The Blue Mountains council had delayed the approval and implementation of a new staff code of conduct.
At its committee of the whole meeting on Nov. 18, council considered the new employee code of conduct that has been in development since late 2023. Staff recommended approval of the new code of conduct at the committee meeting, with council’s final approval coming at its regular meeting on Dec. 2.
However, that straightforward process became convoluted as council debated and discussed the new code of conduct, along with a new whistleblower policy, for more than an hour.
An initial vote to approve the code of conduct and send it to the Dec. 2 meeting for final approval was defeated in a 3-3 tie with Deputy Mayor Peter Bordignon and councillors Alex Maxwell and Shawn McKinlay in favour. Mayor Andrea Matrosovs had temporarily left the meeting and was not present for the vote.
Councillors Paula Hope, June Porter and Gail Ardiel wanted the draft code of conduct sent to the town’s accountability and transparency committee for further review and revisions. Both Porter and Hope said they had extensive comments and revisions they wanted made to the proposed policy.
Other members of council said they felt the proposed code of conduct had been in development at council’s direction before the accountability and transparency committee had been created and had been vetted by the town’s legal advisors.
“I’m just wondering how much longer this process is going to take,” said McKinlay.
After the initial vote to approve the draft code of conduct failed, a second resolution to send the new policy to the accountability and transparency committee for review and for members of council to submit their comments on the proposed code of conduct directly to staff prior to council’s next meeting on Dec. 2 was approved in a 5-1 vote. Bordignon was the lone member of council opposed.
Immediately following the staff code of conduct report, council considered a new whistleblower policy for the town. To speed up the process, council dispensed with the resolution to approve the whistleblower policy and send it to the Dec. 2 meeting for final approval and instead passed a similar resolution to have the proposed policy sent to the accountability and transparency committee for review.
The proposed staff code of conduct sets expectations for all employees of the municipality for their behaviour and performance.
The proposed staff code of conduct includes the following principles:
- Professionalism, ethics, and courtesy in all interactions
- Ensuring a safe and healthy workplace
- Compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and policies
- Responsible use of municipal resources
- Conducting business with integrity
- Addressing conflicts of interest and reporting violations
The full proposed employee code of conduct can be found online here.
The purpose of an employee whistleblower policy is to ensure that all town employees can raise concerns about wrongdoing affecting the community with protections against retaliation. It provides a clear framework for reporting potential misconduct, such as unethical, illegal, or wasteful activities. Additionally, the policy protects employees who act in good faith, reinforcing the town's commitment to transparency and accountability.
The full proposed employee whistleblower policy can be found online here.
