AWI Oct Conference in LA was brilliant
My attendance at the US Association of Workplace Investigators conference in LA, and shortly after that, the Australian chapter’s inaugural conference in Melbourne, have been highlights of this year. It was an incredible experience to be amongst 220 US and Canadian workplace investigators and the three day programme was deemed to be its best to date. Topics ranged from - the techniques required to interview people with trauma - to a Canadian academic sharing research into the secondary (more severe) trauma when complainants are not taken seriously by their employer, Church or university – referred to as institutional betrayal.
The Americans (unlike Canadians) have a different approach to investigations compared to Australia. For example:
- Americans do not need to provide allegations to respondents prior to meeting with them. They prefer the “gotcha approach” to seeking out wrong doing. For example, they would have no problem starting an interview with a respondent with the words “you know why you are here, don’t you?”;
- They do not have to grapple with the concepts of “procedural fairness” in the same way we do;
- Their investigators are frequently asked to give evidence – either in relation to their own investigations or as experts. Investigators who are put in the witness box will be asked about their experience and training, and membership/accreditation through the AWI in the US increases their credit;
- In cross examination, questions will be asked about how many investigations have been carried out by the investigator for that employer, in order to infer that the investigator is beholden to the organisation and therefore may be biased;
- More frequently than not, investigations will not be conducted under legal professional privilege, because the employer will seek to rely on the investigation report; and
- In the US bullying laws are in their infancy, and hence most employee claims need to include some element of harassment or discrimination, in order to encourage an employer to formally investigate and take their claim seriously.
The Australian chapter’s conference followed on and will receive its own LinkedIn post.
For more details about the AWI, go here: https://www.awi.org/page/about_AWI