Town of View Royal - Code of Conduct

11) REPORTING, RECORDING AND RETAINING INFORMATION:

(a) It is every Member’s responsibility to ensure that all information collected, produced, or obtained in the course of his or her duties, whether written, oral, or in electronic format, is as accurate as possible. No Member will willfully mislead Staff, other Members, or the public about any issue of Town concern.

(b) If a Member believes that someone may have misunderstood them, they must promptly correct the misunderstanding. Reporting inaccurate or incomplete information or reporting information in a way that is intended to mislead or misinform those who receive it, is strictly prohibited and could lead to serious consequences including disciplinary action.

(c) Examples of dishonest reporting include, but are not limited to the following:

(i) submitting an expense account for reimbursement of business expenses not actually incurred, or misrepresenting the nature or amount of expenses claimed;

(ii) providing inaccurate or incomplete information to Town management or Staff during an internal investigation, audit, or other review, or to organizations and people outside the Town, such as external auditors;

(iii) making false or misleading statements in any reports or other documents submitted to or maintained for government agencies;

(iv) failing to provide and/or destroying relevant records when requested to provide such records for the Town to respond to a request for records made under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act; and

(v) providing or communicating false or misleading information.

(d) All Members will work in accordance with both the Town controls established to prevent fraudulent misconduct and all applicable laws, regulations, and government guidelines.

(e) All incidents of fraud or theft committed against the Town will be taken seriously and may be viewed as acts of criminal activity and treated accordingly.

12) USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA:

(a) Council Members must not purport to speak on behalf of the Town or unless expressly authorized to do so.

(b) Council Members will not reportuse caution in reporting Council decision-making by way of their social media profiles and websites beforeensuring that any material they publish is accurate, precise, and communicates the Town has released any formal communicationintent of Council.

(c) When speaking for themselves as individual Councillors on social media or to the press, a Councillor will include “in my opinion” or use a similar disclaimer to ensure it is expressly clear they are speaking for themselves and not the Town or Council as a whole.

(d) Council Members will refrain from using or permitting the use of their social media accounts for purposes that include:

i) defamatory remarks, obscenities, profane language, or sexual content;

ii) negative statements disparaging other members of Council;

~~ii)~~iii) negative statements disparaging Staff or calling into question the professional capabilities of Staff;

~~iii)~~iv) content that endorses, promotes, or perpetuates discrimination or mistreatment on the basis of race, religion or belief, age, gender, marital status, national origin, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation;

~~iv)~~v) statements that indicate a closed-mind in relation to a matter that is to be the subject of a statutory or other public hearing; or,

vi) promotion of illegal activity; or,

~~v)~~vii) information that may compromise the safety or security of the public or public systems.

(e) Council Members must regularly monitor their social media accounts and immediately take measures to deal with the publication of messages or postings by others that violate the terms of this Code of Conduct.

13) INFORMAL COMPLAINT PROCEDURE:

(a) Any Member who has identified or witnessed conduct by a Member that the Member reasonably believes, in good faith, is in contravention of this Policy may address the prohibited conduct by:

(i) advising the Member that the conduct violates this Policy and ask/encourage the Member to stop; or

(ii) requesting the Mayor to assist in informal discussion of the alleged complaint with the Member in an attempt to resolve the issue. In the event the Mayor is the subject of, or is implicated in a complaint, the Member may request the assistance of the Acting Mayor.

(b) Individuals are encouraged to pursue this informal complaint procedure as the first means of remedying conduct that they believe violates this Policy; however, a Member is not required to complete this informal complaint procedure prior to pursuing the formal complaint procedure outlined below.

14) FORMAL COMPLAINT PROCEDURE:

(a) Any Member who has identified or witnessed conduct by a Member that the person reasonably believes, in good faith, is in contravention of this Policy may file a formal complaint in accordance with the following procedure:

(i) All complaints will be addressed to the Chief Administrative Officer who may, subject to any other section in this part, eitherdetermine if an investigation is required and appoint a third party investigator or investigate the complaint themselvesas required.

(ii) Incidents or complaints must be reported as soon as possible after experiencing or witnessing an incident. This allows the incident to be investigated and addressaddressed promptly.

(ii) All complaints must be made in writing and must be dated and signed by the Member making the complaint.

(iv) The complainant must set out a detailed description of the facts as they are known resulting in the allegation that the respondent Member has contravened this Policy. The description may include the names of people involved, witnesses, where and when the incidents occurred, and what behaviour led to the complaint. Supporting documents such as, but not limited to emails, handwritten notes, or photographs must be attached. If possible, include the impact of the behaviour complained of on the complainant and/or others, as well as any steps that may already have been taken under the informal complaint procedure and the outcome of those steps.

(v) Upon receipt of a complaint under this Policy, the Chief Administrative Officer must review the complaint, including any initial response by the Member who is the subject of the complaint, and exercise their discretion to either conductconclude if an investigation ~~themselves,~~is required and appoint a neutral third-party to investigate the complaint, or dismiss the complaint if it would not constitute a violation of this Policy.

(vi) The Member alleged to have breached this Policy is entitled to receive a copy of the complainant’s name and information on the particulars of the complaint and must be given the opportunity to provide an initial response to the complaint prior to the making of a decision on whether or not to investigate under this section.

(vi)(vii) If the Chief Administrative Officer decides not to conductarrange an investigation, they will inform the complainant in writing of the reasons.

