Police unveil workplace reforms But former officer fears actions to deter harassment fall short

While the city’s police commission praised the force for putting forth changes in how brass deal with workplace harassment, one former Calgary cop fears they don’t go far enough to protect officers brave enough to come forward.

Reacting to Tuesday’s CPS presentation on the force’s efforts to improve working conditions, former officer Jen Magnus says the report lacks the substance she was hoping for — particularly in terms of what independent oversight would look like.

“That was mine and our group’s biggest concern,” she said. “I spoke to some officers before the commission meeting — they’re still fearful coming forward with complaints, because they don’t know how it’s going to impact them.”

Inspector Mike Tillotson unveiled the new framework to address four priorities identified by the service. These are establishing an independent third-party advocate to assist employees in addressing concerns, strengthening the CPS respectful workplace office, opting-in to the City of Calgary’s existing whistleblower program, and conducting an independent audit of the service’s HR practices.

Magnus publicly tendered her resignation as a police constable during the commission’s January board meeting, citing ongoing harassment.

She’s one of 13 current and former Calgary police members who made public their intention to file formal harassment complaints, alleging a culture of bullying within the service.

“There’s officers that don’t even want to come to commission meetings because they’re afraid of repercussions they’re going to suffer if they’re seen there,” she said.

Establishing an independent advocate is the first step in a sevenpoint plan on gender equity put forward by the police commission.

Kathleen Fraser of the CPS respectful workplace office said inspiration for an independent adviser came from a similar program run by the Edmonton Police Service.

“What that offers is a very independent, confidential first look,” she said, adding it would permit employees to know where they stand in terms of options.

To that end, the advocate will have available neutral meeting spaces off-premises from existing police facilities to ensure the anonymity for those seeking help.

Culture is expected to be part of the independent review of CPS use-of-force policies announced last week — an inquiry to be headed by former Queens Bench chief justice Neil Wittmann.

Magnus cites a workplace harassment report issued last week by the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP, labelling bullying as a top-down systemic breakdown and criticizes senior officers for their “inability and/or unwillingness to make the organizational changes required” to correct culture within the national police force.

“I kind of feel that could be said about the Calgary police,” she said.

“The (CPS) executive are police officers — they’re not HR specialists, they’re not educators ... for them to implement this, it doesn’t make sense.”

Police chief Roger Chaffin said changes are needed in where and how sworn officers are used in key areas, saying the current deployment model has outlived its usefulness.

“Sworn bodies probably need to be closer to the operational relevance in terms of how the policing service is run,” he said, adding the situation is more complex than a simple one-for-one replacement of civilians for officers.

“I want to make sure our sworn people are where they need to be optimized, if we can bring civilians into certain areas to optimize those areas, then we should be doing that.”

A large challenge faced in implementing these initiatives, Tillotson said, is doing so within the confines of not only existing labour agreements, but also the Police Act.