Canada’s Global Workers’ Treaty Not Expected to Provide Additional Protection Against Workplace Violence and Harassment
Since January, Canada has been under the jurisdiction of a global workers’ treaty known as Convention 190 (C190), aimed at ending violence and harassment in the workplace. However, employment lawyer Howard Levitt believes that this treaty will not offer any additional protection to employees in Canada.
Levitt, a senior partner at Levitt LLP in Toronto, expressed his skepticism in a video interview with CTVNews.ca, stating that the laws already in place across Canada prohibit violence and harassment in the workplace. He mentioned that employees can file legal claims against their employers for constructive dismissal, negligence, or intentional infliction of mental stress if they experience harassment that goes beyond what a reasonable employee should endure.
Examples of behavior that could lead to legal action include sexual harassment, unwanted touching, shouting, and having an abusive boss. Despite the implementation of C190, Levitt believes that the Canadian government’s efforts are merely symbolic and do not offer any new protections to workers.
Under C190, Canada is required to implement laws, policies, and collective bargaining agreements to address violence and harassment at work. The federal government has stated that it is taking steps to implement its workplace violence and harassment framework under the Canada Labour Code and Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations.
While the Canadian government has emphasized its commitment to protecting workers from violence and harassment, critics like Levitt remain skeptical about the effectiveness of the C190 treaty in providing additional safeguards for employees in Canada.