Kim Bolan (Vancouver Sun) – B.C.’s new top Mountie said Friday that the RCMP will do better when it comes to investigating allegations of sexual harassment on the force, acting quickly enough to give victims confidence that it is safe to come forward.
At his first news conference as the commanding officer of E Division, Asst. Commissioner Craig Callens faced a barrage of questions about recent claims by a series of woman Mounties about on-the-job harassment. Several are currently on stress leave.
Callens said that despite existing internal policies to address harassment, he doesn’t think the Mounties have moved quickly enough to deal with offenders.
“What I am not persuaded of is that we have been responsive enough and timely enough in the investigation of those matters to give individuals who come forward as victims a sense of confidence that their concerns will be addressed and that the appropriate followup action will be taken,” Callen said. “And that’s where the focus of my energy will be in the coming weeks.”
He echoed what new Commissioner Bob Paulson has said in recent days about working hard to ensure the RCMP promotes women to the highest positions in the organization.
“It is a priority for me, and a priority for all the commanding officers across the country,” he told reporters at E Division headquarters in Vancouver. “I would like to see all ranks within the RCMP representative of the organization and representative of the communities that we serve and that includes female members of the RCMP at the highest ranks of the organization.”
Callens said he was aware of some of the more historical cases of harassment highlighted in news stories in recent weeks, but was unfamiliar with the claims of other women Mounties.
“When you have, as we do, in excess of 9000 employees in the RCMP in this province, it is, I would suggest, unreasonable to be familiar with every issue of workplace conflict or harassment,” Callens said. “But, as I said, what I will ensure is that I am immediately made aware of outrageous incidents and those that demand very decisive action with respect of the ongoing participation of the offender in our organization.”
Callen said he is confident the RCMP can rebuild its image in B.C. after a series of troubling incidents ranging from the taser death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski in 2007 to charges laid earlier this year against RCMP investigators working on the Surrey Six murder case.
“The work that is done in this province every single day in every corner of the province is exceptional. I think what we need to do is focus on what our core responsibilities are and to continue to demonstrate to British Columbians that we are extremely effective in the prevention of crime, the reduction of crime, the interdiction of offenders and support of prosecution,” Callens said. “What we also need to pay attention to is our professional standards and our conduct and ensure that we are taking decisive action to deal with those who don’t meet our expectations and the expectations of British Columbians and as I have indicated – modify that behaviour or remove those individuals from the organization.”
He also said he welcomed the appointment this week of former American prosecutor Richard Rosenthal as the head of the new Independent Investigations Office, which will probe complaints against all police in the province, whether municipal or Mountie.
Callens, a third-generation Mountie who was born in Ottawa and raised in Saskatchewan, has worked in B.C. since joining the force in 1985. He has worked around the province.
He said he was honoured and privileged to accept his new appointment.
“It is a significant responsibility and one that I do not take lightly,” he said, highlighting the work down by the majority of members across the province.
“From time to time the accomplishments of many can be undermined by the actions of a few who may do something that is not in keeping with the high standards and expectations the public properly has of us. I want to assure you that I have those same high expectations and that I will do everything possible to prevent unacceptable acts from occurring, and to hold those accountable who fail to meet appropriate standards of conduct and professionalism.”
[Source]
DT: This is why issues go unresolved in our organization, we lose sight of what we are facing and what we are talking about. This discussion reminds me of a mother watching her son marching in a parade, which she states, “Look, my boy is the only one in step.”
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I understand your point JohnnyG, but just examine the broader issues that arise. You cannot limit yourself to your little demo story and ignore the context. If you want issues addressed there has to be a wider analyses of facets that might affect the situation one way or the other. Broaden your perspective.
The same hold true for you Monty. You decry the issue at hand but refuse to broaden your perspective which actually could bolster your assertions. If you do not understand what I mean, let me enlighten you. My rhetorical questions were meant to provoke your thoughts to an area you obviously have not gone to. If in fact there are complaints not listed by the RCMP, but are in the hands of another agency/group, would you not agree that it would tend to unearth more of the totality of the “problem” or issue? You cannot be content to just take a lot of things at face value. Thus my questions. Your obtuse reply indicates that you do not care as long as you have something to wield.
A like reply from me would be: to ask you why you do not leave the organization if it is so bad and you are so unhappy. But of course that presumes that you should and that you are. Perhaps like sickntired my tax dollars are going to your paycheck so you can just count the days to retirement? Maybe that should be your project. Doesn’t really help the discussion does it Monty?
There has been discussion of other factors such as training and government bearing on the treatment of members to each other, but only superficially. I certainly hope your investigations are more thorough. I also find the dismissal of alcohol in a training facility without comment some what instructive.
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Deepthroat: Before I bore everyone here, I think it is obvious the main crux at issue, is the way members harass and treat other members. It is not to say that members who treat civilian staff are not important or that it does not matter. The point here, which the media is mainly writing about is “member on member.”
If you are looking for a project or have a lot of extra time on your hands, please feel free to canvas the various unions and let us know how you make out.
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Although Monty Hall would like to point out the number of actual RCMP officers, he is incorrect in that civilians are not included in the media coverage. The case of S/Sgt Pearson that has garnered headlines included a civilian employee whom he was alleged to have harassed, and who also gave evidence at his hearing. Does the number of complaints, that is the stated number of 126, include any civilian complainants or is that number restricted to serving officers?
If in fact it only addresses officers, then is there a separate total for civilian workers in the 31,000 strong employee pool? Is it necessary to canvass the various unions that supply office workers for the RCMP for complaints that may have been lodged with union representatives and not with the RCMP itself? Or is it union practice to deal directly with officers or is it policy to deal with the RCMP itself?
