2008 Discrimination Prevention Forum
Making an Impact

Keynote speakers

Childs, Ted

In August, 2006, J.T. (Ted) Childs, Jr. retired from IBM after a distinguished 39 year career as a member of their corporate Human Resources team. Upon retiring, he founded Ted Childs™, LLC. The role of Ted Childs™ LLC is to serve as a global “Strategic Diversity Advisor” to Senior Management and a client’s Workforce Diversity team.

While at IBM, Ted held a variety of human resource assignments, including fifteen years of executive responsibility for global workforce diversity programs and policies. In addition, Ted served as Executive Assistant to Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks, Executive Director of the NAACP, on an IBM Social Service Leave from March 1982 to September 1983. Ted is a graduate of West Virginia State University, a member of the board of directors and a past president of the University’s Foundation, and a life member of the West Virginia State University National Alumni Association.

In December 1989, Ted was appointed by Governor Mario Cuomo to the New York State Governor’s Advisory Council on Child Care. In 1992, Ted was named co-chair of the National Council of Jewish Women’s Work Family Advisory Board, and presented with their Founder’s Award for commitment to quality of life issues for U.S. families.

In 1995, Ted was appointed as an official delegate to the 1995 White House Conference on Aging. In 1996, Ted was invited by Vice President Albert Gore to serve on the eight person planning team for the 1996 Family Reunion “V” that the Vice President and Mrs. Gore hosted in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1997, Ted was named by Working Mother magazine as one of the 25 Men Friends of the Family who have made it easier for working parents to raise and nurture children. Also in 1997, U.S. Treasury Secretary, Robert E. Rubin appointed Ted as an advisor to the Secretary’s Working Group on Child Care. In November 2006, the U.S. Embassy in the Hague and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund convened “Diversity Dialogue - Sharing Ideas, Building Bridges: A Dutch - US Muslim Dialogue.” Ted was the U.S. business representative / speaker at this event. In 2007, the National Council of Disability submitted to President Bush its report, “Empowerment for Americans with Disabilities: Breaking Barriers to Careers and Full Employment.” Ted chaired the Business Advisory Council component of the national team that prepared the report.

In 1998, The National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies presented Ms. Joan Lombardi, Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Senators Ted Kennedy and Orrin Hatch and Ted with its Lifetime Achievement Award. In March of 2000, Ted received the Diversity Awards 2000 for Excellence in Diversity in the Corporate Sector from Working Mother magazine. In 2003, the Human Rights Campaign presented IBM and Ted with its Corporate Leadership Award. In 2004, The Families and Work Institute presented Ted with its Work/Life Legacy Award. In 2006, Ted received the Trailblazers in Diversity Award from the Chief Diversity Officer’s Forum, sponsored by Bennett College; and, Working Mother Media announced The Ted Childs Life / Work Excellence Award to be given annually to the individual who by their distinctive performance has contributed to the field of Life / Work in the business community.

In 2008, Career Communications Group of Baltimore, Maryland named Ted the National Chair of their annual Technology Awareness Program (TAP). The TAP consists of the following one week events: National Black Family Technology Awareness Week; La Familia Technology Awareness Week; and Native American Journey. The TAP has two goals: To communicate to the constituency families the importance of technology in their day to day lives; and the importance of technology in the education and career preparation of their children. Since its inception in 1998, the TAP has touched more than 97 million people in Brazil, Canada, South Africa, and the United States.

Ted is a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC); The Families and Work Institute Board of Directors, and was installed as a Fellow in The National Academy of Human Resources in 2001. Ted has received Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters Degrees from Pace University (2001), West Virginia State University (2003), and Our Lady of the Elms College (2005). Ted holds life memberships in the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources, The National Council of Negro Women, Inc., The National Organization of Women (NOW), Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., the NAACP, the Sierra Club, and the Bass Anglers Sportsmen Society.

