Report from the OH&S Canada magazine (June 2017)
A new investigation report from the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP has concluded that harassment, sexual harassment, bullying and intimidation are still thriving within the national police force and that reform by the federal is necessary to make lasting change.
Published on May 15, 2017, Report into Workplace Harassment in the RCMP states that the RCMP lacks both the will and the capacity to do what needs to be done to address occupational harassment and bullying.
“The time has come for the federal government to take responsibility to effect changes to the organization by modernizing and civilianizing key aspects of the RCMP’s administrative management and oversight,” Commission chairperson Ian McPhail, Q.C. states in the report. “Meaningful change will require sustained commitment from both the Minister of Public Safety and RCMP senior leadership, including instituting any necessary changes to the governance of the RCMP.”
In response to the report, federal Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale issued a statement saying that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had given a mandate to ensure that the RCMP was free from sexual harassment and violence.
“The issues identified come at a great cost – to the victims’ health and well-being, to the reputation and credibility of the RCMP and to all Canadians,” Goodale says. “The recommendations will be carefully reviewed and will inform further action to ensure that the RCMP is a healthy and respectful workplace.”
The following are among the report’s findings: the RCMP has failed to initiate comprehensive measures to deal with harassment; decision makers often consider irrelevant factors; lack of screening for harassment complaints may increase conflict; decision makers usually apply incorrect legal tests with prejudicial considerations; and decision makers receive inadequate training for harassment cases.
As a result, McPhail offers ten recommendations to deal with the situation including a new leadership culture, a modernized governance structure, clearer harassment-policy documents, a simplified definition of harassment for investigation purposes and independent administrative investigation to deal with harassment complaints.
My opinion
As the reader can see, the federal government needs to step in to make change in the RCMP. Too bad that the leadership in the RCMP didn’t understand the need to replace the harassing and bullying culture that still existed.
I am very satisfied to find out that there was civilian oversight. It is necessary to deal with the leadership running the RCMP with outside agencies.
This report was in 2017 and the changes were instituted a few years later.
The jury is still out on whether there have been drastic changes in the RCMP culture.
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