You cannot deal effectively with any situation until you have a totality of facts, or else some situations that need addressing would not attract the necessary scrutiny.
Looking at a larger picture in your story JohnnyG, why is there alcohol served on the RCMP property in the training division? Traditions with the “mess” hand-down from the military establishment? It is my understanding that there are “messes” all around the country. You decry the outcome of such an establishment, but fail to mention why it is allowed. There was a recent issue with drinking at police offices in BC, and as I recall the RCMP stated they do not allow drinking in the office. Is there a difference between a “mess” on RCMP or municipal property?
With respect to the intoxicated lovers, what exactly is the policy around that? Men and women are not allowed to fraternize at the training division? Or is it that they were in an area that could be happened upon by other officers and staff on the property? Or is it that you are allowed to get intoxicated but not fraternize? Proper reporting? John and Jane were fraternizing, consensually one would assume, and this is the business of management? You can drink all you want but don’t fraternize. And if you see some couple fraternizing you don’t report it then you are punished if rumors surface. Seems a bit strange to me.
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DT, I think you missed a couple of points. The couple had their “pants down around their ankles” which was to imply they had been having sexual intercourse. My apoligies for this. I should have been more clear.
Also, my point was not to argue wet vs dry policies. I have no problem with mess halls and I don’t decry what happened. The story was to illustrate how management vigorously pursues a couple having sex on base, and those who didn’t report it- yet do nothing when they learn of serial bullies that are out to destroy the lives of others.
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Hey Boomer long time no see. I know exactly who you are talking about. JohnnyG I completely agree with you too!!!! The RCMP is nothing better than a sophisticated shell game. The double standards for officer’s is outrageous. The things that are tolerated at the commissioned level among themselves, will always remain status quo. The rules which commissioned officers play with, are no different than the rules children play with on the school grounds. They make them up as they go along.
I watched W-Five last night with my wife and we were both sickened with the way the RCMP handled these “investigations” – for lack of better terms. The RCMP and the Department of Justice are not interested in finding the truth when it comes to matters involving the RCMP. They pay people off with “hush money”, and act as if nothing ever happened. We wonder why we never learn form our mistakes.
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Boomer, great story. But, had this harasser in question been on the out’s with someone high up above, I wonder if everything would be much different, where conviction would be given with less evidence.
I was just thinking about a Depot story I heard once. A couple of troopmates (male and female) left the last stand intoxicated, and ended up in one of the rec rooms in the basement of B block. Not long later, they were seen with their pants down to their ankles passed out. The person who saw this didn’t report it, but told others about it, causing it to spread like wildfire around the base. A week or so later, some do-gooder slipped an anonymous note under a Cpl’s door about the incident. Let me tell you this! The CO- Tugnam turned the base upside down looking into this. Every troop on base was approached about this incident, and the CO and Dr. Gary Bell spoke with each of them, threatening to send entire troops home if they had to. They were pretty disgusted that not only this took place, but it wasn’t properly reported, and done so anonymously. As it turned out the lovers and those who saw it were turfed.
You see, senior management is very self righteous when there is something that compromises the image of the force in a overt way. Though I am not condoning what happened in this story, they weighted a victimless occurrence that happened in a wrong place, one hell of a lot more heavily than they do drumming out those who cause strife, lower morale and seek out to destroy the health, happiness and mental well being of those they target.
When it’s the force that is done wrong, no stone is left unturned and there is a sense of urgency to right the wrongs. When it is the individual who is being done wrong and their lives are being destroyed, and the harassment starts to fail the psychological and physical health of targets, it falls on dead ears and idle hands…. It is written off, ignored or labeled a personality conflict and covered up. They label the person making the complaint “paranoid” or delusional and completely discredit them. The cycle perpetuates itself, when the target is disposed of and a new one is found. Workplace serial bullying at it’s worst.
At the end of the day, it’s time they took this issue a lot more seriously at all levels, and cut out the cancer that lies beneath the surface.
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All’s well in the RCMP as usual! It’s Interesting that the complaints by females in the force are on the rise. I recall a “complaint filed against one senior member that had 11 victims. The complaint was made and what stemmed from the complaint, the file was concluded soon after it got started. 4 of 11 statements had been taken before the investigator informed the Officer in Charge of the investigation. The investigator was ordered to stop taking statements and to write the file off and recorded as a work place conflict, not as a harassment file.
The file was concluded for the time being. In fact, one notation on the file reads “as per the OIC this file is to be made paperless on the PIRS file with no names attached to the complaint”. The file was re-opened after the colleague finished his officer’s board and rose to the rank at the officer’s level and life went on. The outcome of the file, the member had been moved on, so all you should too. I was informed he was given verbal guidance and told not to do it again with nothing recorded on his personnel file.
The story continued when a new Assistant Commissioner (female) was appointed the new ethics officers in Ottawa, soon after another female officer was disgraced for lying on nation TV in front of a parliamentary committee. She went on TV and told all Canadians that things would change; there was new leadership in Ottawa. I wrote to her and had our complaint re-opened, even reviewed by a female Sgt. at E-Div. The outcome (investigation) was the same, not one of the victim(s) of the complaint was interviewed. The letter I received stated, the file was investigated properly by the investigator and no further action would be taken. Go away and leave us alone. I guess 11 victims of harassment isn’t a crime after all. To the females in the force who have been victimized, I feel sorry for you, and hope that the same female members who re-investigated our 11 complaints do a better job investigating yours; all’s well in the RCMP as usual!
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