A high school student started being taunted by email and on social media by a group of girls from her school. They incited other students to sexually harass and abuse her verbally in the hallways.
Her parents spoke to the principal and vice principal who did not take the conduct seriously and failed to investigate. After nothing was done by the school or the police, she changed schools, however the on-line harassment continued. In addition, the group told peers at her new school she was a “slut” and used other sexually-related derogatory terms.
The Centre made the argument that the school had a duty, similar to that of employers, to take steps to create a harassment-free environment and conduct a full investigation where needed.
The Centre negotiated a settlement that included:
- Financial compensation for the discrimination;
- A communication was to be delivered to all students and parents explaining a new process for complaining of harassment;
- All principals and vice principals in the district school board will take training to deal with sexual harassment over 2014-2015 school year;
- The school board will provide training to all teachers and secondary education workers on the Human Rights Code, the Bullying Awareness and Prevention and Intervention Policy, the Discipline Policy and the Code of Conduct.