Moya Greene was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Canada Post Corporation on May 12, 2005. She sits on the Board of Directors of Canada Post, of Purolator Courier Ltd, a subsidiary of Canada Post, and of Tim Hortons. Ms. Greene has been a senior officer of three of Canada’s largest multinational companies, first in banking and financial services at TD Securities Inc., at CIBC, and at Bombardier Inc. Ms. Greene has acquired a strong track record in strategic planning, complex negotiations and relationship building. Ms. Greene also has a strong public sector background. She spent the first part of her career in Ottawa where, over a 17-year period, Ms. Greene assumed progressively senior roles in seven different Ministries of the federal public service. Ms. Greene is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and Memorial University of Newfoundland. Ms. Greene has been named one of Canada’s top 40 female corporate executives was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 100 influential women.

The United States Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created in the wake of the events of 9/11/01 to secure the United States transportation system. In its first year, TSA hired over 60,000 employees in 450 locations across the country. In January 2003, Ms. Katz was appointed TSA Model Workplace Program Executive. She is tasked with working with the TSA community to develop shared values, skills and initiatives that support high levels of employee engagement and morale, high performance, innovation and adaptability through improved communication, conflict management and cooperative problem solving. Trust, respect, fairness, inclusion and transparency are the cornerstones of this effort.

The foundation of the Model Workplace Program is TSA’s integrated conflict management system (ICMS) which provides skills, structure and organizational support enterprise-wide for proactive conflict management and incorporates cooperative problem solving skills and tools into all facets of the workplace. The ongoing collaborative design process has produced remarkable innovations and pushed the frontiers of conflict management system design. One of these innovations is the ICMS Maturity Model which has helped TSA to chart the evolutionary course of ICMS development with defined outcomes at each level guiding action planning, standards and progress assessment.

Ms. Katz came to TSA in April 2002 as Assistant Chief Counsel for Employment and Civil Rights where she managed a legal staff giving employment advice during TSA’s first year of operation. She began her U.S. federal government career at the National Labor Relations Board and was Assistant Chief Counsel to one of the Board members when she left in 1993. From 1993 to 1999, Ms. Katz served as Chief Counsel to the Chairman of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. There she divided her time between job safety and health cases and management issues including personnel, ethics, budget, and legislative and public affairs.

During her tenure at the Review Commission, Ms. Katz became a certified mediator and performed mediations for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and for a nonprofit organization in Washington, DC providing legal services to artists and arts organizations. When she left the Review Commission in 1999, she became coordinator of the nationwide private sector mediation program at the EEOC. In 2000, she became Director of Employee and Labor Relations, also at the EEOC.

Ms. Katz received her undergraduate degree in Japanese Studies from Yale University and her law degree from the University of Michigan.

Cross-Cultural Training Consultant, MCB Solutions

Melissa is a Cross Cultural Training Consultant with a professional background in Human Resources. She has traveled to 34 countries across 5 continents and has a Masters Degree and Honours B.A. in Psychology.

Over the past several years Melissa has developed a Recruitment expertise in addition to HR Generalist experience working for organizations such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, Unilever Canada and BMW Group Canada. She also has International experience, having lived and worked in Melbourne, Australia.

Melissa is an experienced Facilitator and Seminar Leader. Over the course of her career she has led national recruitment campaigns, developed company Orientation programs and provided guidance and coaching to managers and staff at various levels. She is also experienced in coaching immigrant professionals, both integrating them into a Canadian professional environment and helping them find jobs that make use of their skills.

Shannon, David

As a person with quadriplegia, the result of spinal cord injury at the age of 18, David Shannon has used a wheelchair for the past 25 years. During this time, he has been committed to policy development and legal advocacy for the protection of human rights and community integration for persons with a disability.

David received his undergraduate degree from Lakehead University in Thunder Bay and law degree from Dalhousie University in Halifax. He later attended the London School of Economics and Political Science for his LL.M. studies, where he focused on the advancement of second-generation human rights norms.

