Grievance Case Summary - G-507

In 2002, the Grievor participated in a workplace consultation run by four facilitators with employees from two sections at the request of the officer in charge. The Respondent was the coordinator and chief officer of the consultation session. During the session, some employees disclosed that they were afraid of the Grievor, who was seen as an instigator of conflicts. The Respondent shared these concerns with the Grievor's chain of command. At the end of the session, the team prepared a report that was sent to participants and the officer in charge. This report included information about the employees' concerns regarding the Grievor. The officer in charge discussed the report with the Grievor and told him that there would be no administrative investigation. Following an access to information request, the Grievor submitted a grievance against the Respondent alleging that he failed to respect his obligations as a facilitator and did not respect the principle of natural justice.

The ERC found that the Grievor respected the time frame set out in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act since he submitted his grievance within 30 days of obtaining information through an access to information request. The ERC also found that the Grievor did not demonstrate the relevance of two of the emails requested, and that these emails did not have to be disclosed.

The ERC supported its findings in file ERC 2200-03-006 (G-352) concerning this same consultation session in which it determined that the Respondent did in fact respect his obligations as a facilitator. Furthermore, in the context of the consultation session, the Respondent had no obligation to verify the participants' observations or give the Grievor an opportunity to respond to the allegations. However, the ERC believes that session had some problematic aspects. Regardless of whether there was a duty to act fairly, the consultation session would have been more transparent if the Grievor had been given the opportunity to hear the concerns about him and respond to them before they were communicated to his superiors, and if these concerns had not been included in the final report. Nevertheless, the ERC believes that the Respondent acted within his mandate as a facilitator and did not aggrieve the Grievor.

The ERC recommended that the Commissioner of the RCMP deny the grievance.

The Commissioner has rendered a decision in this matter, as summarized by his office:

[TRANSLATION]

The Commissioner accepted the findings and recommendations of the ERC and denied the grievance.