Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (“the OHSA”), an employer is required to conduct an investigation that is “appropriate in the circumstances” when an incident of harassment comes to their attention. What qualifies as “appropriate,” and what happens when an investigation falls short, can sometimes feel a bit murky for the parties involved. Even if an investigation satisfies OHSA requirements, it may not meet the evidentiary standards applied in the workers’ compensation arena.
In Decision No. 1543/23, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (“the Tribunal”) had to grapple with an investigation process as it considered a worker’s claim for initial entitlement for chronic mental stress resulting from harassment that began in 2014. While the employer had conducted an internal investigation, the Tribunal had to effectively revisit the underlying events and assess whether workplace harassment had occurred in order to make a decision on initial entitlement.