1. Background of
Policy
This policy is intended to formalize and expand the procedure that has
existed on an informal basis for many years within the Confederation Hockey
Club. This policy has been
developed as a pro-active response to events that have gained notoriety in the
media over the past few years. This
policy does NOT result
from incidents or events that are occurring or have occurred in Confederation
Hockey Club programs.
2. Objective of
Policy
Confederation Hockey Club is committed to providing safe, enjoyable, and
educational programs in which its players are treated with respect and dignity.
3. Purpose of
Policy
This policy has been adopted by Confederation Hockey Club to make it
clear that sexual or physical harassment or abuse will not be tolerated; to
educate volunteers, parents and players as to what might constitute physical or
sexual harassment or abuse; to establish procedures for the expeditious and
effective handling of complaints relating to such matters; and to ensure
conformity of this policy with human rights legislation.
4. Application of
Policy
This policy applies to all persons involved in the Confederation Hockey
Club programs including executive members and team officials (i.e. head coaches,
assistant coaches, managers, and trainers). This policy applies to all times and in all locations
including league games, tournaments, practices, social functions, instructional
conferences, and seminars. This
policy is not intended to restrict or prevent reasonable or appropriate
interaction between volunteers and players. Rather, this policy is intended to ensure that such interaction is
appropriate.
5. Screening
Procedure as Part of Policy
This policy will be used in conjunction with a screening procedure for
all executive members and team officials. Each
prospective team official must complete a Team Official Registration Form
documenting specific personal information, training, experience and
hockey-related courses completed by the applicant. New team official volunteers will also be asked to provide volunteer or
personal references.
Confederation Hockey Club also requires prospective team officials and
executive members to provide the club with a Volunteer Security Clearance Check completed by the Edmonton Police
Service, to be used as a means of screening individuals with a record of
physical or sexual abuse or harassment of children.
6. Definitions
Used in Policy
The terms “physical abuse”, “physical harassment”, “sexual
abuse”, and “sexual
harassment” are not easily defined with precision and this policy will not
attempt to do so. However, the
following descriptions are provided as suggested guidelines:
a. “Physical abuse is the intentional use of force that results in serious
injuries. It may be a single
incident or a series or pattern of incidents.
b. “Physical harassment” is a general expression defining a range of behavior
or speech that is offensive, degrading, intimidating, or threatening. It is behavior, which focuses on intimidation. The essence of physical harassment is that it involves an incident or
series of incidents involving physical threats, when:
(i) such conduct might reasonably be expected to cause insecurity,
discomfort, offence, or humiliation to a player or other person, or
(ii) submission to such conduct is used as a basis for any decision (such as
position of play or starting line-up), or
(iii) such conduct has the purpose or might reasonably be expected to have the
effect of interfering with the player’s performance, or creating an
intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.
c. “Sexual abuse” is the improper exposure of an individual to sexual
contact, activity, or behavior. It
includes any sexual touching, intercourse, or exploitation by any person in
whose care the individual has been left and who takes advantage of such
individual.
d. “Sexual Harassment” is a general expression defining a range of behavior
or speech that is offensive, degrading, or threatening. It is behavior that focuses on sexuality, gender, or sexual orientation. The essence of sexual harassment is that it involves an incident or
series of incidents constituting unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors,
or other unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
(i) such conduct might reasonably be expected to cause insecurity,
discomfort, offence, or humiliation to a player or other persons, or
(ii) submission to such conduct is used as a basis for any decision (such as
position of play or starting line-up), or
(iii) such conduct has the purpose of might reasonably be expected to have the
effect of interfering with the player’s performance or creating an
intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.
Sexual harassment includes unwanted touching, leering, sexist jokes,
display of sexually suggestive material, derogatory or degrading comments
directed towards another person or group of persons, sexually suggestive
gestures, or unwelcome propositions, innuendoes, demands or inquiries of a
sexual nature. This type of behavior
need not be intentional to constitute sexual harassment.
7. Responsibilities of Confederation Hockey
Club
Confederation Hockey Club undertakes to:
a. educate volunteers, players, and parents as to the existence and content
of this policy;
b. investigate every complaint of physical or sexual harassment or abuse;
c. impose appropriate disciplinary measures when a complaint is
substantiated;
d. attempt to provide advice and support (which may include recommendation
for counseling) to persons who have been subjected to physical or sexual
harassment or abuse
e. where appropriate, attempt to provide assistance to obtain advice and counseling
to persons accused of , or found to be responsible for, acts of physical or
sexual harassment or abuse;
f. where appropriate, refer complaints of physical or sexual harassment or
abuse to the police for further investigation and handling;
g. appoint a Review Panel under this policy to review Volunteer Security
Clearance Checks and determine their acceptability to the club;
h. appoint a Disciplinary Committee with a mandate to review all
disciplinary matters including complaints of physical or sexual harassment or
abuse;
i. support the activities of the Review Panel and Disciplinary Committee as
required;
j. maintain records as required by this policy; and
k. regularly review the content of, and procedures contained in, this
policy.
8. Appointment of a
Volunteer Security Clearance Check Review Panel
Until further notice, a Volunteer
Security Clearance Check Review Panel shall be appointed under this policy
to review all Volunteer Security Clearance Checks received by Confederation
Hockey Club and decide on their acceptability to the club. The Review Panel shall consist of three Board members appointed by the
President and two non-voting members from the Disciplinary Committee of
Confederation Hockey Club acting in an advisory capacity to the Review Panel. In the absence of any Review Panel member, any other member of the
Executive of Confederation Hockey Club who is not a member of the Disciplinary
Committee may serve on the Review Panel, as decided by the President or his
designate.
