Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER SEPTEMBER 2018 INSIGHT 31 Reader feedback on topical issues Flex work, medical marijuana, executive compensation prompt online commentary We get a lot of reader responses to our online content — whether it's news posts, blogs from our regular columnists or articles from the magazine. We love to hear from people "in the know" to get their take on the latest trends and issues facing human resources. Here's a sampling of commentary we've had recently: Re: Can disconnecting from work add to stress and anxiety? "I totally agree that knowing what is going on while away on vaca- tion can actually make the holi- day more relaxing. I just returned from a vacation overseas and was happy to answer a few quick emails and then get back to work- ing on my tan. As well, once I got more into vacation mode, I appre- ciated being CCed on some solu- tions that employees were able to receive from my colleague in my absence. Personally, I would not be able to totally unplug, and if my work was stressful enough to ruin my vacation then perhaps I would look for alternative employment." — Heather Shaw Re: Top 5 reasons you should let employees work from home "1. Show me a work-at-home par- ent with kids and I'll show you a working environment where 1,000 domestic interruptions and distractions are common. 2. Depending on how the work is allocated or production is measured, time spent working will lessen and production will diminish. With time, the imper- ceptible missing inches are sure to become yards lost. 3. Justifi ed entitlement (your per- ception of working longer and harder than you really are). It not only invites taking time for personal hair appointments, oil changes, grocery shopping, or picking up kids... that in turn not only creates cramming to meet deadlines, it threatens to create poor morale and bad blood. 4. Creativity spawns from interac- tion with others. Skype meetings don't generate electricity, stimu- late the mind or bond relation- ships like being in the same room with others. 5. The work-from-home model fosters a force of nameless and faceless workers who, with time, are fi nding face-to-face meetings an inconvenience and downright frightening. Since we already prefer emails and texts to mak- ing voice calls, do we really want to eliminate the last bastion of human working interaction?" — Guy Parent Re: Why Canadian insurers are wary of covering medical marijuana "Part of the issue with cannabis is the lack of knowledge in both the people in charge and the general public. So-called 'experts' in this article are referencing prescrip- tions for cannabis but doctors provide authorization, not scripts. Individuals decide which compa- ny, product and dosage they will purchase. Calling it marijuana and pot is also inappropriate. People and companies in this fi eld should ensure all communi- cation with the public is accurate and professional. Educate con- sumers on medical research ver- sus marketing materials, and why some people claim there is evi- dence and others say there isn't. It all depends on perspective on the standards and rigour involved in the current library of clinical trials." — Anonymous Re: More than half of HR managers have seen someone demoted: Survey "I have seen individuals demoted or even fi red from management positions mainly for performance or incompetency. As an HR man- ager, I feel this is due to a lack of training or preparation for a man- agement position. In most cases, we set people up to fail. I served almost 30 years in the military. With each new rank you were promoted to, you were only acting in that rank until you completed special courses includ- ing leadership courses and man- agement. If you didn't pass the courses, you went back to your old position until you were ready to assume your new responsibility. I think organizations should take a page out of the military's book. Fewer people will be put into positions that they are not ready for." — Dave McLaughlin Re: Quebec won't introduce tip-sharing mechanism sought by restaurant owners "Why do restaurant workers get paid less than minimum wage? Because they get tips, silly. Why do unionized workers get paid these outrageous salaries and pensions? Because they are unionized, silly. So you want to share tips, do you? I make the sale, I get the commission. The restaurant is a business. It does not share its profi ts with employees. Just as the employees are not responsible for poor management. So tell you what: Make mini- mum wage $20 an hour. If the res- taurant can't make it, then close. e only way restaurants make a profi t today is off the backs of slave labour. What is slave labour? Someone who does not get paid a living wage, yet is expected to assume the expenses of going to work. You know... like eating, hav- ing a place to sleep, transportation to and from work, to name a few. Hey, the employer is not respon- sible for that, right?" — Norman Birman Re: Pre-access drug and alcohol testing rejected in Ontario "I am both amused and disgusted by the massively over-invasive and overly sensitive safety poli- cies of most oil companies. ey talk about drugs and alcohol but nothing of