Grimsby code of conduct a case example for Region: Bentley
How Grimsby handled a harassment issue with its heritage advisory committee can be a model of how to deal with code of conduct issues for the entire region, says the town’s mayor.
“I think it can be an example, especially these days when Donald Trump is president and attack politics work. But that is really not a path to long-term success,” said Bob Bentley. “The Region is dealing with a revised code of conduct now, but I can tell you, I would be in favour of a unified code of conduct across Niagara. Our council would endorse it, too, because we believe that we, as councillors are held to a higher standard. And that does not just apply to the council and staff, but also to our residents (on town committees).”
Last Monday, Grimsby council released a report to explain, to an extent, why it dissolved its heritage committee last fall.
The report says last August a staff member sitting on the committee made an allegation of harassment.
The report does not lay out the details of the alleged harassment — citing privacy regulations — but Bentley said harassment and bullying had come to a point where town staff did not want to attend meetings.
“We have an obligation to provide a safe work environment, and if that environment is disrupted by harassment and bullying, we have to act,” Bentley said.
The mayor said because the complaint came from a staff member, it would a conflict of interest for the town to conduct the investigation.
The report says the town hired Employers’ Choice Inc, to investigate the allegation.
The company’s report, given to town council last September, said that “immediate action was called for” to “rectify an unsafe working environment that had been created with the Grimsby heritage advisory committee,” the town report says.
Bentley said Employers’ Choice said the town had three options — remove one member of the committee, remove several members, or dissolve the committee and re-form it at a later date.
“We determined that the removing some members would not have solved the problem,” Bentley said. “The tone would have still been there on the committee, so council voted to dissolve it.”
Bentley stressed the entire advisory committee — which was made up of six volunteers, two councillors and town staff — was not to blame.
“There were some very good people on that committee, with real expertise and a passion for our history. We take our history very seriously in Grimsby,” he said. “I hope to have some of those people back.”
The town report does not include the Employers’ Choice report or disclose the precise details of the alleged harassment or who was involved.
“Most or all of the information in such reports should normally remain private because they contain personal and confidential information that should not normally be released to the public,” the report says.
In June, the town began taking applications from citizens to join the new heritage committee. Bentley said the deadline is quickly approaching and a new committee will be formed soon.
He said the incident is a demonstration of how a municipal government should handle conduct issues.
For the town’s code of conduct to be effective, Grimsby’s town council had to investigate the complaint and take the advice of experts seriously.
“Harassment and bullying will not (be), and is not, tolerated,” Bentley said. “You don’t bring in an expert and then hum and haw.”
Niagara’s regional council has been trying to revise its code of conduct for more than a year. On July 7, the issue was deferred by regional councillors to the fall.
A recommended code of conduct, drafted by interim integrity commissioner John Mascarin, was never debated by the full council. Two members of the Region’s procedural bylaw committee — Grimsby Coun. Tony Quirk and Niagara Falls Coun. Selina Volpatti — made extensive revisions to the document. During the July meeting, Quirk said it was obvious his fellow councillors were of the opinion that the bylaw committee got it wrong, and the entire effort to revise the code was deferred until a new commissioner is hired in the fall.