Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER November 28, 2016 22 INSIGHT ROOM FOR TWO TRENCIN, SLOVAKIA — The shovelling prowess of two brothers was on display recently when they won a grave-digging competition at an international exhibition of funeral, burial and cremation services. Ladislav and Csaba Skladan, 43 and 41 respectively, beat out 10 other two-member teams from Slovakia, Poland and Hungary, according to Reuters. "I had to focus on speed today but usually, when the weather is nice and I can chat with my brother, it's a dream job," said Ladislav. eir grave was also the neatest, according to a fi ve-member jury. It's about both showing and appreciating the hard work of grave diggers, said Ladislav Striz, who established the contest last year. "Most Slovak graveyards are so crowded and spaces between graves so narrow that we need human diggers instead of machines," he said. " ey work hard, come rain, come snow." SNAKE ON A PLANE MEXICO CITY — Air travel has its challenges, but most passengers aren't expecting venomous crea- tures to be a problem. at's what happened on a recent Aeromexico fl ight en route to Mexico City when a green snake was seen slithering along the overhead bin, according to Reuters. A video clearly shows the reptile crawling up by the lights and eventually dangling from its tail, almost falling to the fl oor. Me- dia reports suggested the snake was a venomous green viper, and the airline said it was working to determine how the reptile entered the cabin. Understandably, air traf- fi c controllers gave the plane prior- ity to land. MAGICAL COMMUTE LONDON, U.K. — Looking to brighten up the commute of workers, two London-based tele- com companies were offering a ride to the offi ce in "unicorn"- drawn carriages for three days in October. e white horses with multi-coloured manes, "horns" and hooves pulled "unicabs" with room for four lucky passengers. "Fancy riding a unicorn to work? We thought so," said a post from ree, which partnered with ZTE to "inject a little sparkle" into commuters' day — and celebrate the launch of a new smartphone. JEEVES IN A CASE SAN FRANCISCO — One of the worst parts of travel — aside from snakes — is lugging luggage around. But one company has come up with a solution: A robot suitcase. e device will stick close to you, moving as fast at 10.8 kilo- metres per hour, and navigate past obstacles and through crowds, ac- cording to the Mirror. e robot, created by Travelmate Robotics, works in a similar way to autopilot systems found in Tesla cars by au- tomatically fi nding the best routes. If stolen, it will take appropriate measures to get back to its owner. And since it's fi tted with a GPS, the owner can use an app on her phone to track the case's location. "We've made a robot that can learn on the fl y in real time, navigate compli- cated obstacles and even become something that you trust and have aff ection for," said a spokesperson. "We've made a robot that doesn't look like something from Termina- tor or from the Matrix. Instead, it's a practical companion that helps you and acts as an extension of yourself." e robot is available for about $540. W EIRD ORKPLACE THE Vol. 29 No. 20 – November 28, 2016 PUBLISHED BY Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd. Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 ©Copyright 2016 by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. CANADIAN HR REPORTER is published 21 times a year. Publications Mail – Agreement # 40065782 Registration # 9496 – ISSN 0838-228X Director, Carswell Media: Karen Lorimer - (416) 649-9411 karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com EDITORIAL Publisher/Editor in Chief: Todd Humber - (416) 298-5196 todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com Editor/Supervisor: Sarah Dobson - (416) 649-7896 sarah.dobson@thomsonreuters.com News Editor Marcel Vander Wier - (416) 649-7837 marcel.vanderwier@thomsonreuters.com Employment Law Editor: Jeffrey R. 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Address changes and returns: Send changes and undeliverable Canadian addresses to: SUBSCRIBER SERVICES Canadian HR Reporter One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd. Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 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 Who pays the mental health bill? A s the stigma falls away from mental health in the workplace, employ- ers and governments are facing a massive bill — and, surprise, it appears nobody is remotely in- terested in footing it. Earlier this month, the Toronto Star reported the details of a complaint filed with Ontario's ombudsman over the Work- place Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB)'s rejection of benefits for workers with chronic stress claims. On the surface, the rules seem pretty straightforward. e WSIB's operational policy manual on "Traumatic Mental Stress" states workers are entitled to benefi ts if the stress is "an acute reaction to a sudden and unex- pected traumatic event arising out of the course of employment." So what does that mean? Ac- cording to the WSIB, a sudden or traumatic event could include witnessing a fatality or a horrifi c accident. Or being the victim of an armed robbery, hostage-tak- ing or physical violence. Death threats also make the cut, as does harassment that includes threats of violence or being placed in a life-threatening situation. But stress that comes "as a result of the employer's em- ployment decisions or actions" doesn't count. For example, being fi red. It's stressful, but it certainly doesn't give rise to workers' comp benefi ts. Nor does a demotion, a transfer or discipline. With growing recognition of the toll mental health issues can