In 1997, at the age of 34, David took his wheelchair 9,000 kilometres across Canada to promote empowerment for disenfranchised communities and greater social inclusion for all Canadians. David Shannon’s Cross Canada Tour took two years to plan, 197 days to complete, and involved 5,000 volunteers and participants. During the tour, David wheeled for 10-hour days and spoke directly to 20,000 people.

David is the recipient of many awards and honours, including the Queen’s Jubilee Medal for his commitment to human rights and community service. He was the founding chair of the Accessibility Advisory Council of Ontario, and a member of the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal. He continues to sit on numerous boards and committees, among them, the Canadian Association of Independent Living Centres, the Council of Canadians with Disabilities, and the Tetra Society of Ontario.

The Shannon Law office, located in Thunder Bay, Ontario, practices primarily in administrative law and civil litigation. David’s advocacy and academic interests have centred on civil rights mechanisms that promote freedoms for persons who face medico-legal forms of incarceration, and do not have community-based supports.

In August of 2006, David represented the Canadian Association of Independent Living Centres in meetings of the United Nations ad hoc committee to draft a comprehensive Convention on the Rights and Dignity of Persons With a Disability. The Convention was adopted by all member states, and will be before the United Nations General Assembly in fall 2006 for signature and ratification.

Moderators & panelists

Psychologist, intercultural relations specialist. Assistant dean of Université de Montréal’s department of continuing education.Member of the Taylor-Bouchard Commission advisory committee.Author of several teaching guides and articles on the conflict of values and rights in the public sector: justice, health, education, municipalities. Is often used as an analyst by the media, invited to address immigration and discrimination matters.

Worked as a clinician and psychology expert witness in youth courts in cases involving family violence for ten years.

Mary Ann is the director of the award-winning program Mental Health Works, which is an initiative of the Canadian Mental Health Association of Ontario. She is a registered social worker and holds an M.S.W. in Social Policy. Currently she serves on the Mental Health Commission of Canada Workforce Advisory Committee and the Accessibility for Ontarian’s with Disabilities Employment Standards Committee and as the Program Director for the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace.

Her work includes consulting on complex accommodation or return-to-work situations as well as working to improve unhealthy workplace relations. Mary Ann has developed training, presentations, publications, self-study CD's and workshops in both official languages that address the issues arising from employees experiencing mental health issues at work.

Carolyn Berardino, Senior Advisor, Employee Relations National Bank of Canada, BA, LLB Hons, Oxon, LLB Dalhousie

Carolyn started as a labour and employment lawyer with a leading firm in Vancouver, British Coloumbia in the early 1990s. Wanting to be involved in preventing and resolving problems before they "took on a life of their own", she joined the HR group at the Bank of Montreal in 1995 and moved to Toronto. Subsequently, she was choosen to be a member of the HR "start up" team for Symcor Services, the cheque processing company created and owned by BMO, RBC and TD Banks. In 2000, she joined the National Bank of Canada in thier employee relations group supporting all lines of business and subsidiaries. Carolyn's day to day work involves everything from advising on employment law issues to supporting managers in creating and maintaining healthy and respectful workplaces. She likes to resolve problems with creative solutions and shatter preceptions that Banking is anything but boring.

Mireille Bergeron is a lawyer and has practiced labour law since 2001. She began her career within the labour law department of Stikeman Elliott and joined Bell Canada’s labour law division in May 2005.

Mireille provides legal advice and practices related to conflicts that may arise between Bell Canada and its 60 000 employees. She regularly litigates cases before grievance tribunals and uses mediation services provided by various tribunals.

On a more personal side, Mireille just returned from maternity leave. Her daughter, Marika, is 9 months old.

Born and raised in Alberta, Louise has been with the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission in various capacities since 1980.  Currently, she is the Northern Director and is responsible for the northern half of the province.

