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Previously printed in the LexisNexis Labour Notes Newsletter.
A recent decision of the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal (the "Tribunal") demonstrates how important it is for employers to take meaningful and immediate action in response to complaints of sexual harassment.
In Knowles v. Ontime Moving Corporation, 2025 BCHRT 183, the employer's failure to act reasonably and promptly in addressing an employee's complaint of sexual harassment resulted in a finding of discrimination and an order that the employer pay close to $65,000 in damages.
Facts
Ms. Knowles began working at Ontime Moving Corporation ("Ontime") in April 2019. Shortly after she was hired, she started to be subjected to repeated sexual harassment by a male co-worker. That harassment included sexual innuendo, inappropriate touching, derogatory language, and an incident where the co-worker lowered his pants in front of Ms. Knowles.
By November 2019, Ms. Knowles was prepared to leave the company because of her co-worker's conduct. However, Ontime convinced her to stay and arranged a meeting between Ms. Knowles and the co-worker, in which he promised to stop the sexual harassment. However, his misconduct did not stop. Ms. Knowles reported that to her then manager, who simply told her to "be strong".
In July 2020, Ms. Knowles met with Ontime's new manager to report the sexual harassment. She told the new manager that she did not feel safe at work and could no longer work alongside her co-worker. The following day, the manager had a 20-minute conversation with the co-worker. After that short meeting, the manager told Ms. Knowles the co-worker would not "do it anymore", he would come into the office more frequently to monitor the situation, and she should not tell anyone what happened because it could make the company look bad. Ontime did not conduct an investigation or take any steps to protect Ms. Knowles in the workplace. As a result, she felt she had no choice but to resign from her employment.
Decision
The Tribunal found that Ontime discriminated against Ms. Knowles in her employment. The Tribunal reaffirmed that as the employer, Ontime was legally responsible for the co-worker's conduct.
Further, the Tribunal found that the company was aware of the conduct since the summer of 2019 and failed to take effective steps to address it. The Tribunal noted that when Ms. Knowles reported her complaints, the company did not take them seriously and did not conduct any investigation beyond a brief conversation with the co-worker. Aside from a commitment to be more present in the office and "monitor" the situation, the manager took no steps to protect Ms. Knowles in circumstances where she reported that she had endured harassment over a long period of time and no longer felt safe.
Moreover, the Tribunal noted that the company did not have any clear policies in place about how to report sexual harassment and no education for management or staff about their human rights obligations.
The Tribunal ordered the company to pay nearly $30,000 in lost wages and $35,000 in damages for injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect. The Tribunal found that Ontime's failure to respond reasonably to restore Ms. Knowles to a discrimination-free work environment left her unemployed, suffering significant mental health injuries, and even homeless for about six months.
Takeaways
This case highlights the steps an employer must take to address complaints of sexual harassment. These include, without limitation, maintaining current bullying and harassment policies, implementing regular training, providing a safe workplace for employees by taking their complaints seriously, and promptly investigating complaints of sexual harassment. A decision to simply "monitor" the situation will not suffice. Failure to move swiftly to investigate complaints of sexual harassment can lead to significant (and expensive) consequences.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
