Home

Human Rights & Dispute Resolution Policy

E-mail Print PDF



All members of the Institute community have the responsibility to respect the rights of others. The Institute does not condone and will not tolerate discrimination or harassment, including sexual and personal harassment, which undermines the dignity, self-esteem or productivity of any student or employee.

The Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine considers any form of harassment or discrimination of any member of the Institute community to be a serious violation of that individual's fundamental rights. Violation of an individual's rights is a serious offence which may be subject to a range of resolutions including mediated settlement or, in certain circumstances, disciplinary measures up to and including dismissal or expulsion.

Increased awareness through education and training is the key to eliminating incidents of harassment and discrimination. The Institute encourages awareness and training on harassment and human rights issues, as well as education as a component of complaint resolution.

This policy applies to all members of the Institute community. Complaints of harassment or discrimination must pertain to BINM-related activities.

All members of the Institute community are responsible for ensuring the Institute's working / learning environment is free from harassment and discrimination. Boucher Institute administrators and supervisory personnel bear the primary responsibility for maintaining a working and learning environment free from harassment and discrimination. They are expected to act on this responsibility whenever necessary, whether or not they are in receipt of a complaint.

The expertise of the Chair of the Ethics Committee is available to all members of the Institute community. The Chair of the Ethics Committee provides confidential advisory services regarding harassment and human rights issues and is responsible for the introduction and implementation of the Human Rights Policy.

The Institute must take all necessary actions to ensure the working and learning environment is safe and free from harassment and discrimination. In the Institute community, power differences exist between or among administrators, faculty, staff and students. Where one person has implied or explicit power or authority over another, there is increased responsibility for the individual in a position of power to ensure harassment or discrimination does not arise.

The paramount goal of the complaint process is to provide a fair and confidential process that permits both the complainant and the respondent to present their cases. All members of the Institute community will be treated equitably under this policy. All matters arising under this policy will be dealt with in a fair, unbiased and timely manner.

This policy will be interpreted, administered and applied in conformity with the principles of procedural fairness and natural justice. In particular:

  • A complainant has a right to seek action;
  • A respondent has a right to know the allegations and to be given an opportunity to answer them;
  • Both parties have the right to a fair and timely process of resolution.
Those responsible for interpreting, administering and applying this policy will use a "reasonable person" standard.

Any member of the Institute community has a right to bring forward a complaint of harassment or discrimination. Interference with the conduct of an investigation or retaliation against a complainant or witness, whether the complaint was substantiated or unsubstantiated, may itself be an incident of harassment and may result in disciplinary action by the Institute.

The Chair of the Ethics Committee deals objectively, impartially and confidentially with all parties. Efforts at informal resolution, with or without the mediation of an appropriate mutually agreed-upon staff or faculty member, will normally be encouraged first in dealing with a complaint. Should informal mediation fail, specific steps and procedures shall apply (see Grievance and Dispute Resolution Procedures.)

Confidentiality is required so that those who allege they have been harassed or discriminated against will feel free to come forward. Confidentiality is also required so that the reputations or interests of those accused of harassment or discrimination are protected.

Either party to a complaint may object to the participation of a person administering this policy on grounds that the person has a conflict of interest or if there is a reasonable apprehension of bias.

Every effort should be made by all parties to deal with the complaint process in a timely manner. To ensure that information may be gathered in an accurate and timely way, complaints should be made no later than six months after the last alleged harassment or discrimination. The Chair of the Ethics Committee may waive this requirement, if in her/his opinion, circumstances warrant.

Informal conflict resolution, with or without the mediation of an appropriate mutually agreed upon staff or faculty member, is encouraged. Should informal mediation fail, the following steps and procedures shall apply.

Grievance and Dispute Resolution Procedures
  • The BINM Ethics Committee deals with grievances involving students and staff. In the event that the person who is the object of a complaint is a member of the Ethics Committee, that person will be temporarily replaced until that particular grievance has been settled.


  • All grievances must be presented in writing to the Ethics Committee via Student Services.


  • The person or persons involved in presenting the grievance must be identified by name. The Ethics Committee will guarantee and protect confidentiality of identity if requested to do so by any person(s) involved in presenting the grievance. Should the grievance be presented on behalf of a class, it must be submitted by the Class Representative in his/her official capacity, together with information as to how consensus was obtained and what proportion of the class is in agreement with the grievance.


  • A meeting of the Ethics Committee will be called as soon as is reasonably possible, but no later than 10 working days following receipt of a complaint to determine that:
    a) the complaint is valid, and
    b) the problem has been clearly and specifically defined.
    c) If, in the opinion of the Ethics Committee, the complaint is not sufficiently clearly defined, clarification will be requested before proceeding.


  • Where the complaint is found to be valid and well defined,
    a) a member of the Ethics Committee shall be designated to notify the person who is the subject of the complaint and request a response within five (5) working days, which may be made to the Committee in writing
    b) the Ethics Committee will conduct whatever further investigation of the circumstances concerning the complaint that may be deemed necessary, and
    c) the Ethics Committee will then attempt to bring about a resolution of the problem through active assistance and cooperative interaction with both parties.


  • The principle objective of the Ethics Committee at all times shall be to resolve conflicts and restore and maintain a harmonious, positive, and effectual atmosphere in which to work and learn. The Ethics Committee shall make every effort to avoid taking sides or making judgments, with exception of circumstances where clear violations of legal or ethical principles are involved. Every attempt will be made to resolve all complaints in a timely fashion, and in any case, no later than 30 days following receipt of a clearly defined written complaint.

Ethics Committee Functions and Procedures

The Ethics Committee will also deal with any complaint received regarding an enrolled student of BINM, regardless of who generated the complaint. All final recommendations of the Committee, addressed to the student who is the subject of a legitimate complaint, will be placed into that student's file. The content of the student's file is available to the registrars of the CNPBC and other provincial or state naturopathic regulatory body whenever that student applies to become licensed. All information, evidence and material pertaining to a case involving a student will be kept on file in the authorized manner for a period of six years, after which the grievance related contents of the file are to be destroyed.

The procedure for handling ethical or other complaints is the same as the Grievance and Dispute Resolution Procedure as outlined above.