Louise has had personal involvement in complaints that have reached the Supreme Court of Canada, including Jim Christie v. Central Alberta Dairy Pool on religious beliefs accommodation, Susan Parcels v. Red Deer Hospital on maternity benefits issues and Olive Dickason v. University of Alberta on mandatory retirement.

She has had direct involvement in education materials developed at the Commission, such as the bulletin “Duty To Accommodate”.  She is currently directly involved in two other educational tools under development, one dealing with medical absence reporting and the other the issue of drug and alcohol testing.

Louise supports strong community involvement in our quality of life.  She has had a long standing interest in poverty issues and respectful treatment for all.

Louise Borlé
Northern Director
Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission

Tel. 780.427.3026
louise.borle@gov.ab.ca

Chuck is the Chief Executive Officer of the Nova Scotia Public Service Long Term Disability Trust. Prior to assuming his current role, Chuck was a Managing Director of one of Canada’s leading financial institutions responsible for its investment and trust operations in Atlantic Canada.

He holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Personal Financial Planner professional designations and is a member of the Financial Planning Standards Council of Canada. Most recently, Chuck received the Chartered Director (C. Dir) designation through The Directors College. The Chartered Director Program focuses on the requirements to be an effective board and committee member or chair by raising the professional standards and looking at the dynamic relationship among corporate governance, shareholder value, and responsibilities to stakeholders.

Chuck has studied at the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business and Queens School of Business. Chuck currently sits as Chair of the board of the Canadian Mental Heath Association, Nova Scotia division, Vice Chair of the National Board and is a member of the Workforce Advisory Committee at the Mental Health Commission of Canada.

Loreli Buenaventura was the former manager of The Mentoring Partnership, a program of the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council. She is a seasoned communications professional who draws from her multidisciplinary background in the arts, finance, and community and international development. A former consultant with Media Profile, she has managed issues in the media and the public on behalf of a diverse array of clients and community groups, including: the Toronto Community Housing Corporation, the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, and the Aboriginal Peoples Council of Toronto. Loreli was also responsible for the communications initiatives in international securities lending for one of Canada's major banks as well as various capacities for the Ontario Premier's Office and Quebec's National Assembly. She was also co-founder and arts editor of the former national literary magazine, Pagitica in Toronto, and a contributor in various Canadian and US publications.

Mr. Dixon is an experienced human resources professional, specializing in both labour relations and human resources at a senior level in provincial and federal jurisdictions.

From 1999-2002, he was Vice President, Human Resources, Canada, and Vice President, Labour Relations at CN Rail. During this period, he developed and implemented two rounds of Canadian negotiations representing over 18,000 employees and approximately one billion dollars in overall payroll costs. As CN’s Assistant Vice President, Labour Relations (from 1997 to 1999), Mr. Dixon substantially shortened the traditional bargaining cycle and was instrumental in improving relationships with union leaders.

Prior to joining CN in 1997, Mr. Dixon was Vice President, Human Resources for Unisource Canada. Prior to this, he held increasingly senior human resources management positions at the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Abitibi-Price Inc.

In addition, Mr. Dixon has acted as a company nominee in more than 50 arbitration cases.

He has served as Chairman of the Conference Board of Canada’s Council of Industrial Relations Executives (1999-2002). This group supports senior industrial relations executives in identifying and responding to the labour relations needs of their organizations.

He has also served as executive member of FETCO (Federally Regulated Employers - Transportation and Communications), an organization representing employers and employer associations in the transportation and communications sectors in the employee, social security and labour relations fields. FETCO members employ approximately 400,000 people, about two-thirds of the unionized workforce under Canadian federal jurisdiction. In January 2008, he was elected as Vice Chairman of FETCO.

In the fall of 2007, he was selected to participate in the Mental Health Commission Workforce Advisory Committee. This is for a three year term.

Mr. Dixon is frequently asked to discuss human resources and labour relations issues with various groups.