(vii)(viii) If an investigation is determined necessary, the procedures are outlined below:

(1) The Chief Administrative Officer will decide whether to conduct the investigation themselves or retain a neutral third-party investigator. The decision on whether to retain an external investigator will depend on the overall complexity of the facts and law related to the complaint, the parties to the complaint, the anticipated length of time necessary to conduct the investigation, the potential severity of the outcome of the investigation to the respondent Member if the complaint is substantiated, and any other relevant considerations.

(2) In cases involving a Member as respondent, the Chief Administrative Officer or the investigator will report directly to the Mayor.

(3) In cases involving the Mayor as respondent, the Chief Administrative Officer or the investigator will report directly to the Acting Mayor.

(4) In cases involving both the Mayor and Acting Mayor, the Chief Administrative Officer must report to the rest of Council.

(viii)(ix) An investigation will be conducted as quickly as possible to determine the facts of the situation with the utmost confidentiality of the process, investigation, and resulting discussion with Council being maintained throughout.

(ix)(x) The Chief Administrative Officer or the investigator will review all relevant documents and conduct interviews with the complainant, the respondent, and any witnesses that may have relevant information.

(x)(xi) Each party has the right to be accompanied by legal counsel. All participants will be asked and expected to maintain confidentiality and sign off accordingly.

(xi)(i) (xi) The Member alleged to have breached this Policy is entitled to receive a copy of the complainant’s name and information on the particulars of the complaint and must be given the opportunity to provide an initial response to the complaint prior to the making of a decision on whether or not to investigate under this section.

(xii) The investigation will normally commence within two (2) weeks of the filing of the complaint and be completed within thirty (30) business days following such time. Completion time may be reasonably extended beyond those timelines to ensure a thorough investigation has been conducted.

(xiii) Following the completion of the investigation, the Chief Administrative Officer or the investigator will provide a written report of the results of the investigation to the instructing individual (Mayor, Acting Mayor, or their designate) for Council’s consideration.

(xiv) The instructing individual (Mayor, Acting Mayor, or their designate) will provide a copy of the report to Council and the respondent Member who is the subject of the complaint.

(xv) Determining culpability and possible sanction will be the sole responsibility of Council.

(xvi) A Member who is the subject of a complaint and investigation under this Policy must be afforded procedural fairness, including an opportunity to respond to the conclusions of the investigation report before Council deliberates and makes any decision on culpability or any sanction is considered and imposed.

(xvii) A Member who is the subject of a complaint and investigation is entitled to retain, be advised, and be represented by legal counsel during the investigation stage and at the Council meeting where any decision on culpability is to be made or any sanction is considered and imposed.

(xviii) Subject to paragraph (xix) below, the Town will reimburse the reasonable costs for each respondent Member’s legal representation under this Section after Council concludes its deliberations and makes a decision under paragraph (xvi) above unless Council determines that the Member engaged in dishonest, grossly negligent, or malicious conduct.

(xix) Despite paragraph (xviii), Council may, by resolution, approve interim funding for a respondent Member’s legal representation under this Section subject to the respondent Member’s written agreement to repay such funding if, after Council concludes its deliberations and makes a decision under paragraph (xvi) above, Council determines that the Member engaged in dishonest, grossly negligent, or malicious conduct.

15) REMEDIES:

(a) Sanctions that may be imposed on a Member, by Council, upon a finding that the Member has breached this Policy may include:

(i) a letter of reprimand addressed to the Member;

(ii) a request that the Member issue a letter of apology to the affected individual(s);

(iii) the publication of a letter of reprimand or letter of apology and the Member's response;

(iv) a requirement to attend remedial education and training;

(v) re-orientation to this Policy and its purpose;

(vi) suspension or removal of the appointment of a Council Member as the Acting Mayor;

(vii) suspension or removal from some or all internal and external Council committees and bodies to which Council has the right to appoint members;

(viii) restricting the Council Member from attending events as a representative of Council;

(ix) imposing further limits related travel or expenses beyond those set out in the Town’s corporate policies;

(x) requiring the return of Town property provided for convenience;

(xi) limiting access to certain Town facilities;

(xii) restricting how documents are provided to the Member; and

(xiii) any other sanction Council deems reasonable and appropriate in the circumstances, provided that the sanction does not prevent a Council Member from fulfilling the legislated duties of a Council Member and the sanction is not contrary to provincial legislation.

16) NO REPRISAL OR RETALIATION:

(a) The Council and the Town will not tolerate threats or acts of reprisal or retaliation against any complainant, witness, respondent, or employee of the Town responsible for implementing and carrying out the objectives or requirements of this Policy and procedure, who in good faith:

(i) makes a complaint under this Policy;

(ii) identifies or opposes a practice or conduct that they reasonably believe to constitute a violation of this Policy; and

(iii) implements or participates in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing of any kind under this Policy.

(b) Members must not take or threaten to take any act of reprisal or retaliation against a complainant, witness, respondent, or employee of the Town, or any other person responsible for implementing and carrying out the objectives or requirements of this Policy and procedure in good faith.

(c) Any individual covered by this Policy who is found to have engaged in any reprisal or retaliation in violation of this Policy will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, which action may include, and is not limited to, the sanctions and remedies described above.

Attachments:

Schedule A: Examples of Unacceptable Conduct
Schedule 2: Town
Other Related Legislation:
Community Charter
Section 105 Restrictions on Accepting Gifts
Section 106 Disclosure of View RoyalGifts

Other Related Policies:
0100-038 Media Communications Policy
Schedule 3: Town of View Royal0500-034 Council-Staff Communications Policy
0500-009 Reports to Council Policy
1600-021 Purchasing Policy
2600-037 Employees Workplace Bullying and Harassment Policy