Harassment Free Workplace Statement

Students for Barrier-Free Access is a Harassment Free Workplace

As outlined in the Ontario Human Rights Code discrimination and harassment are illegal and SBA employees and volunteers reserve the right to refuse communication and all interactions with members if they feel threatened and/or unsafe. Workplace harassment and discrimination limits  their right to fully participate in a safer work environment and ensure that disability centered programs, events, and spaces can continue to run. In order to ensure that all communication remains respectful and safer for employees, SBA is committed to a harassment free workplace.

There shall be no harassment of the Employees by any other SBA members. Harassment shall be defined as conduct that violates SBA’s Points of Unity, principles which actively works to create an anti-racist, anti-imperial, anti-classist, anti-homophobic, anti-transphobic, anti-sexist, anti-misogynist, anti-ableist, anti-sanist, anti-ageist space that challenges settler colonialism, state violence and state terrorism, and other forms of systemic and institutionalized oppression. SBA challenges racism, xenophobia, classism, ageism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, misogyny, mysoginoir, transmysoginy, ableism and sanism, Islamophobia, discrimination on the basis of religion/spirituality, and institutionalized oppression directed at our employees. Any conduct that is vexatious in an employment setting, such as but not limited to:

  • Unwelcome remarks, jokes, innuendoes, slander or taunts about a person, in person, via mail, social media, email, telephone calls, or voice mail;
  • Insulting gestures or practical jokes of a nature which cause awkwardness, embarrassment or offence;
  • Offensive comments and/or actions which demean, humiliate or threaten an individual or group;
  • Verbal abuse such as publicly and continuously berating the staff regarding their work/event organizing
  • Displaying graffiti offensive pictures or written material – mail, email;
  • Leering, smirking (suggestive staring);
  • Unwanted attention of a sexually oriented nature, stalking, fondling, patting, kissing;
  • Emotionally coercing staff to change a program, event, or scheduling beyond SBA’s collectively planned program, event, or scheduling
  • Refusing to talk to, or work with, a person by reason of any of the prohibited grounds;
  • Demands for sexual favours or unwanted sexual overtures;
  • Implied or expressed promise of reward for complying with a sexually oriented request;
  • Implied or expressed threat of reprisal, actual reprisal, or the denial of opportunity for the refusal to comply with a sexually oriented request;
  • Sexual assault – Any non-consensual, sexual, violent physical and emotional act involving psychological manipulation, coercion, or physical force. Such contact may include rape (sexual intercourse – oral, anal or vaginal involving another person without that person’s consent or cognisance), anal or genital penetration with or without object, or the touching of an unwilling person’s intimate parts (genitalia, groin, breast, buttocks, chest or clothing covering them) or forcing an unwilling person to touch another’s intimate parts. Persistent unwanted contact or attention after the end of a “consensual” relationship.
  • Physical assault/abuse- hitting, slapping punching, kicking, pushing or harming one in any way. Forced feeding of undesired food and medications, throwing objects, or throwing employees on chairs, tables, floor, wall etc; confining, holding or preventing one from leaving or entering; ‘outing’ one at work, to family, associates, or government agency.
  • Behaviour which may reasonably be perceived to create a negative working environment; and
  • Reprisal or threat of reprisal against any griever, witness or any person involved in the investigation of a grievance under this Agreement.
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