An Ontario New Democratic Party staffer was wrongfully dismissed after raising serious allegations of sexual harassment against her boss, a member of the legislature, according to an arbitrator’s ruling. Blacklock's Reporter says the NDP Caucus was found in violation of the Labour Relations Act for terminating the employee who reported groping and lewd misconduct in the workplace.Arbitrator Jasbir Parmar concluded that the fired employee had endured a toxic work environment under the leadership of MPP Michael Mantha, who was expelled from the caucus in August after the allegations surfaced. "He had engaged in sexual harassment, workplace harassment, discrimination on the basis of sex, abuse of authority, and creation of a toxic workplace," Parmar wrote. The staffer was let go "through no fault of her own," Parmar added.The case revealed that it took the caucus a year to address the employee's complaints. Despite the employee's reports that Mantha had pressured her for sex, groped her, and repeatedly subjected her to unwanted hugs and requests for explicit photos, action was delayed until Mantha’s expulsion.The woman was ultimately fired on January 19, with the party claiming that her employment was no longer protected by the collective agreement due to Mantha’s departure. However, the Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union Local 343 successfully argued that the dismissal was wrongful under the Labour Relations Act and Employment Standards Act.Although no penalty was imposed, the arbitrator referred the matter back to the union and the NDP Caucus to negotiate a settlement.
