How to report sexual harassment to your employer

If you’ve decided to report sexual harassment to your employer, this guide is for you. Here’s everything you need to know.

We’ll start with some background.

What is the law, who does it protect, and what does it require from employers?

In Saskatchewan, there are three laws that offer you protection from violence and sexual harassment at work.

The Saskatchewan Human Rights Code (SHRC) says that sexual harassment is against the law. It protects people from discrimination and harassment based on specific grounds, including sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Under the code, your employer is required to prevent and respond to sexual harassment in the workplace.

The Saskatchewan Employment Act (SEA) outlines the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees in Saskatchewan workplaces. Employers have the duty to ensure, where they reasonably can, that their employees do not experience harassment at work.

The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations (OHSR), which are outlined in the SEA, are all about safety in workplaces. The SEA and its regulations are the laws in Saskatchewan that protect workers from all sorts of hazards at work, including violence and harassment. Under the OHSR, your employer is required to have a policy with specific statements and commitments about harassment.

SEA and its OHSR, and the Human Rights Code work to protect you from sexual harassment.

Your employer has responsibilities under all of these laws.

Do the SEA and its Occupational Health and Safety Regulations apply in your situation?

The SEA and its regulations relate to the actions and behaviour of people in your workplace, including your boss, co-workers, contractors, customers, and clients.

The SEA and OHSR cover most workers. This includes:

• employees
• anyone who gets paid for providing services (including independent contractors)
• people who aren’t paid, but are part of a work placement program and being trained by the employer (like a co-op job, job shadowing, a research project, fieldwork, or an internship)
• volunteers

Who in Saskatchewan is not covered by the SEA and OHSR?

These are the exceptions of people working in Saskatchewan who aren’t covered by the SHRC, SEA, and OHSR:

• Workers at federally regulated workplaces such as post offices, banks, radio and TV operations, and airlines and airports. People in those industries are protected by the Canada Labour Code.

If you aren’t sure whether the SEA and OSHR apply to you, you can contact the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division, or WorkSafe Saskatchewan.

Does the OHSR cover sexual harassment related to your work that’s happening outside the workplace?

Yes! Employers are responsible for protecting you against workplace sexual harassment even if it happens outside of the workplace if there is a connection to work.

If you’re sexually harassed at a work event, while you’re working at home or online, while you’re travelling for your job, or even if a co-worker harasses you outside of work hours, your employer may be responsible for taking steps to ensure your safety.

To figure out if the harassment qualifies as work-related even though it’s happening outside your workplace, here are some questions you can ask yourself:

• Were you working or doing work-related tasks?
• Were you supposed to be there as part of your job?
• Did you do work or did anyone talk about work there?
• If it happened during an activity, like a work party, was the activity organized by your employer?

If the harassment happened online, ask yourself:

• Is the harasser someone you work with or who has a connection to your work, like a customer?
• Were there messages or posts about you shared publicly either on workplace platforms or outside of work?

What does the OHSR require from an employer?

Saskatchewan law requires employers to make it clear that sexual harassment and workplace violence will not be tolerated. Under the SEA/OHSR, all employers must have a written workplace policy on harassment and violence, regardless of the size of the workplace or number of workers. 

Workplaces are allowed to combine harassment and violence policies into one document, as long as it follows the OHSR rules. The policy should be posted in an easily accessible, plainly visible area, and a copy should be provided to workers.

The workplace harassment policy should include:

• How you can report harassment and the process for responding to it.
• How the names of the people involved won’t be disclosed unless it is necessary for the investigation or required by law.
• How an investigation will be conducted if the matter can’t be quickly resolved in a manner that is satisfactory to you.
• How you will be informed about the results of the investigation

See a sample workplace harassment policy.

If there is no workplace policy at your workplace, or if your employer isn’t following it, you can report that to the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division.

Who’s who when you report

Designated person

A designated person is someone your employer names in their policy as the person harassment should be reported to. It’s not necessarily their job to conduct the investigation. They are supposed to be a person you can tell, and then they will make sure that your report gets to the people who can handle it. If there is no designated person (or you don’t want to report to them), you should be able to report to any supervisor or manager, or to HR. Just try to be clear that you are making a formal report of sexual harassment, and that you expect them to make sure it gets to the right people.

Human resources

Your workplace may have a human resources department, or a person responsible for HR. They handle every aspect of staffing—hiring, firing, benefits, training, contracts, etc. HR staff may be helpful, providing information and answering your questions. But remember that HR staff work for the employer. They are not your representative or advocate.

