The purpose of the Theatre Night in Merrickville (TNIM) Violence and Harassment Policy is to ensure that actions and behaviours while participating in TNIM events reflect the professionalism of the group. To this end, the purpose of the Violence and Harassment Policy is to encourage collegial and cooperative behaviour among TNIM participants and to resolve disputes in a manner that is reasonable to all concerned. The Policy is not to be invoked in a petty or vindictive fashion; any persons found using the Policy for this purpose may be subject to the disciplinary actions listed below, on the discretion of the Executive.
The Executive of TNIM is committed to the prevention of violence and harassment in all TNIM functions and events. As participation in TNIM events is voluntary the Executive Committee believes that such participation should be enjoyable for all. Violence and harassment are unacceptable from anyone and the TNIM Executive will take all reasonable steps to maintain an environment of respect and professionalism in all TNIM activities.
Participation in TNIM functions is described as any person, whether holding a TNIM membership or not, who is engaged in TNIM activities, whether these activities are in support of TNIM’s objects as registered with the Canada Revenue Agency or not. This policy will also cover those persons who are temporarily on TNIM occupied premises, such as visitors, vendors or audience members.
Examples of violence and harassment include, but are not limited to:
- Physical altercations such as hitting, pushing/shoving, kicking, throwing or intentionally dropping objects on another person
- Threats of violence directed at another person
- Verbal abuse, including bullying
- Actions or language intended to humiliate another
- Unwelcome sexual language or actions, including unwanted touching, or sexual innuendo or insinuation
- Racial slurs or language intended to insult another person’s religion, race, or sexual orientation
- Persistently criticizing, undermining, belittling, demeaning or ridiculing a person or the production
- Public ridicule or discipline
- Making offensive jokes or remarks
- Retaliation or reprisals against any person
- Actions not listed above that are prohibited by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Criminal Code and the Ontario Human Rights Act.
Consensual banter and horseplay are not considered harassment; however, should anyone object to receiving such behaviour, or should be suspected to object to such behaviour, any continued incidents of the behaviour will be considered harassment. Many people find that “show week” is a particularly emotional period, and are reminded that respect and courtesy are particularly important at such times.
Implementation of the Policy: It will be the responsibility of the producer to ensure that the policy is presented to the cast and key crew of their production. If a member of the executive is implicated in any claim of harassment, including as a witness, they shall recuse themselves from the resolution process apart from what their role in the complaint might be.
The privacy of all concerned will be respected as far as is possible while investigating the complaint.
Resolution of Complaints:
- A person who considers that they have been subjected to violence or harassment (the Complainant) is encouraged to speak about their concerns directly to the person responsible for the conduct, and/or to ask the person to stop, if they feel comfortable to do so.
- Where the complainant does not wish to bring the matter directly to the attention of the person responsible (the respondent), or where the respondent has not changed their behaviour, the complainant may approach the director or producer of the show for assistance. The complainant is encouraged (but not required at this stage) to put their complaint in writing. If the complaint is resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant, the director or producer will provide a written report of the complaint and its resolution to the executive, who will keep the report confidential.
- Where the complaint is more serious or the complainant is not satisfied with the resolution, either the complainant or the producer/director will take the written complaint to the executive, along with any actions taken.
Upon the receipt of a complaint the Executive Committee will take the following steps immediately in investigating allegations of violence or harassment occurring during a TNIM event:
- The complainant will supply a detailed report of the event, including the names of witness(es), if possible. At this point the Executive will request that the complainant supply their preferred outcome.
- The witness(es) will be interviewed to ascertain their version of the incident.
- The respondent will be interviewed to answer to the allegation.
- The Executive will weigh the evidence and find either a) that the claim is warranted, b) that there is insufficient evidence to arrive at a conclusion, or c) the claim is unwarranted, frivolous or vindictive.
- A suitable action will be taken on the resolution of the investigation. This may include any or all of the following (in order of severity):
- The respondent will issue an apology to the complainant, either verbally or in writing.
- The respondent will have their participation in the TNIM event terminated.
- The respondent will have their TNIM membership revoked without compensation for dues paid.
- The respondent will be banned from future participation in all TNIM events.
In the case of a criminal action or in instances where the complainant wishes to charge the respondent with a criminal action the police will be notified as required, and the Executive will proceed directly to the disciplinary section of the resolution process. Revised June 2025