Workplace Harassment Policy Template (Canada)

Last updated: March 2026

You just found out a GC wants a copy of your workplace harassment policy before they'll approve your sub package. You don't have one. Or worse, you have something a previous safety coordinator slapped together three years ago that hasn't been touched since.

You're not alone. We work with contractors across Canada who run solid crews and take safety seriously on site, but when it comes to written harassment policies, most are either missing one entirely or working off something that wouldn't survive a regulator's review. The gap between "we don't tolerate that stuff" and a legally compliant written policy is bigger than most employers realize.

A workplace harassment policy is a written document that defines what constitutes harassment in your workplace, outlines how workers report incidents, describes how the employer will investigate complaints, and states the consequences for violations. In Canada, having one isn't optional. Federal, provincial, and territorial legislation all require employers to maintain a workplace harassment policy, though the specific requirements vary by jurisdiction.

A workplace harassment policy is the foundational document that sets out your company's rules for preventing, reporting, and responding to harassment at work. In Canada, having a written harassment policy isn't optional: Alberta, BC, Ontario, and federal regulations all require employers to have one, and COR auditors will ask to see it.

This guide provides a harassment policy template built for Canadian contractors, with the specific elements each province requires and practical language your workers will actually read.

Why Do Canadian Employers Need a Written Harassment Policy?

Most contractors think a verbal understanding is enough. "My crew knows I won't put up with that." It's the most common thing we hear, and it's the fastest way to end up exposed when something goes wrong.

Here's the blunt truth: a verbal commitment means nothing when an investigator shows up. Without a written policy, you have no evidence that you took reasonable steps to prevent harassment. And in every Canadian jurisdiction, "reasonable steps" is the legal standard you'll be held to.

A written workplace harassment policy does three things:

1. Legal compliance. Every province and territory requires employers to address harassment. The specifics vary, but the core obligation is the same: you need a written policy, and most jurisdictions require a program to back it up.
2. Protection for your business. If a harassment complaint ends up in front of a labour board or tribunal, the first question will be: "Did the employer have a policy? Was it communicated? Was it followed?" If the answer to any of those is no, you're already losing.
3. Protection for your workers. A clear policy gives workers a path to report. And it tells potential harassers there are documented consequences.

If you're not sure whether your current documentation meets the standard, a free safety assessment is the fastest way to find out. We review your existing policies against your provincial requirements and give you a 90-day action plan. If you're working toward COR certification, a harassment policy is part of the psychosocial hazard documentation that auditors specifically look for.

What Laws Require a Workplace Harassment Policy in Canada?

The legal landscape is layered. You need to know which jurisdiction applies to your business, because the requirements aren't identical.

Federal: Bill C-65 and the Canada Labour Code

Bill C-65 came into force on January 1, 2021, amending the Canada Labour Code Part II. It applies to federally regulated workplaces: banks, telecommunications, interprovincial transportation, and federal government employers. The law defines harassment and violence as "any action, conduct or comment, including of a sexual nature, that can reasonably be expected to cause offence, humiliation or other physical or psychological injury or illness to an employee." Under the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations, employers must develop a workplace harassment and violence prevention policy, conduct workplace assessments, provide training, and establish resolution procedures.

Ontario: Bill 168 and Bill 132 (OHSA)

Ontario has some of the most specific requirements in Canada. Bill 168 amended the Occupational Health and Safety Act in 2010, requiring all employers to develop both a workplace harassment policy and a workplace harassment program. Bill 132 expanded the definition in 2016 to specifically address workplace sexual harassment. Employers must post the policy in a conspicuous place, provide training, and ensure complaints are investigated "appropriate in the circumstances."

If you operate in Ontario, the free safety assessment we offer covers a full review of your harassment documentation against OHSA requirements.

Alberta: OHS Act, Part 27 (Updated March 2025)

Alberta updated its violence and harassment prevention requirements effective March 31, 2025. The biggest change: employers now maintain one consolidated violence and harassment prevention plan instead of separate policies for violence and harassment. The plan must include hazard identification and control measures, procedures for reporting and investigating complaints, confidentiality provisions, and worker training. Reviews are required at least every three years, or sooner if triggered by an incident, workplace change, or committee request.

British Columbia: WorkSafeBC OHS Regulation

BC uses the term "bullying and harassment." Under WorkSafeBC regulations, employers must develop and implement procedures for preventing and responding to bullying and harassment. This includes defining how and when investigations will be conducted, clarifying roles and responsibilities, and documenting investigations and maintaining records.

What Must a Workplace Harassment Policy Include?

Regardless of your province, a compliant workplace harassment policy needs to cover certain core elements. Here's the framework, section by section.

