Charges of Discrimination and Harassment between PSAC Members and Filing a Grievance against the Employer
Last updated March 2021
This document summarizes procedures for Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), Postdoctoral Associates (PDAs) and Members in Good Standing of Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Local 610 who experience discrimination or harassment from any other member of PSAC, or who wish to file a grievance against the Employer for violating the Non-discrimination and Harassment policy. The purpose of this summary is to provide a greater transparency about these respective processes. However, each situation is unique, and many procedures may vary on a case-by-case basis. While this document specifically applies to PSAC members (often in the context of PSAC meetings, communications, or employee-employer relations), if you have experienced or witnessed discrimination and/or harassment at Western Unviersity, we encourage you to contact Equity and Human Rights Services (EHRS) for support, additional information, or to request a consultation. Further information about the actions outlined in this document should be directed to staffpsac610@gmail.com.
Members of PSAC
Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), Postdoctoral Associates (PDAs), and Members in Good Standing are employed by the University as GTAs or as PDAs and are currently registered as students in SGPS, or have held a GTA or PDA position within the current academic year (for more details, see Section 2 of the PSAC Bylaws).
Charge of Discrimination or Harassment within PSAC
If a member of PSAC is harassed or discriminated against by a fellow member of PSAC (e.g., in contexts including but not limited to general, stewards, executive or committee meetings, or if persons involved are all TAs), the Complainant is required to draft a charge in writing that includes the section(s) of the constitution or bylaws (e.g, Section 3) that have been violated, evidence about the alleged incident, witness names and contact information, and any other pertinent information for the case.
The charge should be submitted in writing to the appropriate executive body (most often the Local President, but see the chart at the end of this document for more information). The appropriate executive body will review the charge(s) and determine whether an investigation is warranted. If not, the decision can be appealed to the Regional Executive Vice-President (for more detailed instructions on how to do so, please contact PSAC).If an investigation is determined to be warranted, the appropriate executive body will create an internal or external review committee consisting of three executive members to investigate and assess the charges. If there are conflicts of interest with executive members, departmental stewards will be recruited to the committee (general members are not allowed to serve on investigative committees). Once a charge is filed, the lead investigator is trained by PSAC on how to conduct an investigation while the remaining investigative committee members are given instructional reading material. The Complainant will be notified of who sits on the investigative committee and be given the opportunity to raise objections.
The Respondent will be provided with a copy of the charge(s) against them. The committee will review the original charge submitted to the appropriate executive body and any accompanying evidence from both the Complainant and Respondent (including written evidence or names of witnesses). The committee will then conduct interviews with both the Complainant and Respondent during the investigative process. Both the Complainant and Respondent may have a support person in attendance at their interviews, but must speak for themselves (i.e., support persons may not answer interview questions directed at the Complainant or Respondent).The committee will determine whether the PSAC constitution or bylaws were violated. If not, no further action will be taken. If the allegations are founded, the committee will draft an investigative report that includes a finding of fact (i.e., a description of evidence that proves a violation has been committed) and a recommendation of disciplinary action (if any). Either way, the recommended action will be voted on and subject to two-thirds acceptance of those in attendance at a special or general meeting of the board of governors. The Complainant and Respondent will be provided with a copy of the investigative report, and a copy will be stored in the Office of PSAC Local 610 and/or the Office of the Regional Executive Vice-President.
If disciplinary actions are accepted, the appropriate executive body will communicate the decision to the Respondent along with instructions regarding how to appeal the decision. If disciplinary action involves suspending or expelling membership in PSAC, the appropriate executive body will notify the Regional Executive Vice-President as such.
Filing a Grievance against the Employer
Article 20 in the Collective Agreement between UWO and PSAC Local 610 states that employees (PSAC members) have the right to work in an environment free of discrimination or harassment. Should a member of PSAC believe they have been harassed or discriminated against by an Employer (i.e., any professor or department administrator), the following may occur.
Before a grievance is filed, the employee will be asked to participate in an informal discussion with a person designated by the Department, School or Faculty. In the Psychology Department, these individuals are Elizabeth (Lisa) Drysdale, Elizabeth Hayden, and Kim Baxter. In this meeting, the employee MUST be accompanied by a PSAC representative (typically the Local President and the chief steward of the faculty). PSAC members SHOULD NOT initiate these proceedings without a PSAC representative involved in the process. If the employee feels uncomfortable participating in the informal discussion, a PSAC representative may take their place. The presence of a support person other than PSAC representatives at these meetings must be approved by both PSAC and the University and must be requested in advance of the meeting.The request for an informal discussion must be brought to the attention of a person designated by the Department within 9 months (for discrimination/harassment related violations) or 21 days (for violations other than discrimination/harassment, e.g., not being assigned a GTA when promised, not being paid for overtime, etc.) of the incident that spurred the initiation of the grievance process, or if the problematic behavior is recurring, 9 months or 21 days (depending on the nature of the violation) since the most recent incident. These are hard deadlines. An informal discussion will take place within 5 days of the person designated by the Department being contacted. Following this discussion, the person designated by the Department may draft a written reply within 5 days of the discussion, that includes details about whether the matter is resolved or not. PSAC considers a matter resolved if the violation of the collective agreement is entirely fixed (e.g., a PSAC member was promised a TAship but was not assigned one, the resolution would be assigning a TAship to the member). Most issues are resolved in the informal discussion stage.