Investigator

Once a formal report is made, your employer should designate an investigator, who may be someone from your work or outside. They are supposed to review your complaint and interview you, the harasser, and any witnesses. The investigator will decide whether what happened to you is workplace harassment. The investigator is selected and hired by the employer and makes a report to the employer with recommendations.

Occupational health and safety representative or committee

Your workplace may have an occupational health and safety representative or committee, which plays a role in helping to keep the workplace a healthy and safe place. While their specific duties can vary in different workplaces, their role will always involve promoting safety, health and overseeing that the employer is following their requirements under the OHSR. 

Your union

If you belong to a union, there will be a collective agreement that outlines the contract between the union and employer. You can think of your union as an advocate for safe and healthy workplaces. If your employer is not following the collective agreement, your union can make a complaint, called a grievance.

Okay. Now you know the basics.

Now we’ll tell you how to actually report.

Getting ready to report

The first thing you should do is try to get a copy of your workplace sexual harassment policy. It will tell you how you’re supposed to report, and what’s supposed to happen once you do.

• It may tell you to try talking directly with the harasser first.
• It may name people or positions you’re supposed to report to.
• It may give a deadline for how quickly you need to report.

Don’t worry too much about following the exact procedures. As long as you go to a person in a position of authority and tell them you are reporting sexual harassment, that should be enough to get things started.

You may feel like you are causing a problem for your employer by reporting. But that’s not really what’s happening. When you report sexual harassment, you are bringing a problem to your employer’s attention. You didn’t create it; you’re just reporting it.

It might help to think about it the same way you’d think about reporting a gas leak or a piece of broken equipment. It’s a safety issue.

How to report

Once you’ve picked who you’re going to report to, make an appointment with them. Try not to just drop by; it’s better if you have their full attention. If you don’t know what to say when you make the appointment, you can just tell them you want to talk about a workplace problem.

You should report verbally and ideally face-to-face, not just in writing. But if you want, you can bring something you’ve written, and leave it with them. This can be a good idea if you’re worried there are things you may forget to say, or if you think they may mishear or misunderstand you.

What happens after you report

After you report, your employer should assign someone to investigate.

• The investigator can be someone from within the workplace or outside it.
• They are supposed to be objective. Not on your side, or the harasser’s side.
• They are supposed to follow the employer’s workplace harassment policy.
• They are supposed to understand the OHSR.

The investigation is supposed to start quickly and finish in 90 days or less. Some investigations may only take a day, while others may take months.

If the investigation costs any money (like, for a translator, if you need one), your employer is supposed to pay for it. You should not have to pay any costs related to the investigation.

The investigator should keep you informed about the timing and progress of their investigation, but they usually won’t tell you details. You won’t be allowed to be there when other people are interviewed, and you won’t be able to see notes or transcripts from the interviews.

How to prepare to be interviewed

The investigator should invite you to a meeting, where they will ask you to tell your story. They will ask for details (what happened, where, when, etc.), whether there were witnesses, and if you have any documents or other evidence. They may also ask how the harasser has behaved to you since then.

There may be other people there. If your workplace has an occupational health and safety committee, its worker representative will be there. If there is a health and safety rep, they will be there. There may be someone there solely to take notes.

It’s rare for an investigator to be challenging or aggressive. Normally they are just trying to gather information and make sure they understand what you’re saying. It’s normal for them to ask you a lot of questions and write down everything you say.

Here are steps you can take to prepare for the meeting:

• If there’s anything about the meeting that doesn’t work for you—for example, its location or timing—you can ask for an alternative. You can also ask to bring a support person with you. If you require accommodations at the meeting—for example, a translator—you should ask for them.
• If you haven’t already, you should write down all the important events in the order they happened. Try to include as much detail as possible, including dates, times, names of people who were present, what was said or done, and where it happened. Bring a copy of this document with you to the meeting. See Document everything.
• Collect copies or printouts of any documents related to the harassment. This might include printouts of emails, screenshots of text messages, your phone call log, or anything else you think is relevant.

How to handle yourself during the interview

• Remember that you haven’t done anything wrong, and you are not on trial.
• You can take your time when answering questions. If you’re not sure you understand a question, ask for it to be repeated or rephrased.
• It is always okay for you to ask for a short break.
• It is okay for you to take notes.
• It’s totally fine for you to ask about the investigator’s process and timeline.
• It’s totally fine for you to tell the investigator about any concerns you have.
• It’s a good idea to tell the investigator if you’re worried about confidentiality, especially if you’re afraid the harasser will get other people to gang up on you for reporting them.

Things that can go wrong and how to handle them

What if my employer ignores my report?

This is really common. Roughly 50% of sexual harassment reports get ignored. If that happens to you, you can:

• Call the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division (1-800-567-7233). If it agrees that your situation is covered by the SEA and OHSR, it may order your employer to investigate.
• Contact your union.
• Contact your workplace health and safety rep.

