A workplace human rights complaint against Dunk N’ Dip Corporation is proceeding after the employer in the case stopped responding to communications.
The complainant, AB, made allegations of sex-based discrimination, including claims of sexual harassment, sexual solicitation, and reprisal in the workplace.
The case, filed under section 34 of the Human Rights Code, has seen a series of communications from the Tribunal aimed at encouraging mediation between the involved parties, but with limited success in garnering a response from the respondent.
The Tribunal’s efforts to facilitate mediation began with an “Opportunity for Mediation and Status Check letter” sent to both parties in November 2022, followed by a reminder in December after an initial lack of response.
Despite these attempts and the clear outlining of the consequences for failing to engage in the process, the respondent remained uncommunicative, leading the Tribunal to issue further warnings about the potential dismissal of the application or proceeding without the respondent’s input.
As of March 2023, the Tribunal had to send another notice due to the continued silence from the respondent. This lack of engagement has led the Tribunal to invoke Rule 5.5 of its procedural guidelines. Those guidelines state:
Where an application is delivered to a respondent who does not respond to the application, the Tribunal may:
- deem the respondent to have accepted all the allegations in the application;
- proceed to deal with the application without further notice to the respondent;
- deem the respondent to have waived all rights with respect to further notice or participation in the proceeding; and
- decide the matter based only on the material before the Tribunal.
This step underscores the Tribunal’s commitment to ensuring that cases of alleged human rights violations are addressed, even in the face of non-cooperation from respondents.
The Tribunal is now moving forward with the case by planning a Case Management Conference Call to outline the next phases of the hearing. This includes discussions on witness testimonies, documentary evidence, legal issues, and remedies sought for the alleged rights infringements.
The Tribunal’s approach mirrors its longstanding commitment to facilitating a fair and efficient process for addressing and enforcing fundamental human rights, as highlighted in the precedent-setting Kearns v. 1327827 Ontario case.
This proceeding highlights the importance of responsiveness in legal processes, especially in cases involving fundamental human rights. It also showcases the Tribunal’s procedures and mechanisms for ensuring that claims of human rights violations are thoroughly examined and addressed, even when faced with challenges in communication and cooperation from respondents.
For more information, see Brajovic v. Dunk N’ Dip Corporation, 2023 HRTO 1433 (CanLII).
