The debate continues as to whether the Ontario Labour Relations Board has jurisdiction to hear harassment-reprisal complaints under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, but another Vice-Chair of the OLRB has said "yes".

As we wrote in another post, an earlier OLRB decision called Investia had suggested that because the OHSA does not require employers to prevent harassment – but only to have a harassment policy and program, to provide "information and instruction" to employees on harassment, and to post the policy – the OHSA does not protect employees who were dismissed for complaining about harassment.

Recent decisions of the OLRB, and now the OLRB's November 21, 2014 decision involving Celco Inc., have come to the opposite conclusion.  In the Celco case, an employee alleged that she had experienced continuing workplace harassment from a co-worker and had complained to the employer about it several times.  She said that the employer took no action, but rather dismissed her from her employment the same day she complained to the employer about harassment.

Vice-Chair Derek Rogers of the OLRB stated:

"The applicant has asserted that she sought to have the responding party investigate and deal with her complaints and that she sought enforcement of the Act by making her reports.  For the purposes of the responding party's motion and at this stage of the proceedings, that is sufficient in the Board's view . . . According to the applicant's allegations, there was a very close temporal nexus between the applicant's raising issues about what she alleged as 'workplace bullying' by a co-worker (by then promoted to a supervisory position over the applicant) and the notification by Celco that the applicant's employment was terminated.  The timing of the 'without cause' termination of employment and the allegation that there was no rationale offered other than that the applicant was not happy at Celco are sufficient in the Board's view to support the proposition that Celco should be called upon to explain its position regarding the employment termination."

As such, the OLRB permitted the employee to advance her complaint that she was retaliated against for complaining about harassment, and that that retaliation violated the OHSA.  The OLRB rejected the employer's request to dismiss the complaint at an early stage.

One lesson from the decision is that wherever there is a risk that the employee will allege that her dismissal was in retaliation for her raising safety concerns, the employer should, in the termination letter, provide a clear and supportable non-retaliatory rationale for the termination.  By not offering a rationale, the employer may encourage a presumption that the employee was dismissed in retaliation for raising safety issues.

Ram v Celco Inc., 2014 CanLII 74839 (ON LRB)

For more information, visit our Occupational Health & Safety Law blog at www.occupationalhealthandsafetylaw.com

About Dentons

Dentons is a global firm driven to provide you with the competitive edge in an increasingly complex and interconnected marketplace. We were formed by the March 2013 combination of international law firm Salans LLP, Canadian law firm Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP (FMC) and international law firm SNR Denton.

Dentons is built on the solid foundations of three highly regarded law firms. Each built its outstanding reputation and valued clientele by responding to the local, regional and national needs of a broad spectrum of clients of all sizes – individuals; entrepreneurs; small businesses and start-ups; local, regional and national governments and government agencies; and mid-sized and larger private and public corporations, including international and global entities.

Now clients benefit from more than 2,500 lawyers and professionals in 79 locations in 52 countries across Africa, Asia Pacific, Canada, Central Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Russia and the CIS, the UK and the US who are committed to challenging the status quo to offer creative, actionable business and legal solutions.

Learn more at www.dentons.com

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances. Specific Questions relating to this article should be addressed directly to the author.