal arts and in business from Simon Fraser University.
Alissa Perry
Alissa Perry is a lawyer with experience representing employers at arbitration, providing strategic negotiation and grievance management advice, developing and delivering training, and managing investigations. Prior to joining BCPSEA, Alissa provided labour relations and human resource services with a similar employers' organization in healthcare, and a large organization located in Calgary. At BCPSEA, Alissa provides labour relations liaison advice and assistance to a group of school districts as well as contributing expertise and advice on a wide range of labour relations initiatives.
Questions
If you have any questions please contact Donna Verones at 604 730 4501 or donnav@bcpsea.bc.ca.