Ontario Municipal Human Resources Association

Municipalities are uniquely structured compared to other organizations and industries, which can create some unique challenges for municipal Human Resources professionals to navigate. In particular, complicated situations can arise in the face of workplace complaints involving multiple senior officials including Councillors, the Mayor and the Chief Administrative Officer. These matters need to be handled carefully, especially because they are subject to various legislative schemes.

Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, employers have a positive obligation to conduct an investigation that is reasonable in the circumstances, whenever they are aware of or ought reasonably to be aware of workplace harassment. However, these situations become considerably more complicated when a councillor or local board member is named as the respondent in a harassment investigation.

The Municipal Act currently provides an Integrity Commissioner Framework whereby municipalities are responsible for establishing a code of conduct that applies to the members of council and local boards. It is the municipal Integrity Commissioner’s responsibility to investigate complaints of alleged misconduct by council members under the municipal code of conduct and related policies to determine the appropriate penalties. At the moment, the penalties that a municipality may impose on a member of council or a local board are legislatively limited to reprimands and the suspension of remuneration for up to 90 days, and only in circumstances where these actions are recommended by the Integrity Commissioner.

On May 1, 2025, the provincial government re-introduced Bill 9, the Municipal Accountability Act, 2025. If passed, Bill 9 would significantly change the current Integrity Commissioner Framework. This piece of legislation would enable the creation of a new, standardized municipal code of conduct, an Integrity Commissioner inquiry and complaint process that would be consistent throughout the province, as well as a mandatory code of conduct training for members of council and certain local boards. The standardized code of conduct may also include rules for ethical behaviour with respect to harassment and discrimination.

In addition, if Bill 9 is enacted, it would establish a procedure for removing and disqualifying municipal council and local board members who commit serious code of conduct violations. Upon the completion of an inquiry under this Bill, the municipal Integrity Commissioner could make a recommendation to the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario that the council member’s seat should be declared vacant, provided certain criteria are met. Once this recommendation is made, the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario would be required to conduct their own inquiry to determine whether the criteria for removal and disqualification have been met. Ultimately, all the members of council (except those excluded from voting) must vote in favour of the recommendation to remove the councillor from their seat.

If the member is removed from their seat they would be disqualified from being a member of the municipality’s council or any local board for a period of four years. If the individual holds multiple positions, for example seats on both council and a local board, when one of their seats is declared vacant under process outlined in Bill 9, all other positions held by that person would automatically be deemed vacant as well.

The Ontario government intends to make further decisions about the content included in the standardized code of conduct after consultations with the municipal sector. The provincial government has also indicated that it plans to develop the necessary regulations for the new Integrity Commissioner Framework to come into effect for the next term of councils in 2026.

The re-introduction of Bill 9 highlights that accountability and transparency for elected municipal actors is of growing significance to members of the public. It is important for municipalities to consider how its policies and procedures presently apply to members of council before Bill 9 and a standardized provincial code of conduct come into force. The complex nature of the municipal legal landscape impacts a Human Resource professional’s role and the municipality’s avenues for recourse when managing a complaint regarding a member of council or its local board.

Written by: Lauren Viegas