In the last six months, countless courageous women and men have stepped forward to expose the realities of bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct in our industry – and your Guild has responded.
In the last six months, countless courageous women and men have stepped forward to expose the realities of bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct in our industry – and your Guild has responded.
This unique moment in our industry’s history may have started south of the border, sparked on by seemingly endless reports of assault and abuse against Harvey Weinstein, but everyone in our business knows that’s not where this ends. The blight of harassment and misconduct in film & television runs far deeper than any one man and extends every bit as much into our country as any other.
Within days of Weinstein revelations and the emergence of the #MeToo movement, the Guild had launched a massive new effort to tackle harassment in all its forms. Within a few weeks, your National Executive Board had agreed to undertake a national listening tour and a full independent audit of our policies and practices. The Guild played a key role in crafting the new Canadian Creative Industries Code of Conduct, governing 29 organizations that have signed on so far, and currently chair’s the industry-wide working group on Education, Training and Awareness.
We have engaged our members, rallied with our industry partners and we are living up to our obligation to promote fairness, safety, dignity and due process for every member of our community.
Key Recommendations
Content on respectful workplace and psychological safety
to be added to on-set safety talks (including development
of “canned” content that all members in supervisory roles can deliver easily)
Clear definitions of harassment and related inappropriate behaviour; development of information sheet for workplace posting of responsibilities and rights
Training for staff on handling of allegations of harassment
Establish a peer support program and enhance the Guild’s mentoring program(s)
Mandatory training for those in management roles, and for those advancing through categories, on the legal responsibility to maintain harassment free workplaces, how to identify harassment and inappropriate behaviour, and what to do if such behaviour is observed or reported
HR services hired at arms-length on behalf of all industry partners and funded by producers to support union/Guild staff, members, and those in management roles, including reception of complaints, and guidance on handling of complaints, training, investigation, mediation and resolution, including restorative justice where appropriate
Provide a single hotline across the country (one-stop to receive complaints and requests for intervention or information relating to inappropriate behaviour and harassment
Enhance the Guild’s anti-harassment policies to include investigation and resolution procedures based on
best practices
Review Guild internal procedures with an eye to addressing member-on-member allegations more effectively
Explore web-based information escrow applications such as SafeSpace software to preserve documentation of incidents and allow complainants to identify common harassers
Review contractual procedures ensuring progressive discipline and effective grievance procedures
Anti-harassment training to cover development of soft skills, including self-care practices and active listening
The Quebec District Council is taking action on harassment and sexual assault in the Quebec’s cultural industry
Recognizing that Quebec has initiated its own distinct process to guarantee Respectful Workplaces to all in our industry, the National office and Quebec District Council have worked hand-in-hand to take part in actions instigated by the Quebec cultural sector.
The Quebec District Council rallied with over forty organizations, associations, groups and unions representing every sphere of the cultural sector, to collectively reflect on actions to put on to prevent this type of behaviour.
Following this initiative from the Quebec cultural sector, the Quebec government announced in March 2018 that $900,000 will be allocated for financial assistance to counter sexual assault and harassment in Quebec's cultural milieu, in order to offer a real solution to the alarming situation unveiled by the #MeToo movement.
Of this amount, a sum of $360,000 will be used to establish a one-stop legal service for assistance and support to Artists and Cultural Workers, administered and provided by the Clinique juridique Juripop.
An amount of $540,000 is also granted to the National Institute of Image and Sound (L’INIS) for the development of training for the entire Quebec cultural sector, in terms of awareness and prevention of sexual assault and harassment.
"We are very pleased with these announcements [...], who demonstrates a real commitment to countering harassment in all its forms in our community", noted Bethan Mowat, President of the Quebec Council. The Guild is part of the expanded committee composed of 48 groups and associations that initiated these procedures, as well as
being on the Advisory Committee for the training project with L’INIS.
