Complaints often arrive with a disclosed or suspected disability, a mental health leave, or a neurodivergent person on one side or the other. These are the files where a process most often goes wrong, usually because nobody adjusted how it was run.
I run independent workplace investigations that build those adjustments in from the start and document them, so the record shows the process was fair to the people it was run with.
Disability, mental health and neurodiversity show up in a complaint in a handful of recurring ways. Each one changes how the process has to run.
The complaint is often what preceded the leave, or what followed it. Timing, format and pace of participation have to be worked out with the person, not around them.
Direct questions, interruptions and a crowded video call can produce answers that look evasive when they are not. How a question is asked affects the quality of the evidence.
A respondent may say their behaviour flows from a condition, or a complainant may say they were targeted because of one. Both need to be recorded accurately without being prejudged.
Many complaints follow a request that was refused, delayed or never answered. The investigation records that history as fact. It does not decide whether the duty to accommodate was met.
Every person interviewed, party or witness, receives a written document in advance setting out my role, confidentiality and its limits, the right to a support person or union representative, how to request an accommodation, what the interview involves, the commitment against retaliation, and the timeline.
Questions can be sent ahead of time, usually 48 to 72 hours before the interview. Breaks, shorter sessions, written answers, a different format or a different time of day can all be arranged. Interviews are trauma-informed: people get the time and space to explain themselves fully.
Every accommodation provided is logged in the file. If the process is later reviewed by WorkSafeBC, a human rights tribunal, an arbitrator or a court, the record shows what was asked for, what was provided and why.
The investigation makes findings of fact on a balance of probabilities and assesses whether those facts breach your policy and the regulatory frameworks that apply. Occurrence is kept separate from characterisation: first what happened, then how the definition applies to it.
Where a party connects the conduct to a disability or an accommodation need, it is recorded and referred to the organization and its counsel. Whether the employer met its duty to accommodate, any assessment of liability, and decisions about discipline stay with the organization and its legal advisors.
Not sure a full investigation is needed? The Preliminary Review and Assessment sets out the allegations and recommends whether to proceed, for a fixed fee, without interviewing anyone.
Over 20 years working with diverse and complex workplaces, including disability case management, employment programs for neurodivergent people, work on SAP's Autism at Work launch in Vancouver, and the customized employment pilot that introduced the model to BC through Open Door Group.
That background is the reason these files are a specialty rather than an exception. More about my background →
A short, confidential call will tell you whether a preliminary review, a full investigation or something lighter fits. Reaching out does not create a record or an obligation.
No. Where a party connects the conduct to a disability or an accommodation need, it is recorded and referred to the organization and its counsel. The investigation makes findings of fact and assesses them against your policy and the regulatory frameworks that apply.
Often, yes, with the timing, format and pace worked out with them. Questions can be provided in advance, sessions can be shorter, and a support person can attend. Every accommodation is documented.
Generally no. A participant can ask for an accommodation without disclosing a diagnosis. The process needs to know what someone needs to take part fairly, not why.
British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, and the other provinces outside Quebec. In person in Metro Vancouver, and by secure video elsewhere.