take, though, it's getting harder to justify limiting compensation to sudden and unexpected trau- matic events. Workers who are subjected to prolonged verbal harassment and bullying from supervisors can also develop se- rious psychological issues — but the WSIB doesn't want to pay for it. Nor do employers, either through workers' compensation premiums or others costs such as short- and long-term disability. The Star quotes Wendy Knelsen, who was diagnosed with chronic post-traumatic stress that developed over years due to "on- going bullying and harassment by her supervisors" in her civilian job at the fi re department in London, Ont. Her claim was rejected by the WSIB and, despite a decade of ap- peals, she doesn't have an answer. "Basically, dealing with the sys- tem has been horrifi c," she said. "It's intimidating. It's diffi cult to get answers, and they are untrained for dealing with mental stress." On rare occasions, benefits have been awarded in circum- stances that don't count as sud- den or unexpected. Earlier this year, Canadian Employment Law Today outlined a decision involv- ing an educational assistant (EA) in Ontario who worked with spe- cial needs children. "The EA was targeted by an eight-year-old student who kept assaulting her," wrote Jeff rey R. Smith, editor. " e student had been prone to violent outbursts for some time, but things esca- lated over a three-month period to the point where the EA was as- saulted every day. Finally, she had a breakdown and went off work." Her claim was initially denied — it didn't fi t the mold — but she was awarded benefi ts on appeal. e rulings of the appeal tribu- nal are case-specifi c, though, and don't change policy. at means workers are left to fi ght expensive and time-consuming David and Goliath battles. And that's sort of the genesis of the complaint fi led with the ombudsman — lodged by three Toronto-based legal clinics, a private practice lawyer special- izing in workers' compensation and Ron Ellis, retired chair of the WSIB's independent tribunal, ac- cording to the Star. It calls into question the treat- ment of workers with chronic mental stress injuries, and says the practice of denying benefi ts is dis- criminatory and unconstitutional. It's an interesting conundrum — most people recognize the se- riousness of mental health issues. Most employers are receptive to the idea psychological safety is as important as physical safety. Yet when the dreaded doctor's note arrives stating a worker is on stress leave, backs go up. Ques- tions are raised. Benefi ts are de- nied, and victims are left feeling like mental health is a lip service bandwagon to jump on but not to actually (gasp) use. Don't expect the fi nancial side of the equation to change anytime soon. WSIB's 2015 annual report highlights that it has been aggres- sively attacking its very public unfunded liability. By the end of this year, it expects to be at 80 per cent of its target of eliminating the liability — that's six years ahead of schedule. Opening the door to benefi ts for workers who suff er from chronic mental health issues caused by non-traumatic workplace inci- dents will undoubtedly kill the ledger the WSIB is so proud of — and don't expect altruistic em- ployers to ride to the rescue. Most fi rms already think premiums are far too high. Pick whatever idiom you like — Pandora's box, the genie is out of the bottle — but courts are going to increasingly award compen- sation. Workers' comp schemes across the country are eventually going to have to start paying ben- efi ts on a much larger scale. If you ever needed a business case on why you can't tolerate that bully of a manager just because he gets results, this is it. Because the costs are going to be outrageous. KNOCKING ABOUT LONDON, U.K. — Signs at museums often say, "Please don't touch," but one waiter didn't quite get the message when he or she accidentally knocked the thumb off of a Roman statute at a London museum, according to the Telegraph. A spokesperson for the British Museum said it took the "unfortunate incident" seriously but said the famous "Townley Venus" had been fully restored by con- servators and the work was "straightforward." e statue, described as "one of the British Museum's most important Roman sculptures," dates from the fi rst or second centuries A.D. and is a marble copy of a fourth-century B.C. Greek Venus. Named after collector Charles Townley, it was found in Rome in 1775 and sold to the museum in 1805. "We have taken the incident seriously and have retrained all individuals responsible for events," said a museum spokesperson, adding staff have been reminded to be "fully practiced in moving themselves around historical objects" while being "always conscious of the potential risks." Credit: Kamira (Shutterstock) Signs at museums often say, "Please don't touch," but one waiter didn't quite get the message when he or she accidentally knocked the Telegraph. A spokesperson for the British Museum said it took the "unfortunate incident" seriously but said the famous "Townley Venus" had been fully restored by con- servators and the work was "straightforward." e statue, described as "one of the British Museum's most important Roman sculptures," dates from the fi rst or second centuries A.D. and is a marble copy of a fourth-century B.C. Greek Venus. Named after collector Charles Townley, it was found in Rome in 1775 and sold to the museum in 1805. "We have taken the incident seriously and have retrained all individuals responsible for events," said a museum spokesperson, adding staff have been reminded to be "fully practiced in moving themselves around historical objects" Credit: Kamira (Shutterstock)

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