Canadian HR Reporter

CanaDian hr reporter november 17, 2014 18 iNsiGHT WHAT'S NEXT, NO BREATHING? riChMonD, Va. — talk about a contradiction. Camel cigarette maker reynolds american will no longer allow employees to smoke in its offi ces and buildings as of next year, according to the associ- ated press. instead, the company will build indoor smoking areas for the 18 per cent of its 5,200-em- ployee workforce who indulge. "We believe it's the right thing to do and the right time to do it be- cause updating our tobacco-use policies will better accommodate both non-smokers and smokers who work in and visit our facili- ties,'' said spokesperson David howard. "We're just better align- ing our tobacco-use policies with the realities of what you're seeing in society today.'' But tobacco us- ers should not despair: Smoke- less tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes, moist snuff , milled tobacco called snus and eclipse, a cigarette that uses a car- bon tip to heat tobacco after being lit by a lighter, will be allowed. SCARY LABELS BentonViLLe, ariz. — Maybe they were tight on space? Walmart got into some trouble recently when a section on its website fea- turing halloween costumes was titled "Fat Girl Costumes." the collection of plus-size women's outfi ts showcased the usual selec- tion — a female vampire, saloon girl and witch — but the category title, for the brief time it could be seen, did not go over well on social media, according to Cnn. after twitter users complained, saying, for example, "truth in advertising, not always the best idea" and "re- ally @Walmart, who thought that would be an appropriate title for a public sales page? Come on," Wal- Mart took down the section and sent out several apology tweets: " is never should have been on our site. it is unacceptable and we apologize. We worked quickly to remove this." PERFECT FOR FLU SEASON StanForD, Conn. — if you think your fl u shot campaigns are getting a little stale, why not vivid- ly illustrate the germs involved by giving out stuff ed toys to employ- ees? Giantmicrobes makes a line of plush toys based on viruses and other microscopic organisms, and its entire ebola stock — includ- ing a small ebola doll for $9.95, a "gigantic" ebola doll for $29.95 and an ebola petri dish toy for $14.95 — are sold out, according to reuters. "Since its discovery in 1976, ebola has become the t. rex of microbes," says the Stam- ford, Conn.-based maker of the "uniquely contagious toy," which promotes them as gag gifts with educational value. e pretzel- shaped ebola toy is popular with the likes of the World health or- ganization, pharmaceutical com- panies and the american red Cross. other plush toys include anthrax, Botulism, Cholera and Dengue Fever. AN APPLE A DAY… JaCKSonViLLe — rejection is never easy, but it probably doesn't have to involve porn — especially if apple is involved. e tech giant, in responding to an application for its app store from Florida-based ngenWorks — which allows users to search photos from instagram — sent an email complaining it contained objectionable con- tent, according to FastCompany. "please see attached screenshot/s for more information." however, the screenshots were actually porn pics, including a man mas- turbating. "apple sent us pornog- raphy without trying to mask it and with no warning of what we were going to see. this means they exposed employees of my company to things apple them- selves said (were) objectionable. how is this acceptable?" said Carl Smith, founder of ngen Works, on his blog. if one of the company's employees sent out uncensored porn with no warning, she would instantly be fi red, he said. Smith hopes the "upper echelon" at ap- ple will look into the matter. " ere is a much better way to protect people from off ensive material. it starts with not violating your own policy," he said. W EIRD ORKPLACE THE Vol. 27 no. 20 – november 17, 2014 PUBLIsHEd BY Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd. Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 ©Copyright 2014 by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. canadIan HR REPoRtER is published 22 times a year. Publications Mail – Agreement # 40065782 Registration # 9496 – ISSN 0838-228X Director, carswell Media: Karen Lorimer - (416) 649-9411 karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com Publisher and editor: John Hobel (on leave) EdItoRIaL Managing editor/acting Publisher: Todd Humber - (416) 298-5196 todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com senior editor: Sarah Dobson - (416) 649-7896 sarah.dobson@thomsonreuters.com News editor: Liz Bernier - (416) 649-7837 liz.bernier@thomsonreuters.com employment Law editor: Jeffrey R. 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Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 ❑ From time to time, we make our subscriber list available to companies and organizations whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you do not want your name to be made available, please check here and return with your mailing label. cUstomER sERVIcE call: (416) 609-3800 (Toronto) (800) 387-5164 (outside Toronto) fax: (416) 298-5082 (Toronto) (877) 750-9041 (outside Toronto) email: carswell.customerrelations@ thomsonreuters.com LEttERs to tHE EdItoR todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com CHRR reserves the right to edit for length and clarity. todd Humber editor's notes The tipping point for men i t's not easy being a woman. i have zero experience at it but in reading the stories about Jian Ghomeshi and for- mer NfL running back Ray Rice, and watching video footage of a woman's experience walking the streets of New York city, i can't help but feel more than a bit of shame for how they are treated by men. Comedian Louis C.K. summed it up this way: "How do women still go out with guys, when you consider the fact that there is no greater threat to women than men? We're the number one threat to women. Globally and historically, we're the number one cause of injury and mayhem to women. We're the worst thing that ever happens to them. at's true. You know what our number one threat is? Heart disease." It was funny when he said it but the message behind his act is no joke. e upside to these stories is we're talking about the issues. