Algoma-Manitoulin MPP accused of workplace harassment by Elliot Lake staffer
QUEEN’S PARK—Rumours have swirled since the news of Algoma-Manitoulin MPP Mike Mantha’s removal from the NDP caucus over alleged workplace harassment. This past week an arbitration decision between the Ontario NDP caucus and the Canadian and Professional Employees Union (CUPE) Local 343 shed more light on the allegations facing Mr. Mantha that led to him being turfed from the NDP ranks and his new status as an independent MPP.
First elected in 2011, Mr. Mantha has won four consecutive provincial elections in Algoma-Manitoulin carrying the NDP banner, but NDP leader Marit Stiles said the allegations against Mr. Mantha were so serious she could not allow him to remain within the NDP fold.
“As a leader, I know I could not condone that kind of harassment,” she told The Expositor. “That’s why I removed him from my caucus when I saw the nature of the allegations and the investigative report.”
It was the investigative report that really nailed the decision down tight.
The recent arbitration report detailed accusations regarding an unsafe workplace—Mr. Mantha’s constituency office.
Among the allegations were that Mr. Mantha pressured the employee to have “non-consensual sexual interactions with him,” and that Mr. Mantha requested that the constituency worker “send explicit pictures of herself,” among other allegations.
The investigation was conducted by Mireille Mortimer of Mortimer Khoraych Workplace Investigations and is referred to in the decision as “the Mortimer Investigation.” That investigation was not released to the public.
Now that the arbitration is a matter of public record, some details have come to light through the publicly issued decision order.
On or around August 22, 2022, the person making the complaint raised concerns to the Ontario NDP caucus about an unsafe work environment (at the same time, she began a paid leave of absence).
The union filed a grievance on her behalf the following November, raising specific allegations of workplace harassment by Mr. Mantha. The investigation was conducted between January 31, 2023 and July 6, 2023, the investigation was based on phone calls, email exchanges and several investigative interviews with the constituency worker; phone calls and email exchanges with Mr. Mantha and/or his legal counsel; investigative interviews with three witnesses who had direct knowledge of the facts underlying the allegations; review of substantial video evidence, as well as text messages and online communications; review of a variety of relevant documentation related to the allegations such as meeting notes and correspondence; and review of various workplace policies.
The final report was issued July 18, 2023—less than a month later Ms. Stiles permanently removed Mantha from the NDP Caucus.
The Mortimer Investigation found that, on a balance of probabilities, “allegations of workplace harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination on the basis of sex, abuse of authority and creation of a toxic workplace, had all been substantiated.”
“Those all go against our party’s values and workplace policy,” said Ms. Stiles.
Specific allegations are that Mr. Mantha pressured the constituency worker to engage in non-consensual sexual interactions with him; that he required her to submit to his hugs on a regular basis; that he sexually harassed her on a regular basis in the office, engaging in several incidents of unwanted physical and sexual contact, notwithstanding her protests that he stop such conduct; that he requested she send him sexually explicit photos of herself, advise him of any sexual dreams about him, and made comments about her appearance, including her makeup, hair and clothes; and finally, that Mr. Mantha pressured her to work from the office more often so that he could physically have access to her and continue his practice of sexually touching her.
The decision notes that both parties, the union and the Ontario NDP, do not dispute the findings of the investigation. Mr. Mantha was provided notice of the arbitration proceedings by the NDP, but he “has not sought to participate in this hearing.”
When Mr. Mantha was removed from the Ontario NDP the Ontario NDP sent a termination letter to the woman he was alleged to have harassed. That letter indicated that, since she was no longer employed by an NDP MPP, she was no longer covered by the NDP collective bargaining agreement. All NDP employees are unionized. The other workers in Mr. Mantha’s offices also received a letter.
The letter also stated that the caucus could not offer her work within the CUPE bargaining unit as there were no other constituency offices nearby.
This led to the union filing a further grievance on January 26, alleging she had been unjustly terminated, going on to seek reinstatement and “a range of other compensatory and other remedies.” In the decision, the arbitrator found the constituency worker’s employment with the NDP caucus was terminated “through no fault of her own.”
Both parties requested, should the arbitrator come to this conclusion, that the matter of remedy goes back to the parties involved, the union and the ONDP caucus.
However, the arbitrator states in his decision he will re-engage “in the event the parties are unable to resolve the issue of remedy.”
For his part, Mr. Mantha has remained defiant in the face of the arbitrator’s decision, releasing the following statement: “The last two years have been very challenging, but it is time to move past this matter. While I disagree with some of the characterizations made, on the advice of my legal counsel I will not be commenting further at this time. It is my honour to represent the people of Algoma-Manitoulin. I will fulfill my role as MPP for the remainder of this term and leave the decision on my future in the hands of voters in Algoma-Manitoulin.”
“MPP Mantha needs to take responsibility for his actions and show real support,” asserted Ms. Stiles. “A lot of people have been hurt,” she noted, pointing to the many volunteers who have placed trust and faith in him. “All have to deal with the fallout.”
Ms. Stiles said that she could not speak on the settlement between the complainant and the Ontario NDP.