supervision, and the 14-hour days for weeks on end. They wonder why things hap- pen while they sit at a desk or in a warm truck while workers toil in -35 C at 3 a.m. Alcohol is the least of the oil- patch's worries. Companies are so short-staff ed when it booms that barely-trained people are oper- ating dangerous equipment or working way too long. It is usually only when employees start refus- ing work that things get safer. ey need to train people for their job, not safety. Companies have to hold on to horribly inept workers because they have no one to replace them. Everyone has to take very redundant safety courses to just get in the gate, so pecking about little policies is just not going to have much impact." — Anonymous Re: Review of Hydro One pay to look at raises for board of directors: Wynne "In 1998, Ontario Hydro's pension fund was estimated at $1 trillion. It could not be used for operation and maintenance costs. It could not be used for debt retirement. e only way to get it was to retire with as huge a salary as possible. Ergo, everyone got huge wage increases. e retirement bucks maximum is 70 per cent of your best three years. CEO salaries went from $80,000 in the mid- 1990s to a peak of $12 million in the early 2000s. However, rate- payers are funding salaries until retirement. Moral? Ethical? You fi gure it out — especially if you pay a hydro bill." — Anonymous If you'd like to have your say, visit www. hrreporter.com and click "Add Com- ment" at the end of the article or blog. "I am amused and disgusted by the overly invasive safety policies of oil companies. They talk about drugs and alcohol, but not about supervision." Tim Mitchell TOUGHEST HR QUESTION What to do with an accused harasser Does the person actually have to leave the workplace, or are there alternatives? Question: What are the legally safe alterna- tives to placing an accused harasser on paid leave while a complaint is being in- vestigated? Should the individual be in the workplace at all? Answer: Employers are responsi- ble for dealing eff ectively, quickly and fairly with claims involving workplace harassment. It is pru- dent for every employer to im- plement workplace policies and procedures for making inquiries into allegations of workplace ha- rassment since these types of in- vestigations are often scrutinized by the courts. One common procedure for employers is to remove the ac- cused harasser from the work- place during an investigation in order to mitigate any escalation or further complications. An employer's power to remove the accused harasser from the workplace stems from the 2004 Supreme Court of Canada deci- sion Cabiakman c. Industrielle Alliance, cie d'assurance sur la vie. In this case, the court affi rmed that it is an integral part of any employment contract to suspend employees for administrative rea- sons because of acts of which they have been accused. is power, however, is lim- ited and must be exercised in accordance with the following requirements: • e action taken must be neces- sary to protect legitimate busi- ness interests. • e employer must be guided by good faith and the duty to act fairly in deciding to impose an administrative suspension. • The temporary interruption of the employee's performance of work must be imposed for a relatively short period that is or can be fi xed, or else it would be little diff erent from a resignation or dismissal. • e suspension must — other than in exceptional circumstanc- es that do not apply here — be with pay. If an employer opts not to place an accused harasser on adminis- trative leave and instead allows the accused harasser to continue to work, the employer runs the risk of complicating the investigation. e complainant and witnesses required for the investigation may not feel they can be forthright in their interviews when the accused harasser is just down the hall. Further, there may be a percep- tion the employer does not take the complaint seriously if opera- tions remain status quo. ere is the risk that employees will feel as though their safety is threatened by having to imme- diately face the accused harasser during the investigation. Since investigations often oc- cur promptly after a complaint is received, tensions are often higher and employees may fear escalation or retaliation from the accused harasser or other co- workers if he is not removed. If employers are unable to put the alleged harasser on adminis- trative leave or determine there is no risk to the investigation, nor risk of retaliation, the following practices may be implemented as an alternative to an administrative suspension: • Remove the complainant from the harassing environment. • Place the accused harasser on a diff erent shift schedule. • Prohibit communication be- tween the accused harasser and complainant. • Move the alleged harasser to another workstation or work project. Tim Mitchell practices management- side labour and employment law at Norton Rose Fulbright in Calgary. He can be reached at (403) 267-8225 or tim.mitchell@nortonrosefulbright. com. The employer must be guided by good faith and the duty to act fairly in deciding to impose a suspension.

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