9. Appointment of
Disciplinary Committee
Until further notice, a Disciplinary Committee consisting of five
parents shall be appointed under this policy by the President to review all
disciplinary matters, including all complaints and allegations of abuse
identified within Confederation Hockey Club. In the absence of any Disciplinary Committee member, any member of the
Executive of Confederation Hockey Club may serve on the Disciplinary Committee,
as decided by the President.
10. Responsibility to Report Incidents
This policy contemplates that all incidents of physical or sexual
harassment or abuse will be reported. Every
player, parent, and volunteer is considered to have a responsibility to play a
part in ensuring that Confederation Hockey Club programs are free from physical
or sexual harassment or abuse. This
responsibility is to be discharged not only through the avoidance of conduct
that might constitute physical or sexual harassment or abuse, but also through
any other involvement that is reasonably necessary to realize the objectives of
this policy.
Any individual covered by this policy who has experienced physical or
sexual harassment or abuse by a Confederation Hockey Club coach, assistant
coach, manager, trainer, referee or official, should:
a. keep a record of the incident experiences (although a failure keep a
record will not prevent an individual from reporting an incident or making a
formal written complaint);
b. if practicable, inform the alleged harasser or abuser that the behavior
experienced is offensive; and
c. promptly report the incident to a member of the Discipline Committee.
The Discipline Committee member shall advise the individual who has
reported an incident that:
a. all matters referred to the Discipline Committee will be kept strictly
confidential (unless further action is necessary - such as reporting the
incident to the police),
b. the individual has the right to keep the matter as the report stage and
engage in a problem- solving approach to the incident,
c. the individual has the right to make a formal written complaint,
d. in appropriate circumstances, Confederation Hockey Club may provide
assistance to obtain counseling or other support services, and
e. there are avenues of recourse available to the complainant other than
this policy such the Alberta Human
Rights Commission or the police.
11. Resolution of Matters at the Report Stage
Where the individual reporting the incident decides to keep the matter
at the report stage and where the Disciplinary Committee is of the opinion that
no further action is necessary, the Disciplinary Committee will engage in a
problem-solving approach to the incident. No
formal investigation will be undertaken nor will written records be kept. Examples of some problem solving approaches include assisting the persons
involved to resolve the situation themselves, encouraging informal discussions
with the alleged harasser or abuser, or making a recommendation to the Executive
of Confederation Hockey Club to have general educational sessions for
participants in Confederation Hockey Club programs.
12. Resolution of Formal Written Complaints
Where the individual reporting the incident decides to make a formal
written complaint, it shall be promptly investigated by the Disciplinary
Committee in a thorough and unbiased manner. At a minimum, this investigation will include: interviewing the individual making the complaint, the alleged
harasser or abuser, and any witnesses to the incident. It will not be assumed that the alleged harasser or abuser has violated
this policy unless and until an impartial investigation determines this to be
the case. The alleged harasser or
abuser will be given enough information about the allegation to provide him or
her with a reasonable opportunity to respond. The identity of the individual making the complaint will be disclosed
only where such disclosure is essential to enable the alleged harasser or abuser
to respond to the complaint. On
completion of the investigation, the Disciplinary Committee will inform the
executive of Confederation Hockey Club, the individual making the complaint, and
the alleged harasser or abuser as to the findings and actions taken.
The resolution of formal written complaints will be as follows:
a. where practicable and appropriate in the circumstances, the Disciplinary
Committee will attempt to resolve the complaint in an informal manner, and
b. where informal resolution is impracticable or inappropriate, and where
the complaint is substantiated in the opinion of the Disciplinary Committee, the
committee will decide on the disciplinary
measures to be imposed.
It should be recognized that where the Disciplinary Committee concludes
that a complaint was made capriciously, maliciously, or in bad faith, the
committee would impose appropriate disciplinary actions against the individual
making the complaint.
13. Confidentiality
To protect the interests of all individuals involved in the application
of this policy, all reported incidents or formal written complaints of physical
or sexual harassment or abuse will be received in strict confidence and such
confidentiality will be maintained throughout the process to the extent
practicable or permitted by law.
14. Disciplinary Measures
After considering all available information and input including, if
appropriate, representations by the individual making the complaint and the
alleged harasser or abuser, the Disciplinary Committee shall decide whether
disciplinary action should be taken.
Potential disciplinary actions for physical or sexual harassment or
abuse include:
a. apology,
b. reprimand,
c. referral to counseling,
d. suspension,
e. dismissal or expulsion, and/or
f. referral to the police.
The Disciplinary Committee of Confederation Hockey Club shall have the
sole responsibility and authority to impose disciplinary actions. The executive shall be informed of all disciplinary actions imposed by
the Disciplinary Committee.
15. Right to Appeal
Any decision of the Review Panel or Disciplinary Committee can be
appealed to the executive. Appeals
must be delivered to the President of Confederation Hockey Club within one week
of receipt of written notification of the decision of the Review Panel or
Disciplinary Committee.
16. Additional Rights
This policy is not intended to restrict any rights of law
available to any individuals involved in the application of this
policy.