Canadian HR Reporter

19 19 19 www.nationalhrawards.com We are delighted to congratulate our colleague Janice Rubin on being selected Employment Lawyer of the Year as part of the 2015 National HR Awards, sponsored by Canadian Lawyer magazine. We are so proud of you for receiving this well-deserved award. Optimal legal solutions to challenging workplace issues. rubinthomlinson.com (416) 847-1814 @RubinThomlinson Employment Lawyer of the Year Janice Rubin, Rubin Thomlinson T he scandal that rocked the CBC and shed light on the inner workings of the country's public broadcaster has not only made a lasting impact in the world of work, but in the legal realm as well. Ex-host of the popular CBC Radio show Q, Jian Ghomeshi was accused by a number of employees over the years of bad behaviour, including sexual ha- rassment — and his employer, it would turn out, created an environment that allowed such inappropriate behaviour to fester. Ghomeshi is also facing fi ve criminal charges of sexual assault (two have been dropped by the Crown prosecutor) and one charge of choking after a number of women came forward alleging violence and harassment. An investigation led by Janice Rubin, founding partner at employment law fi rm Rubin Thomlinson in Toronto, held up a magnifying glass to the allegations of harassment and a culture that allowed it to go unchecked. Her report turned up several disturbing fi ndings, including that management failed to address complaints about Ghomeshi's inappropriate behaviour, and that his high-profi le status garnered him special treatment. "CBC failed to live up to its obligations to provide its employees a workplace that is free from disrespectful and abusive behaviour," Rubin's report reads. "It is our conclusion that CBC management condoned this behaviour." Moments before her report was released earlier this spring, the national public broadcaster announced two of its executives would be let go — Chris Boyce, executive director of radio and audio, and Todd Spencer, executive director of human resources and industrial relations. Rubin also provided recommendations, including that the Crown corporation review behavioural policies, beef up its training efforts related to harassment and discrimination, and establish an ombudsperson and task force via the Canadian Media Guild (the union representing CBC employees). Now, in the wake of the scandal, Rubin says the implications for employers refl ect a recurring theme in most workplace investigations. "For me, the biggest lesson learned is that just because you're not hearing it doesn't mean it's not there," she says. "What we know from studies on the subject is that bad behaviour often goes underground. And many employees, in fact most, who experience harassment or other types of abusive behaviour at work don't report it... So if you are in a leadership position within an organization and you assume that all is well in the organization because you haven't received a formal complaint, your assumption may be wrong." Distilling key points from the investigation to create a logical narrative — while at the same time respecting the promises of confi dentiality that had been afforded to the participants — presented a specifi c challenge, says Rubin. Over the course of the fi ve-month investigation, she conducted interviews with 99 people, mostly in- person, but some via telephone or Skype. The witnesses included current and former Janice Rubin's CBC report put spotlight on workplace harassment By Sabrina Nanji CBC > pg. 20

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