Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER November 16, 2015 NEWS 9 military resumés, it's important to look not only at the content but also the context.'" Benefits for employers So what exactly are the benefits to the employer? "e program enables employ- ers to increase their diversity and enhance the existing military support programs that they have in place. And I think also, it gives people out there in the business world a bit of access to what is re- ally a closed shop — an organiza- tion that can sometimes be a bit difficult to access," said Ludlow. e military delivers a plethora of valuable training that's highly transferable to other employ- ment opportunities, according to Kelly. "We deliver leadership train- ing, teamwork, resiliency, they're physically fit, they're mentally agile, they understand complex problems and they've dealt with great degrees of difficulty. In many cases… a number of reservists (have the opportunity) to work their way around the world on different missions," he said. "Just imagine you, as an em- ployer, get a 23-year-old person who's been somewhere complex, they've had hard jobs, they've al- ready learned to be a junior leader, and they bring those skills to your workplace." Reservists come with an im- pressive slate of skills and abilities, said Ludlow. "ey come with tremendous skills and experiences, including leadership, personnel manage- ment, mentorship, coaching, the ability to analyze complex situa- tions, decisiveness, loyalty, disci- pline, accountability and I think, most of all, the ability and the de- sire to work on high-performing teams," he said. "So these are absolutely the kind of people that nowadays or- ganizations seek to have become part of their teams." Skills, loyalty provided RESERVISTS < pg. 3 Ontario WSIB facing fraud allegations BY LIZ FOSTER A LAWSUIT filed against Ontar- io's Workplace Safety and Insur- ance Board (WSIB) is alleging the unlawful dismissal of Brenda Ste- innagel, a doctor, is indicative of a broader pattern of fraud within workers' compensation. Before she was fired, Steinna- gel worked for Workplace Health & Cost Solutions (WHCS) in Vaughan, Ont. Steinnagel provid- ed medical consultations to assist WSIB case managers in adjudicat- ing claims. Steinnagel consulted on claims to determine whether workers' injuries were connect- ed to a workplace accident and, therefore, eligible for benefits. In a statement of claim filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Steinnagel alleged WSIB attempted to coerce her to change her medical opinion about an injured worker. When she re- fused to do so, WSIB pressured WHCS to fire her, she said. "In a desperate effort to reduce claims paid out, WSIB and WHCS have been conspiring to deny legit- imate claims in a shocking display of arrogance and corruption," read the statement of claim. "ey pres- sured Dr. Steinnagel over a period of months to reverse her medical opinion on a high-cost case. When she refused, she was fired." Contractors — including WHCS — were given orders to reduce the number of claims paid out to workers, even if that meant benefits may be unfairly denied, according to the claim. "Even more disturbing, this fraud upon the public has been repeated by WSIB and WHCS in other cases." Because WSIB oversees a roster of doctors approved to carry out its assessments, Steinnagel alleged she is now effectively unemploy- able in her field. She is seeking more than $1.3 million in damag- es from the WSIB and more than $1.8 million from WHCS, as well as a declaration she was wrong- fully terminated. WSIB and WHCS denied the allegations: "ere is no truth to Dr. Steinnagel's allegations and we deny acting wrongfully in any way," said WSIB senior public af- fairs consultant Christine Arnott. "e WSIB will vigorously defend the lawsuit." e board receives more than 200,000 new claims each year. It says upwards of $2.6 billion in benefits are paid out annually. Because the issue is still before the courts, WSIB declined to pro- vide any further comment. WHCS also declined to com- ment, with Gred McGinnis — a lawyer at Mathews, Dinsdale & Clark in Toronto representing WHCS — saying only "Steinnagel is an apparently disgruntled for- mer employee of WHCS, who has brought an action against WHCS and WSIB following the end of her employment. The claims she has made about improper conduct are without merit, and we have brought a motion to the court to strike out many parts of the claim." e motion to strike much of the claim was to be heard in court on Oct. 26, with the lawsuit itself expected to follow in November.

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