What if the investigator seems biased?

The investigator is supposed to be fair and unbiased. But they aren’t always. If you’re concerned that the investigator is biased, you can contact the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division. If it agrees, it has the power to order a new investigation.

What if the investigation is taking a really long time, or I am not getting any updates?

If that happens, you can contact the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division, and they can order your employer to conduct a new or better investigation.

What if people at work are gossiping about me and the investigation?

This isn’t supposed to happen. Investigators are only allowed to share information about the investigation if it will help them do their work, protect other workers, or if the law says it must be shared. (For example, if criminal charges have been laid, the investigator might have to share information with the police.) The investigator is supposed to instruct anyone involved with the investigation to not talk about it.

But it’s actually really common for people to gossip about the investigation. And sometimes it can be really bad. Sometimes, other people decide to support the harasser and start treating you badly.

If that happens, you should tell your employer. They are supposed to protect you against any harassment that might happen as a result of your report. Or, you can report it to the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety, Occupational Health and Safety Division.

What if I get punished for reporting?

Getting punished for reporting is extremely common. About a third of people who report say that in the end they got punished. So, yeah, if you think it’s happening to you, it probably is. We’re really sorry.

What happens is, people end up sympathizing with the harasser and blaming you for reporting them. They decide you’re a troublemaker, or a problem, or a drama queen. That makes them like you less, and so they start treating you badly. They might schedule you for fewer shifts, stop helping you with your work, or decide to not recommend you for a promotion or raise or other opportunity.

These are called reprisals, and they’re so common and so awful, we wrote an entire guide about them. See Getting punished for complaining and how to protect yourself. Please read it. We want you to be able to protect yourself.

What happens once the investigation is over?

The investigation report tells the employer whether the investigator thinks sexual harassment happened and, if so, what actions they recommend to keep the workplace safe from sexual harassment in the future. Your employer should share the findings with you. If there was a finding of harassment, your employer should tell you the corrective action that will be taken.

If the harasser is someone who works for the employer, the investigator may recommend they be fired or transferred or suspended or reprimanded. The investigator may also recommend alterations to the workplace to make it safer, like changes to shifts or scheduling, policy changes or education.

Your employer isn’t required to follow any of the investigator’s recommendations. They also don’t have to ask your opinion about what they should do. If they end up punishing the harasser, they may or may not tell you about it.

Your employer may choose to resolve issues with you in other ways. They may agree to make changes in your working situation—only if you agree; otherwise, that could be a reprisal. They may ask you to participate in alternative dispute resolution or negotiate with you to give you some compensation in exchange for your not taking legal action. Usually, if you make this kind of agreement, the employer also makes you agree to not talk publicly by signing a non-disclosure agreement about any of the details of the incident and the settlement.

What to do if you’re not happy with the outcome

If your employer chooses to do nothing about the harassment, they aren’t meeting their duties under the Saskatchewan Employment Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations and the Human Rights Code. In that case, you might consider talking with a lawyer, who can help you figure out what to do next. See How to find and work with a lawyer. Here are some things you might consider:

• You can file a complaint with the Occupational Health and Safety Division of the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety. It may send its own inspector to review the situation and can order your employer to take steps to comply with the SEA and its OHSR or it can order them to pay a fine. The Occupational Health and Safety Division will not give you any type of financial award, or take over the sexual harassment investigation. Instead, its job is to make sure that your employer is following their duty under the SEA and its OHSR.
• The same complaint of sexual harassment can be included in an application to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission. It investigates and hears cases where there’s been a violation of the Human Rights Code. The commission can award damages. See How to decide whether to file a human rights complaint. Consider discussing your situation with a lawyer.
• You may be able to bring a civil lawsuit against your employer, depending on your situation and the investigation findings. Consult with a lawyer, who can provide you with appropriate advice based on your situation. You must start a civil suit within two years of the harassment. See How to decide whether to take legal action (and what to expect if you do).
• Your union, if you have one, might decide to bring a grievance against your employer for the way they failed to handle your report. It’s important that you speak with your union as soon as possible, as there may be a deadline to file a grievance, depending on your union’s collective agreement. See Working with your union.
• If your work environment has gotten worse, it may seem poisoned, creating intolerable employment conditions. You may be able to claim constructive dismissal. See How to decide whether to take legal action (and what to expect if you do). This means that you believe your job has changed so much that you consider you have been let go from work, and you seek damages for pay in place of receiving reasonable notice. If you plan to do this, consult with a lawyer, because claiming constructive dismissal is complicated.

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