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, as the saying goes, and Ghome- shi's story is getting a case of me- dia sunburn. At this point, there's just a swirl of allegations but, at press time, the Toronto police have become involved and are talking to the women who came forward. We examined some of the le- gal HR angles around the former CBC host's case on page 1 (see "Ghomeshi's legal HR quagmire") and employment lawyer and Canadian HR Reporter columnist Stuart Rudner weighs in on the union angle on the page oppo- site to this. But it's a fast-moving story, so keep your eyes tuned to www.hrreporter.com for regular updates. e catcall video If you haven't seen the video of the woman walking the streets of New York City, you should watch it — especially if you're a man. e video, which had at least 31 mil- lion views on YouTube at press time, shows what it's like to be a woman walking the streets, just minding her own business. Over 10 hours, actress Shosha- na Roberts is subjected to 100 cat- calls. Filmmaker Rob Bliss shot the footage from a hidden GoPro camera. His intent was to off er an "unbiased" look at what many women experience on a daily ba- sis, according to the Huffi ngton Post. "No messaging. No judg- ment. Let people view it as it is and talk," he said. e quantity of the comments aimed at Roberts is stunning. And the behaviour of some of the men is just creepy. We've all heard the odd comment directed towards a passing woman but to see it from her perspective, over and over again, is brutal. Some men followed her, walk- ing beside her. Others chastised her for not responding to their advances. It is fascinating, and uncomfortable, to watch. The most disappointing thing in all of this is it's not uncommon — many women are subjected to the same barrage on a daily basis while just going about their lives. Ray Rice Rice's saga is well-documented — we featured his story on the cover of the Oct. 6 issue. A running back for the NFL's Baltimore Ravens, Rice knocked his then-fi ancé out cold in an elevator. e NFL originally gave Rice a two-game suspension for the inci- dent. But with public outrage and the video showing him delivering the punch — and dragging her out of the elevator — the NFL stepped back and suspended him indefi - nitely. e public outrage was re- freshing to see, as was the NFL's ultimate response — though it's unfortunate it took so much pub- lic pressure to get the appropriate reaction. What we have are three uncon- nected stories on three separate topics — allegations of violence and sexual assault against Gho- meshi; indisputable video evi- dence of domestic abuse on Rice; and 10 hours of video showing a glimpse of what it's like to walk down the street as a woman. e tipping point on this should have come a long time ago. HRPA update On a completely diff erent note, you may have read our coverage of the new designations launched by the Human Resources Profes- sionals Association (HRPA) in the Nov. 3 issue. At press time, we didn't know the names of the des- ignations — the HRPA had yet to fi nalize them. An update: e Certifi ed Human Resourc- es Professional (CHRP) designa- tion isn't disappearing entirely. In- stead, it is becoming a junior-level designation (with no university degree requirement). e old CHRP is morphing into the Certifi ed Human Resources Leader (CHRL) designation. If you had a CHRP prior to Oct. 29 under the HRPA, you are now a CHRL. e senior-level designation — the Certifi ed Human Resources Executive (CHRE) — replaces the Senior Human Resources Profes- sional (SHRP) designation that used to be off ered by HRPA. So those are the new acronyms — in Ontario anyway — for HR designations: CHRP, CHRL and CHRE. WHERE ARE THE PRIZES? STEVENSON, WASH. — Teachers have it tough, no question, what with large class sizes and unruly students. But one Washington state high school teacher may have taken discipline a tad too far. e Stevenson High School science teacher used a "Wheel of Misfor- tune" to assign punishments for "low-level misconduct," according to Reuters. One option included being pelted with rubber balls by fel- low students. Cellphone footage posted online showed a student being hit by the balls as he shielded his face with a book. e spinning prop was considered "inappropriate but well-intentioned," said superintendent Dan Read in a letter to parents, and the teacher did not "desire to embarrass, intimidate or harm any student… Poor judgment by any teacher is concerning and we plan to work with the teacher on more positive and productive classroom management skills going forward." Zoey Zapfe, a 15-year-old sopho- more, told KATU News she was punished by the rubber balls after chewing gum in class. "I'm hoping she gets fi red because it was beyond humiliating." Credit: GoodMood Photo/Shutterstock — Teachers have it tough, no question, what to Reuters. One option included being pelted with rubber balls by fel- low students. Cellphone footage posted online showed a student being hit by the balls as he shielded his face

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