Health unit spent $135K investigating workplace harassment in last 4 years

The Middlesex-London Health Unit has spent $135,000 in the last four years investigating workplace harassment or an internal toxic work environment, documents obtained by CBC News show. 

In 2020 alone, the health unit paid almost $70,000 to Schroeder Law, a London firm that focuses exclusively on workplace conflict and employs investigators and lawyers who deal with workplace harassment, violence, discrimination, bullying and human rights abuses. 

Other external firms were hired by the health unit to conduct investigations in each of the last four years, the documents show.   

"It's a lot. You have to wonder, what is the missing piece in their policies and processes and how they handle their culture, and what is this doing to their overall environment," said Jann Danyluk, a London-based workplace human resources investigator with Ford Keast Human Resources.

Danyluk has worked in the field for more than 20 years, and was speaking to CBC News generally about workplace investigations. She is not familiar with what led to the investigations at the health unit, but said the number of investigations raises questions. 

"Do they have solid relationships, do they have a management that takes things seriously? Do they follow all the health and safety guidelines, is there training and education in place so that people can do their jobs?" 

CBC News requested records pertaining to money spent by the health unit or its board of directors on workplace harassment or toxic workplace investigations from 2018 to 2021. The records show: 

• $9,910 to Beresford Dispute Resolution in 2018
• $42,375 to Schroeder Law in 2019
• Another $3,390 to Schroeder Law in 2019
• $69,495 to Schroeder law in 2020
• $9,764 to Corporate Investigation Services in 2021. 

There are others investigations, but the health unit said it would not disclose them under a provision of the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act that protects documents that fall under solicitor-client privilege or that could be used to give legal advice or be used for a law suit. 

Legal obligation to investigate

Matt Reid, the chair of the health unit's board of directors, which oversees workplace investigations, said he could not comment on the nature of the investigations because they are personnel matters. 

"MLHU takes seriously its legal obligation to investigate workplace allegations. There are often costs associated with doing so," Reid said in a statement. 

The health unit currently has 870 employees. Before the pandemic, it had 308. 

Dr. Alex Summers has been filling in as medical officer of health since November 2021, when Dr. Chris Mackie began a leave of absence for unspecified reasons. Mackie was hired as medical officer of health and CEO of the health unit in 2013. In July 2020, the CEO role was taken over by someone else. 

Under Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act, employers have a duty to investigate if there's a complaint about harassment or if they become aware of concerns about harassment, said London lawyer Mihad Fahmy, who conducts independent investigations for workplaces. 

Some employers choose to do an internal investigation, but many use a third-party investigator because they have expertise and are neutral, Fahmy said. 

"It's very nuanced. Oftentimes, a complaint is very generalized, such as 'I'm experiencing bullying' or 'I am anxious all the time,' and the investigator has to speak to the complainant about specific examples, has to talk to different witnesses, trying to contextualize what is going on," Fahmy said. 

Pandemic increases tension

The price tag of an investigation doesn't mean the harassment was particularly egregious but rather that many witnesses needed to be interviewed and the investigation and subsequent report was complex, Fahmy and Danyluk said. Investigations are supposed to be finished within three months, but can take up to six, Fahmy said. 

Both Fahmy and Danyluk also said the pandemic has increased tensions and harassment, even in places where people are working remotely. 

"When you think about the way we're experiencing how we're communicating with each other, the day-to-day that might smooth over the relationship is lost and you're left with disjointed pieces," Fahmy said. 

Bullying behaviour has risen, Danyluk said. "I think there's a higher level of sensitivity because we're all on edge," she said. 

Employers are legally obligated to investigate, Fahmy added. "The fact that they investigate doesn't mean that the complaint has been substantiated, but whether there is a formal complaint or not, if they become aware of something, they can't turn the other way," she said. 

The larger the organization, the more likely that there will be harassment complaints and investigations, Danyluk said. 

"With #metoo and people coming forward in the media, people are being braver and coming forward more," she said. "There used to be a time where you either sucked it up or quit and go to a better environment. It takes a lot of courage to come forward." 

If an employee isn't satisfied with how the employer has handled a complaint or investigation, they can get the ministry of labour involved. 

CBC News has asked the ministry of labour if provincial investigators have been sent to the health unit for harassment complaints and will update this story when that information becomes available.