Canadian Employment Law Today

Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2015 ing "dictatorial authority." e employee wrote to the fellowship the next day to say she was being harassed in the course of her employment. e senior pastor was suspended from his position with the Evangel Chapel and the fellowship's superin- tendent took over his duties. e fol- lowing week, he emailed the employee and asked her not to attend the church service — to which the pastor had been asked to attend — because it was "best to keep your head down until things are settled." e employee replied that she wished to be at the service. employee isolated despite validation of complaint At that week's service on June 30, the con- gregation was told the pastor had been suspended and the pastor spoke, saying he would return as soon as possible. e em- ployee interrupted the service and asked for an apology, which led to several people yelling and arguing. e church later re- ceived complaints about the conduct of the employee and the youth pastor. On July 5, the church suspended the employee for 10 days with pay for dis- respecting church leadership, failure to control her temper in the work environ- ment and inconsistent work hours. e employee wasn't interviewed before the suspension was imposed. e employee refused to accept the suspension and continued to run the youth program out of her home. She emailed the acting chairs of the church board to describe the activities she planned and continued to perform her custodial duties at the chapel. is raised concerns with members of the board over liability if anything happened to the children attending the program. e employee also filed a complaint with the province's Workplace Safety and Health, claiming harassment. e fellowship also officially informed her of the results of the charge against the pastor on July 26, recognizing he vio- lated her confidence and her allegations against him were true. Workplace Safety and Health issued an improvement order to the church on Aug. 23, noting the church didn't have a harassment prevention policy in place. e same day, the employee was dis- missed and given 10 weeks' pay in lieu of notice. A few days later, she filed a dis- criminatory action complaint to Work- place Safety and Health, which was later dismissed. e employee appealed to the Manitoba Labour Board. e labour board found the written warning, paid suspension and dismissal were discriminatory actions under the provincial Workplace Safety and Health Act on the part of the church because the employee "gave information about workplace conditions affecting the safe- ty, health or welfare of any worker." However, the labour board found the church could prove that its decision to is- sue a written warning was based on real concerns about the employee's conduct at work, not her complaint. is was not the same for the suspension and dis- missal, which were influenced in part by the employee's provision of information about workplace conditions affecting her health and safety, said the labour board. e labour board pointed to evidence that the acting head of the church board admitted the complaint to Workplace Safety and Health "added fuel to the fire" in the consideration of reasons to fire the employee. e acting head also said the termination decision was "part- ly influenced by the church board's de- sire to get back at the (employee) for her complaint about the pastor's conduct which, she claimed, constituted work- place harassment." However, due to the employee's con- duct — such as her defiance of the susp- sion, for example — the labour board found reinstatement wouldn't be a good solution, so it ordered the church to pay the employee $3,500 for interfering with her exercise of rights under the act — $1,500 for the suspension with pay and $2,000 for the dismissal. For more information see: • F. (D.). and Chapel, Re, 2014 Carswell- Man 814 (Man. Lab. Bd.). March 18, 2015 | Canadian Employment Law Today AbOuT THE AuTHOR JEFFREy R. smITH Jeffrey R. Smith is the editor of Canadian Employment Law Today. He can be reached at jeffrey.r.smith@thomsonreuters.com, or visit www. employmentlawtoday.com for more information. cRedit: PhotogRaPhee.eu/ShutteRStock

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