The Federal Court of Appeal has overturned a labour board ruling and ordered a new hearing into a WestJet employee fired for repeatedly questioning female co-workers about breastfeeding, puberty, and sexual development.Blacklock's Reporter says Justice Mary Gleason ruled the employee’s comments and questions “were sexual in nature” and that he “should have known they were inappropriate and unwelcome.” The man, whose name has not been released, was dismissed after three women lodged complaints about his behaviour.Court documents show the employee admitted discussing childbirth, female sexual development, breastfeeding, and related topics with colleagues. Investigators found he had also described showering with his daughters when they were younger — stories co-workers found troubling.A 2024 decision by the Canada Industrial Relations Board had concluded the remarks, while “troubling” and “too personal,” did not constitute sexual harassment. Adjudicator Mark Asbell wrote that the employee’s comments were not sexual in intent and were made in the context of discussing childhood and adolescent development..The Court of Appeal rejected that finding. “The board’s conclusion that the respondent’s repeated comments and questioning of co-workers about their sexual development and that of their female children as well as his comments about a co-worker’s breasts did not amount to sexual harassment contradicts the well-established case law on sexual harassment,” Justice Gleason wrote.Gleason cited the Supreme Court of Canada’s definition of sexual harassment as “unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that detrimentally affects the work environment or leads to adverse job-related consequences for the victims of the harassment,” adding that such harassment includes a wide range of misconduct, from assault to unwelcome sexual comments.The case now returns to the labour board for reconsideration, potentially reshaping how workplace discussions about personal topics are judged under Canadian harassment law.
