Richmond Hill councillor faces allegations he abused staffer
Council asks integrity commissioner to step in, requests Councillor Greg Beros take ‘anti-harassment training.’

thestar.com
July 22, 2015
By Noor Javed

Richmond Hill council is calling in the integrity commissioner to carry out an investigation into the actions of a councillor after a lengthy internal probe found that “it was more likely than not” he “engaged in conduct amounting to sexual harassment and abusive conduct” with a member of staff.

In the meantime, the town is asking that the councillor be able to move around the town’s offices only when escorted by senior management.

According to a town release Tuesday, a town employee filed a harassment complaint against Ward 1 Councillor Greg Beros before the municipal election last fall. That prompted the city to hire an external investigator, who brought her findings to council in April.

The report, which was discussed during two lengthy in-camera sessions this month, is secret. So are any details about the allegations.

“The investigator came to the conclusion that there seems to be some form of harassment and indecent conduct,” said Richmond Hill Mayor Dave Barrow. “It was something that we take seriously, and had to move on,” said Barrow, adding it’s the first time an incident between a councillor and staff has apparently taken place since he has been on council in nearly two decades.

On Tuesday, council approved a motion that refers the investigation to the integrity commissioner to determine whether Beros violated the council’s code of conduct. It also requests the councillor take anti-harassment training, paid for by the town.

And in an unprecedented move, the motion requests that Beros “refrain from accessing all areas of the town’s offices where town employees perform their work, except when accompanied by a manager, director, commissioner, or the Chief Administrative Officer.”

“We owe it to our employees that they have a safe and respectful workplace,” said Barrow. “And the way the policies are set out by the province, it doesn’t give council many options for sanctions or punishments for dealing with issues like this,” he said. Under Ontario’s Municipal Act, an integrity commissioner’s would be able to administer penalties if there was evidence of wrongdoing, he said.

There was never any suggestion by the town’s lawyers, or the investigator to involve the police, Barrow said.

Beros turned to social media Tuesday night to proclaim his innocence. “All of the allegations are false,” he said on his Facebook page. “The investigation conducted by the Town was prejudiced and seriously flawed. The actions of council were without authority and intended to harm my family and my reputation” he said. “Given the unjust actions of Council, I have no choice but to pursue justice in the courts.”

In an interview on Wednesday, accompanied by his lawyer, Beros said he was shocked when he was told about the allegations last fall.

“The complaint was made by a former employee, who I considered a friend,” said Beros, who was elected in 2006. “It was a huge shock.”

Barrow said the complainant is no longer with the town.

Beros believes that the investigation process was not fair. “During the process, I had to continuously ask to find out the full extent of the allegations, and I still don’t know all of them,” he said, adding that his lawyer engaged in months of back-and-forth with the investigator. “All I asked for was fairness.”

He says he now has little faith in an integrity commissioner investigation and believes it’s a way “to humiliate him further.”