On July 1, 2023, Bill 26 amends the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005 including rules respecting sexual misconduct toward students by employees of private career colleges, and to address related matters.
An employee of Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare is defined as anyone who provides services and/or performs work for wages.
Sexual misconduct is broadly defined as any act that includes sexual harassment, sexual violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sexual exploitation.
In relation to a student enrolled at the college, all employees of Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare shall not:
a) Engage in physical sexual relations with a student, touching of a sexual nature with a student or behave or make remarks of a sexual nature towards a student were
i. the act constitutes an offence under the Criminal Code (Canada)
ii. the act infringes the right of the student under clause 7 (3) (a) of the Human Rights Code to be free from a sexual solicitation or advance, or
iii. the act constitutes sexual misconduct as defined in the Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare employee sexual misconduct policy or contravenes the policy or any other policy, rule or other requirement of the private career college respecting sexual relations between employees and students, or
b) Engage in any conduct that infringes the right of the student under clause 7 (3) (b) of the Human Rights Code to be free from a reprisal or threat of reprisal for the rejection of a sexual solicitation or advance.
If an employee of Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare commits an act of sexual misconduct toward an enrolled student, the college may discharge or discipline the employee for that act, and,
a) the discharge or disciplinary measure is deemed to be for ‘just cause’ for all purposes;
b) the employee will not be entitled to notice of termination or termination pay or any other compensation or restitution as a result of the discharge or disciplinary measure; and
c) despite subsection 48 (17) of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, and despite any provision of an employment contract specifying a penalty for the infraction, no arbitrator, arbitration board or other adjudicator shall substitute any other penalty for the discharge or disciplinary measure imposed by Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare.
If an employee of Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare commits an act of sexual misconduct toward a student enrolled at the college and the college discharges the employee for that act or the employee resigns from their employment, Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare shall not subsequently re-employ the employee.
If Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare determines that it has re-employed an individual contrary to subsection (3), the college shall discharge the employee, and clauses (2) (a) to (c) shall apply to the discharge.
Subject to subsection (6), an agreement between Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare and any person, including an agreement settling existing or contemplated litigation, that is entered into on or after the day section 1 of Schedule 2 to the Strengthening Post-secondary Institutions and Students Act, 2022 comes into force, shall not contain any term that, directly or indirectly, prohibits Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare or any person related to the college from disclosing that an allegation or complaint has been made that an employee of Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare committed an act of sexual misconduct toward a student of college, and any such term that is included in an agreement is void.
Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare may enter into an agreement that contains a term described in subsection (5) if the student requests that the college do so, provided that,
a) the student has had a reasonable opportunity to receive independent legal advice;
b) there have been no undue attempts to influence the student with respect to the request;
c) the agreement includes an opportunity for the student to decide to waive their own confidentiality in the future and the process for doing so; and
d) the agreement is of a set and limited duration.
Subsections (2) to (6) apply despite any contrary term in an employment contract or any contrary rule or principle of common law or equity.
It is a condition of registration that Canada Topline College of Business, Technology & Healthcare have an Employee Sexual Misconduct Policy that includes at a minimum,
a) Stanford International College’s rules with respect to sexual behave our that involves employees
and students enrolled at the college, and
b) Disciplinary measures that may be imposed on employees who contravene the policy.
