Negotiated resolution and investigation: Canada Labour Code

After a notice of occurrence in a federally regulated workplace, the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations provide three avenues: negotiated resolution, which must begin within 45 days; conciliation, if you and the responding party both agree; and an investigation, which must be carried out if you, as the principal party, request it and the occurrence has not been resolved.

Negotiated resolution: the joint review

Negotiated resolution is any discussion between the parties aimed at agreeing how to resolve the occurrence. It includes a review, by you and the employer or designated recipient, of whether the notice describes harassment and violence as the Canada Labour Code defines it: “any action, conduct or comment, including of a sexual nature, that can reasonably be expected to cause offence, humiliation or other physical or psychological injury or illness to an employee, including any prescribed action, conduct or comment.”

Note before the meeting: if you both agree that the notice does not describe harassment and violence, the regulations count that as a resolution. If you do not agree and it is not otherwise resolved, you can ask for an investigation. Describe each event plainly: words, actions, who was present and what followed. For what to note after each event, see how to document workplace harassment in Canada.

Conciliation: only if both parties agree

Conciliation is a discussion facilitated by a neutral third party. You and the responding party must both agree to it and to the conciliator, who can be, for example, a professional mediator, a supervisor, an Elder, a religious figure or a colleague. It can run alongside an investigation, but only until the investigator's report is provided.

Workplace harassment investigation: the investigator and the report

• Notice: you and the responding party must be told that an investigation will be carried out.
• Investigator: chosen from a list the employer developed with its policy committee, workplace committee or health and safety representative, or else agreed by you, the responding party and the employer. With no agreement within 60 days of the notice of investigation, the employer picks someone the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety identifies as qualified. The investigator must confirm in writing that they have no conflict of interest.
• Information: the employer must give the investigator all relevant information. Bring a short chronology, like our incident log template, that points to the record behind each entry, not a full archive.
• Report: a general description, conclusions (including workplace circumstances that contributed) and recommendations to eliminate or minimize the risk of a similar occurrence, without revealing anyone's identity directly or indirectly. You and the responding party get a copy, and the employer must implement the recommendations it agrees on with the workplace committee or health and safety representative.

Key dates and deadlines to track

1. Notice date, and the date of the employer's contact (due within 7 days).
2. Negotiated resolution (starts by day 45): who attended, what was proposed and what you agreed to.
3. Monthly updates: the date of each one, or a note that none arrived.
4. Notice of investigation: the date, and the date 60 days later.
5. Report received: the date. The Government of Canada says concerns about an investigation's method or conclusions go to the employer first, and a request to the Federal Court for judicial review must be made within 30 days of receiving the report; it recommends a lawyer's advice.
6. One year after the notice: the date by which the process must be completed, unless an absence of more than 90 consecutive days extends it.

If the Code or the regulations are not followed, the Government of Canada's steps are to raise it with your supervisor or the person the HVP policy names, then, if unresolved, to send form LAB1060 to your regional Labour Program office.

Kirokune keeps your notes, recordings, photos and imported chats in one case on your iPhone, in date order. It does not decide whether something meets the Code's definition or how the process will end.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to agree to conciliation?

No. The regulations allow conciliation only if you and the responding party both agree to it and to the person who facilitates it. An investigation is different: it must be carried out if you request it and the occurrence has not been resolved.

Will the harassment investigation report name me?

No. The regulations say the investigator's report must not reveal, directly or indirectly, the identity of anyone involved in the occurrence or the resolution process.

Can I withdraw a notice of occurrence?

You can end the resolution process at any time by telling the employer or designated recipient that you choose not to continue. Note the date and how you told them. If the occurrence had not been resolved through negotiated resolution, the regulations still require the employer to review its workplace assessment with the workplace committee or health and safety representative.

Kirokune helps you keep a record. It does not diagnose, decide what happened, or give legal advice.