The Yukon government isn’t doing enough to confront workplace harassment and support its victims, cabinet minister Richard Mostyn told the legislature Thursday.

He spoke to “a culture within the civil service that has to change,” referencing incidents he is personally aware of in which managers “acted badly” and “have been abusive.”

Mostyn is the minister responsible for the Public Service Commission.

His comments came in light of a report released Thursday by Employment and Social Development Canada. It found 60 per cent of respondents to a federal government survey had experienced harassment in their respective workplaces. Thirty per cent of respondents had dealt with workplace harassment that was sexual in nature.

Women comprised 94 per cent of those voluntary survey participants who indicated experience with workplace harassment.

While three-quarters of respondents who experienced harassment said they had reported the incident(s), more than half of these individuals said there was no attempt made to resolve the issue. Many of those who didn’t report their harassment indicated it was for fear of reprisal.

“There is, unfortunately, no reason to believe that these statistics are any different in Yukon,” said NDP Leader Liz Hanson.

She asked the government for specific statistics related to workplace harassment in the territory, as well as what options and protections exist for public and private sector employees.

Give numbers

Mostyn indicated he will attempt to provide numbers on harassment within the government, assuring the house that he and his fellow Liberals MLAs “take this issue seriously.”

While he stated the government has procedures in place to respond to incidents of workplace harassment, he did not elaborate as to what exactly those are.

Nigel Allan, a spokesperson for the commission, said the government uses a variety of legislation and internal policy to address harassment in the workplace.

Those include the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Yukon Human Rights Act, the Yukon Government Respectful Workplace Policy and collective agreements with the Yukon Employees’ Union (YEU) and the Yukon Teachers’ Association.

A Respectful Workplace Office is open to any YG employee experiencing harassment, Allan said.

But, “It comes down to a management,” Mostyn told the house. “We have to have managerial buy-in to this process and make sure that, when abuse happens and when bad behaviour happens in the workplace — terrible behaviour, unacceptable behaviour — that managers actually take appropriate action.”

Hanson told the minster that he and his government are ultimately responsible for and accountable to YG employees.

“The status quo is not acceptable,” she said.

She cited mounting evidence across the country – like Thursday’s federal government report – that shows many women fear reporting workplace harassment due to potential retaliation and those who do report are often not believed.

“Can the minister please outline what new approaches this government is taking?” Hanson asked. “How are they identifying gaps in the current system? How is he ensuring ... senior management accountability and how is it improving its response to harassment in the workplace?”

This is when Mostyn expressed his belief that the government has more work to do.

Looking at issue

“I’m conveying that we have to do better. I have done that with my officials and they are looking at this issue.”

Meanwhile, he encouraged people who have experienced workplace harassment to come forward and report the incidents.

Allan provided a more concrete answer to Hanson’s question to the Star this morning.

The government launched a new online resource in September called Violence Ends with Us. It’s designed to support YG employees in addressing domestic and sexualized violence.

Presentations on the new resource were made to management when it was released, Allan said.

Managers are also offered regular training and workshops to help facilitate “healthy and open communications so that employees feel safe,” he wrote in an email.

Respondents to the federal government survey expressed the view that while one’s employer should be the primary source of support for victims of workplace harassament, the government and unions also have a responsibility to do so.

YEU president Steve Geick confirmed to the Star today that workplace harassment and specifically workplace sexual harassment definitely affect Yukoners.

Those involved in precarious work – part-time or auxiliary on-call employees for example – as well as equity group members – i.e. women, Indigenous people, LGBTQ individuals – are more vulnerable to such harassment, according to Geick.

The YEU provides the employees it represents a variety of resources and support to deal with workplace harassment, he said.

Both the Yukon Status of Women Council and the Victoria Faulkner Women’s Centre were unable to provide comment for this story today.