1. Policy Statement and Commitment

A clear statement from senior management committing to a harassment-free workplace. This follows the same structure as your broader health and safety policy: name the most senior person accountable, state that the policy applies to everyone (employees, supervisors, managers, contractors, and visitors), and include the date of adoption and most recent review.

2. Definitions

Define harassment, violence, sexual harassment, bullying, and discrimination using the exact language from your applicable legislation, then add plain-language examples. For example, Alberta's OHS Act defines workplace harassment as "any single incident or repeated incidents of objectionable or unwelcome conduct, comment, bullying or action by a person that the person knows or ought reasonably to know will or would cause offence or humiliation to a worker, or adversely affects the worker's health and safety." Include the "reasonable management action" exclusion so managers don't become paralyzed about giving performance feedback.

3. Scope

Define where and when the policy applies: all work sites, offices, vehicles, company-controlled locations, work-related travel and events, and digital communications. Cover interactions involving workers, supervisors, clients, suppliers, and visitors. Domestic violence that spills into the workplace is covered under most provincial legislation, including Alberta and Ontario.

4. Reporting Procedures

This is where most contractor policies fall apart. A policy that says "report harassment to your supervisor" is useless when the supervisor is the one doing the harassing. Your procedures need at least two independent reporting channels (e.g., direct supervisor AND a designated person such as a senior manager or external contact), clear instructions for how to submit a report, and a statement that workers will not be penalized for making a good-faith report.

If your operation doesn't have an HR department (most 10-50 person contractors don't), designate someone by name and title. The point is that workers know exactly who to go to.

5. Investigation Process

Describe who conducts investigations, the timeline for initiating them, the rights of both complainant and respondent, confidentiality protections, how findings are communicated, and documentation requirements. In Ontario, investigations must be "appropriate in the circumstances," meaning the scope should match the severity. Our free incident investigation kit includes templates that apply to harassment complaints as well.

6. Consequences and Corrective Action

State that substantiated harassment will result in corrective action up to and including termination. List the range: verbal warning, written warning, mandatory training, suspension, termination, reporting to authorities. Include consequences for knowingly false complaints.

7. Anti-Retaliation Protections

State explicitly that workers who report harassment in good faith are protected from retaliation, including termination, demotion, reduced hours, or reassignment. Workers won't use the reporting process if they believe they'll face consequences for speaking up.

8. Training Requirements

Specify training during onboarding and orientation, annual refreshers, additional training for supervisors, training whenever the policy is updated (Alberta specifically requires this), and documented sign-offs. If you're using Safety Evolution's online training platform, harassment policy training can be assigned, tracked, and documented automatically.

9. Review Schedule

Ontario: At least annually (OHSA requirement). Alberta: At least every three years, or sooner if triggered by an incident, workplace change, or committee request. BC: Regularly; annual is best practice. Federal: As part of your annual workplace assessment. Document every review, even if no changes were made.

Common Mistakes That Make Harassment Policies Useless

1. Copy-pasting a generic template without adapting it to your jurisdiction. An Ontario template won't cover Alberta's consolidated plan requirement. A BC template won't use Ontario's mandatory definitions.
2. Only one reporting path. If the only option is "tell your supervisor," you've built a policy that fails the moment the supervisor is the problem.
3. No investigation procedure. Stating "we take all complaints seriously" without describing how you actually investigate them is a compliance gap every regulator will catch.
4. Never updating the document. A policy from 2018 doesn't reflect Alberta's March 2025 changes, Bill C-65 (in force since 2021), or Bill 132's expanded sexual harassment definitions. If you're pursuing COR certification, an outdated harassment policy will flag in your audit.
5. No training records. You can have the best policy in the country, but if you can't prove workers were trained on it, you've got a document that sits in a binder while your crew doesn't know it exists.

We see a version of this every week: a contractor who runs a tight, safe operation but gets flagged because the paperwork doesn't match the reality. A 20-person drywall sub in Edmonton had a solid safety culture but no written harassment policy. When a complaint surfaced, the owner handled it fairly, but there was no documented process, the outcome wasn't recorded, and when the worker went to OHS, the employer couldn't demonstrate that reasonable steps were taken. That's the gap this template closes.

Free Workplace Harassment Policy Template Outline

Below is the workplace harassment policy template outline you can use to build your document. Adapt the legal definitions and review timelines to match your province.

This is the framework. Your finished policy will be longer, with your company name, specific contact information, your jurisdiction's exact legal definitions, and your internal procedures. If you want help turning this outline into a finished policy that's ready for your safety manual, book a free safety assessment and we'll walk through it with you. We don't just hand you a template. At Safety Evolution, we help you implement the whole program.