Calgary’s mayor, police chief and commission chair held a rare joint news conference Tuesday afternoon to address recent public commentary related to a 2013 Calgary Police Service workplace review that uncovered over 60 complaints from Calgary Police Service (CPS) employees claiming they were subject to bullying and sexual harassment.
Their message? Allegations that nothing’s changed at the CPS since the report are “wrong” and Calgary Police Chief Roger Chaffin is doing his best to redirect a culture of decades-old policing that doesn’t reflect the current service members.
But it won’t happen overnight.
Scroll down to read the full workplace review and the CPS human resources documents presented Tuesday
Watch below: Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and Chief Const. Roger Chaffin speak to media regarding a 2013 report on harassment and bullying in the organization Nov. 1.
The officials emphasized almost every recommendation put forth in the report had been enacted within the force, citing a respectful workplace program, enhancements to flexible work options, peer support and the establishment of the office of inclusion, set up to improve human resource (HR) functions at CPS and deal with gender-based issues.
Chaffin said the 2013 report had been commissioned “proactively” to better find out the status within the Calgary Police Service. It was not a survey that randomly selected members of the 3,000 officers that make up the force; it surveyed only those who’d had negative experiences so they could express their concerns.
“There’s things going on that we’re not aware of,” he said. “How do you get people to report to a power structure that’s difficult to report under? And how do you create that sort of leadership confidence that you can engage your employees?
“My commitment is: the responsibility for the culture of the organization is on me.”
READ MORE: Councillor to take Calgary Police Service workplace concerns to justice minister ‘if need be’
Councillor Diane Colley-Urquhart, who sits on the Calgary Police Commission (CPC), has spoken publicly in recent weeks about having met with female police officers who had complaints with the workplace at the CPS, suggesting problems were not isolated to just a few.
She said Saturday she was excited about city staff working to harmonize the HR departments of the City of Calgary and the CPS in the wake of the workplace review—an assertion her fellow police commissioners, including Councillor Ward Sutherland, have since called inappropriate and made without consultation. She also said that if needed, the police commission would “talk to the minister of justice…to see if we need to further investigate” the CPS practices.
“These reports were dealt with…that work is happening,” Nenshi said.
“There’s been allegations nothing’s been done and the service isn’t taking [the 2013 allegations] seriously and frankly, those allegations are wrong.”
Watch below: Nenshi and Howie Shikaze, chair of the Calgary Police Commission, speak on the criticism commission member Diane Colley-Urquhart has raised.
When asked if there would be any consequence to police commissioner Colley-Urquhart speaking out on the topic—despite a code of conduct specifying only CPC chair Howard Shikaze or vice-chairs–when delegated–can speak on the commission’s behalf—Nenshi said “politicians are allowed to do what they’re allowed to do.”
“My job here is to make sure we’re doing the best possible job we can for all members of our workforce,” Nenshi said.
“People have to ask themselves the question: is what I’m doing ultimately helpful in making the change that I’m looking for?”
Chaffin reiterated he wasn’t concerned someone was speaking out against him, but questioned the accuracy of the critique.
“Misinformation creates divisiveness,” he said. “I’ve been criticized by councillors many times—I’m OK with that. I just didn’t want it to be a random characterization of the organization that wasn’t actually helping the cause I think we’re all trying to work towards.”
WATCH: Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and Police Chief Roger Chaffin speak to media regarding recent reports against the Calgary Police Service.
Retired CPS officer Marlene Hope came forward to the media after feeling a lack of support when returning to work from a maternity leave. Hope said while she doesn’t know the specific policy Colley-Urquhart may or may not have breached, she thinks it was necessary for her to speak out in order to “get the message out.”
“As much as the chief and the mayor and Sutherland are blaming us for making statements with poor intentions behind them, our intention has always been to bring transparency,” Hope said.
“In defence of [Colley-Urquhart] now, Ward Sutherland is speaking quite openly about his opinion; he’s just on the other side. So I find it problematic when they go after her and yet he’s doing exactly the same thing.”
Kathleen Fraser, a CPS workplace advisor since January 2016, said at the news conference she’d received 22 workplace concerns since taking her position. She said most were around “whether or not our respectful workplace policy has been breached.”
“More often they involve workplace interactions or workplace conflict between supervisors and their subordinates,” Fraser said. “Oftentimes it’s in that grey area between whether or not something is performance management or whether or not it’s bullying, harassment or something in between that.”
Colley-Urquhart issued a statement late Tuesday, saying she plans to speak to reporters Wednesday at noon “in light of recent matters regarding the 2009 and 2013 CPS workplace review report and several women officers coming forward.”
Watch below: Calgary Police Chief Constable Roger Chaffin speaks to media regarding reports members feel ‘ostracized’
Nenshi said he expects action in three areas as a result of the controversy: 1) a better system of reporting issues and managing them that encourages people to step forward and enforces accountability for actions; 2) a focus on changing legislation and agreements that work against an inclusive workplace (e.g. it’s difficult to return to work part-time after a maternity leave and qualify for the same pension benefits) and 3) “most importantly” a cultural change that values everyone’s ability to contribute and that fosters a service that looks like the community that it serves.
“As we’re hiring more and more women into the sworn service, how do we effect a cultural shift that says, for example, ‘you know what? It’s never appropriate to text random people and say, ‘wanna hook up after work?’ which is one of the allegations that we’ve heard,” Nenshi said.
Watch below: Nenshi speaks about what he wants to see from the Calgary Police Service in the future
Chaffin said though he doesn’t know the names of any of the people who reported issues in the 2013 survey, he wants to find ways to give them opportunities to develop trust and confidence in the CPS, and empower them to speak up.
The next CPC meeting is Nov. 29 and is open to the public.
Watch below: Allegations of bullying and sexual harassment within the Calgary Police Service are forcing some to ask difficult questions. A report from 2013 says over 60 officers and civilian employees complained about how they were treated by fellow employees and managers. Gary Bobrovitz has more.