Workers comp claims on P.E.I. expanding to include psychological harm from harassment as of Jan. 1
CBC
Victims of work-related bullying and harassment will soon be able to make claims to P.E.I.'s Workers Compensation Board, as employees receive training in how to handle them starting in the new year.
Eligible injuries include the fallout from any kind of repeated inappropriate behaviour that could affect someone's psychological health, whether online or in person.
Coverage for psychological injuries suffered in the workplace has existed since the 1990s — including compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder — but people couldn't make claims related to psychological harm from harassment.
That will change beginning Jan. 1, said Allison Wyatt, the WCB's director of claims and compensation.
"Inappropriate behaviour in the workplace, gossip, spreading rumours, discrimination of any kind — there are a number of different things that happened in the workplace that could constitute harassment," she said.
"We know that work-related harassment and bullying is a work issue throughout P.E.I., throughout other provinces, and the expansion of this coverage is to provide support to those workers who require it."
Compensation could include back pay for time lost away from work or coverage for medical help, she said.
The WCB has been trying to raise awareness by visiting job sites and talking about the issue. Officials say if someone feels they're being harassed, they need to report it to their employer and file a claim with the board. Employers must legally follow up on those complaints.
Jeff Morley, a psychologist based in B.C. who specializes in workplace psychological injuries, said many of his clients are first responders.
"What brings most first responders in is not trauma from bad things on the street. It's often trauma and conflict within the office — being harassed, being bullied, being shamed in the meeting, being stabbed in the back, having their work sabotaged."
Research shows many workers experience some form of harassment or abuse at work, and the WCB expects to be busy with new complaints. Staff have received months of training in preparation, Wyatt said.
"Work-related injuries and illnesses are not limited to physical harm, and this change reflects our ongoing commitment to recognizing and addressing the mental health needs of the Island workforce."
Morley sees the new type of compensation as a positive move, but said it's not always easy to submit a harassment complaint against a colleague or a supervisor.
There have been four collisions involving transport trucks in northwestern Ontario in three days, prompting renewed calls for action to address ongoing safety concerns along Highway 11-17.
Ontario’s Progressive Conservatives will huddle behind closed doors at a policy convention this weekend as some Tories question the party’s direction after nearly eight years in power.
The father of a three-year-old girl that was killed after being struck by a vehicle in Cambridge in mid-December says recent charges laid to the driver bring little comfort and relief.
The start of kindergarten can be a time of excitement or anxiety for parents, guardians and children — and also for Prince Edward Island's education officials as they try to staff schools appropriately.
Nunavut Nukkiksautiit Corporation (NNC)’s proposed hydro project is facing some backlash in Pangnirtung.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre will take to the stage Friday for what could be one of the most important speeches of his political career as he tries to convince delegates at the party's Calgary convention to keep him in the job.
As his flight departed from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport en route to Kuwait via Istanbul, Canadian crypto fugitive Andean Medjedovic was unaware that his globe-trotting lifestyle would soon be halted.
One of the largest taxi companies in Toronto will be down to three wheelchair-accessible cabs by the end of March, as advocates and providers say the city is failing to support accessible taxi drivers.
As a deep freeze continues to envelop southwestern Ontario at the same time municipalities deal with a pressing shortage of road salt, there's a renewed focus on finding different ways to melt road ice.
Dave Lawson is a proud Canadian who has bumper stickers that say "Canada is not for sale." He's fed up with grocery products plastered with maple leaves and patriotic logos that turn out to be American imports.
The Town of Badger has issued an evacuation order for some residents as water levels on the Exploits River continue to rise.
The head of a national seniors' advocacy organization says protecting nursing home residents from sexual abuse is an important but challenging issue.
New data shows Winnipeg's fire-paramedic service fielded hundreds of reports involving the city's homeless population, but one advocate says she expects that number to go down in light of the city's limits on where encampments can be.