Kamloops Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson says he intends to defend himself, now that he’s been able to obtain a copy of the Integrity Group report into allegations of workplace harassment against him.

Hamer-Jackson says a photocopied version of the report — of which Radio NL now has a copy as well — ended up in his personal mailbox at his home on Tuesday.

He says he has no idea who sent it to him.

In it, the report by investigator Terry Honcharuck with the Vancouver-based Integrity Group, details 12 separate instances in which Mayor Hamer-Jackson broke City Council’s Code of Conduct rules against three of four members of senior staff who are listed as Complainants in the report.

Due to privacy concerns, Radio NL is not going to publicly name the four complainants detailed in the report at this time.

“In addition to reviewing policies, codes of conduct, other documentation, and the applicable law, I interviewed the Complainants (via Zoom) between February 28, 2023 and May 29, 2023. Mr. Hamer-Jackson declined to participate in the investigation,” said Honcharuck in the Executive Summary of his report. “I found all of the Complainants to be credible and accepted their evidence regarding the material allegations.”

In the report, Honcharuck says he was able to determined 8 separate incidents in which the Mayor violated the Code of Conduct in connection with one of the complainants.

“Specifically, I found that Mr. Hamer-Jackson’s conduct was in violation of Section 3(b) of the Code as it was variously (1) disrespectful to [complainant], (2)offensive, demeaning, insulting or abusive to [complainant], and (3) aggressive action that was threatening to [complainant]’s job security,” said the report.

The report goes on to cite an instance where the Mayor was “disrespectful” to another complainant, while also variously disrespectful, offensive, or demeaning to another complainant on three different occasions.

A fourth complaint filed as part of the report found the Mayor did not break the Code of Conduct connected to allegations put out by that individual.

The bulk of the 66 page report includes details of the various allegations laid out by the complainants, including internal emails and conversations the complainants said they had with the Mayor.

[Editors Note: This story will not include specific details of the allegations made by the complainants until such time as Radio NL has had an opportunity to consult with legal counsel, as the specifics of the allegations would involve providing the identity of the complainants.]

Mayor to push back

Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson says he’s glad he’s finally able to read the allegations laid out against him in the Integrity Report.

He says he’s been waiting months to get his hands on it.

“You know, it’s been a long time. At least now, with this report, I can defend myself. That’s the way the process is supposed to work. You’re not supposed to have allegations against you, and then not even know what they are,” Hamer-Jackson said in a sit-down interview with Radio NL after providing a copy of the report he received.

Asked about what he feels are false in the report, the Mayor points to the launch of the investigation itself, which he notes was connected to a tense conversation between himself and Councillor Bill Sarai.

“What sparked the investigation was Councillor Sarai coming to my office, and we’re having a discussion and he starts screaming at me,” said Hamer-Jackson.  “There was probably seven employees there, and if you read the report, you’ll find the Safety Officer did an investigation, and it didn’t affect a lot of people, just a few.”

The Mayor argues the investigator only took into account the comments from those listed as Complainants in the report connected to the blow-up between himself and Councillor Sarai, and did not include any secondary discussions with other City staff who were present at that moment, suggesting a bias toward the Complainants point of view.

The report, submitted to the City of Kamloops on May 31, 2023, includes a section labelled as “Advice.”

“As the Mayor is an elected official, the remedial measures available to the City to address his misconduct are quite limited as compared to a situation where employee-to-employee relationships are involved,” states the report. “In light of this, and in light of the Mayor’s apparent disposition not to accept direction from City staff or [City] Council, I advise that the City should focus its efforts on protecting its employees from bullying, harassment, an other inappropriate behaviour (in keeping with its statutory obligations) as opposed to attempting to educate Mr. Hamer-Jackson (such as through one-on-one Respectful Workplace training).

The report concludes with four recommendations:

1. Council institutes a policy whereby the Mayor’s communication with the Complainants will be restricted.

2. This policy will direct that there will be not telephone calls or face-to-face meeting between the Mayor and any of the Complainants unless a third party approved by the Complainant(s), and who is appropriate to hear that communication, is present for the call or meeting.

3. This policy will direct that all written communication from the Mayor to Any of the Complainants will first go through a Councillor appointed as a liaison who will vet communication. This Councillor will have the authority not to forward that communication if it contains inappropriate or offensive language or material.

4. City Hall staff, Council, and the Mayor will complete comprehensive Respectful Workplace training with an external facilitator which covers bullying, harassment, discrimination, and poisoned work environment with an equal emphasis on conflict resolution and diffusion techniques for bullying and harassing behaviour.

These recommendations have now been implemented, with the Mayor unable to have one-on-one meetings with the complainants involved in the report.

Despite the report’s findings, and the sanctions he’s been under since, the Mayor suggests that now he’s been able to review the allegations, he’ll be able to defend himself.

“Let’s call it the TSN Turning Point,” said Hamer-Jackson. “I’ve been asking for it [the Integrity Group report] for a long time. I’ve been asking right from the get-go. Mr. Honcharuck, I asked him what the allegations are, and I just found out a couple of days ago in my mailbox.”