If the matter is unresolved following the informal discussion, the employee will consult with their PSAC representative to fill out the Grievance Form, including the facts of the grievance, the Article(s) of the Collective Agreement allegedly violated, and the relief sought. Once the grievance is signed by the employee and the PSAC representative, the PSAC representative (not the employee) will submit the grievance to the Dean of the Faculty within 10 days of the informal discussion.Within 10 days of receipt of the grievance, the Dean will meet with the employee, up to two PSAC representatives, and up to two Employer representatives to discuss the grievance. The Dean will draft a response within 7 days of this meeting describing whether the collective agreement was violated and if so, the steps to be taken to address the grievance.
If the grievance remains unresolved (e.g., if the violation of the collective agreement is not fixed), the grievance may be submitted (by a PSAC representative) to the person designated by the Vice-Provost of SGPS (at present this person is Linda Miller) within 7 days of receipt of the reply from the Dean. Again, within 10 days of receipt of the grievance, the person designated by the Vice-Provost of SGPS will meet with the employee, up to two PSAC representatives, and up to two Employer representatives to discuss the grievance. The person designated by the Vice-Provost of SGPS will draft a response within 7 days of this meeting describing whether SGPS intends to correct the grieved actions, or outline their reasons not to. If a resolution is not agreed upon, the grievance may be submitted to Arbitration (by a representative of PSAC) within 30 days of receipt of the response by the person designated by the Vice-Provost of SGPS, otherwise the grievance shall be deemed terminated. The arbitration process is not summarized here. Please refer to Article 11.4-11.22 for more information on the arbitration process.
Miscellaneous
The time limits mentioned above for grievance actions are fixed. They may only be extended by the mutual written consent of both the employee(s) and the Employer.
It is possible to file a group grievance, meaning the same grievance claimed by multiple employees. Each employee may sign the grievance, however, only one employee may be present at the informal discussion and each subsequent stage of the grieving process. Ideally, the same employee would be present at each stage of the process.If an employee believes the Employer to have violated the Collective Agreement but desires to remain anonymous, the Union may notify the Employer of the alleged violation, at which time the Employer may notify HR to investigate the matter further.
Summary
In summary, when a PSAC member is harassed or discriminated against by a fellow member of PSAC, they may submit a charge to the appropriate executive body of PSAC (often the Local President). When a PSAC member is harassed or discriminated against by the Employer, they may file a grievance.
Contact information:
PSAC Local 610: staffpsac610@gmail.com, 519-661-4137, Somerville House Rm 1313
PSAC Local 610 President: Wes Robinson, prespsac610@gmail.com
PSAC Local 610 Administration Chair: Ryley Yost, admnpsac610@gmail.com (for questions concerning the PSAC Bylaws, Collective Agreement or the grievance process)
Sources:
Collective Agreement between UWO and PSAC Local 610
Western University Policy 1.35: Non-Discrimination/Harassment Policy
Procedure for Policy 1.35: Non-Discrimination/Harassment
Bylaws and Articles Related to Discrimination and HarassmentBylaws for UWO Teaching Assistants and Postdoctoral Associates Union Directly Chartered Local 610 of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (amended June 25, 2020)
3.4. Entitled to be free from any act or omission on the part of the union, or other members, that would discriminate against the member on the basis of age, sex, colour, religion, national and ethnic origin, race, marital status, family status, criminal record, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, language, political belief, social and economic class or employer;3.5. Entitled to be free from harassment within the union and in the workplace, on the basis of any ground mentioned in sub-section 3.4.
Collective Agreement between UWO and PSAC Local 610 (valid from Sept 1, 2017 - Aug 31, 2020)
Article 20: Non-Discrimination/Harassment20.01 The Employer and the Union are committed to a working and learning environment that allows for full and free participation of all members of the institutional community. Discrimination against and harassment of individuals, whether as members of any recognizable group or otherwise, undermine these objectives and violate the fundamental rights, personal dignity and integrity of individuals or groups of individuals.
20.02 This article is in accordance with all applicable federal and provincial legislation related to discrimination and harassment such as the Ontario Human Rights Code. It also applies to those situations defined as Workplace Harassment and Workplace Violence under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The Safe Campus Policy (M.A.P.P. 1.46) as amended from time to time should be consulted whenever there are concerns about violence in the workplace including domestic.20.19 A member alleging a violation of this Article may seek resolution through University’s Policy on Non-Discrimination and Harassment, and shall also have the right to file a grievance in accordance with Article 11.
20.20 Nothing in this Article precludes the University from conducting an investigation into an allegation of Discrimination or Harassment. The university shall notify the Local Union President of any investigation into an allegation of Discrimination or Harassment made against a member. In all other such investigations involving members, they shall be notified of their right to have Union Representation prior to any meeting with the university.20.22 There shall be no reprisal or retaliation nor any threat of reprisal or retaliation against anyone for pursuing rights under this Article or Collective Agreement, or for participating in proceedings under this Article or Collective Agreement. Any such alleged reprisal or retaliation or threat thereof shall be equivalent grounds for laying a complaint under this Article.
Determining the Appropriate Receiving Body for Disciplinary Charges
