At its online meeting on May 29, 2023, Equity Council amended a number of Bylaws. These amendments came at the recommendation of five
Requests for Council Action and reflect the Association’s mandate to continuously review and improve Equity’s Bylaw language regarding safe and respectful workplaces.
Bylaw 2 was amended to include “Inappropriate Behaviour” as a broad term, encapsulating all of the other defined terms related to Professional Conduct, and the Complaint and Disciplinary Process. “Deliberate Attempt to Undermine Another Member’s Reputation” was moved out of the “Unprofessional Conduct” section and instead, grouped with “Malicious Disclosure of Damaging Information Regarding Another Member or Workplace.” And finally, a definition was added for “Violence in the Workplace,” a term that was referenced in the Complaint and Disciplinary Process (found in Bylaw 58), but had been undefined until now.
Bylaw 58 was amended to include “Deliberate Attempt to Undermine Another Member’s Reputation or Malicious Disclosure of Damaging Information Regarding Another Member or Workplace” as specific grounds for a complaint, and “Discrimination” was contextualized to include “all protected grounds under Federal Human Rights legislation.” A paragraph regarding the requirement for specificity in a complaint was moved from Bylaw 2 to Bylaw 58.
Bylaw 68 was amended to reflect the changes made to Bylaw 58.
Bylaw 82 was amended to allow an Equity Disciplinary Panel to use the facts underlying a criminal conviction of a member as the basis for a disciplinary decision, without the need of a third-party investigation, where the nature of the crime intersects with Equity’s area of jurisdiction.
Bylaw 82.1 (NEW) was created to afford an Equity Disciplinary Panel the opportunity to suggest mediation as a resolution to a complaint (rather than proceeding with a third-party investigation), where the nature of the complaint is less egregious, and both the Complainant and Respondent are amenable to the idea.
Bylaw 83 was amended for clarity.
Bylaw 84 was amended to reflect the possibility of a mediator being a part of the disciplinary process.
Bylaw 87 was amended to provide a mediator with the ability to recommend a complaint be referred to a third-party investigator, should mediation prove unsuccessful in resolving the matter.
Bylaw 91(iii) was amended to allow an Equity Disciplinary Panel to consider past disciplinary action taken against the same Respondent in determining a disciplinary penalty for a new complaint.
Bylaw 106 was amended to change the reporting process for disciplinary actions. Rather than reporting non-identifying information at the conclusion of an individual disciplinary process, Equity will now publish an annual report, listing the number of complaints received and their current status.
Bylaw 106.1 (NEW) was created to continue the practice of identifying in a notice to the membership any Respondent who has been expelled from the Association.
Equity's Council encourages all members to be familiar with the rules that govern membership in our Association. For copies of Equity's
Constitution and Bylaws, please visit
www.caea.com or email
info@caea.com for assistance.