Mr. Dixon attended King’s College at the University of Western Ontario, where he received an Honours B.A. He subsequently earned a Master’s of Industrial Relations degree from the University of Toronto.

Philippe Dufresne is the Director and Senior Counsel of the Canadian Human Rights Commission's Litigation Services Division.

In this capacity, he is responsible for the Commission's representation before courts and administrative tribunals in precedent-setting cases raising issues of human rights law.

He has represented the Commission before the Supreme Court of Canada on a number of occasions, including in cases dealing with the duty to accommodate, parliamentary privilege, and the independence and impartiality of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal. He has also appeared before the Senate subcommittee on Human Rights on the issue of employment equity.

In 2003-2004, he was a Legal officer responsible for international criminal tribunals with the United Nations, Human Rights and Humanitarian law division of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Mr. Dufresne is a part-time professor at the University of Ottawa where he teaches human rights law and appellate advocacy. He is currently writing a book on human rights law in Canada.

Pearl Eliadis is a lawyer whose practise focuses principally on human rights, international development and public administration. A graduate of McGill and Oxford, Pearl is a member of the Quebec Bar and the Law Society of Upper Canada. She has more than a decade of experience working in, with, and sometimes against human rights commissions, both in Canada and internationally. She was a committee member of the preliminary groups set up for the Bouchard-Taylor Commission in Quebec, and has spoken and written extensively on issues related to integrating minorities into workplaces, and reasonable accommodation. 

Her clients include the United Nations, the European Commission and several international consortia. She has worked in Rwanda, Tajikistan, Timor Leste and Sri Lanka on issues of civil and political rights and social reconciliation, and is currently the human rights expert in a bilateral project on migrant workers’ rights in China in the construction and textile industries.

Pearl is a recipient of the Canada 125 Commemorative Medal for her community service, and the 2006 Women of Distinction Award for her work in Canada and internationally. She is a member of the Board of Governors of the Quebec Bar Association Foundation.  She is frequently asked to speak in the media, and has appeared on Cross Country Check-up, the Mike Finnerty Show and on Hellas Spectrum.  Her recent feature article on hate speech and human rights commissions entitled “The Controversy Entrepreneurs” appears in the Fall edition of Maisonneuve magazine.

Pierre is the Manager, Occupational Abilities Management with Canada Post Corporation. In this role, Pierre is responsible for the development and deployment of Disability Management Services that are responsive to the needs of employees, Team Leader as well as being responsive to the business needs of Canada Post. Pierre has been responsible for Disability Management since June 1998 and was also responsible for the Employee Assistance Program until approx. 1 ½ year ago when the management of the portfolio were realigned.

Prior to this role, he has held various positions within Mail Operations and Human Resources. Pierre joined Canada Post in 1980 as a postal clerk and held progressively responsible positions as supervisor and superintendent in both the Ottawa and Sudbury Mail Processing Plants. He joined the Human Resources team in 1986 and has held the positions of Officer, Attendance Management; WCB Specialist; Manager, Attendance Management and Officer Labour Relations at both the regional and national level.

Stephen A. Gould is Senior Vice President of Human Resources of Purolator. In this role, he has responsibility for all aspects of Human Resources including business strategy, organizational design, talent management and succession planning, performance management, compensation and benefits, pension, management development, operations training, and employee and labour relations. He is also responsible for Environment Health & Safety, Quality, Engineering and Facilities, and Corporate Communications, which includes employee communications, public affairs and corporate philanthropy. Mr. Gould serves as the management lead on the Purolator Board of Directors’ Compensation and Human Resources Committee, Pension Committee and Environment, Health & Safety Committee. He is also Purolator's Privacy Compliance Officer.

Prior to joining Purolator, Mr. Gould was Vice President, Human Resources for Amex Canada Inc. He also held other positions at PepsiCo, McDonnell Douglas Canada and Ernst & Young.

Mr. Gould is a member of the Board of Directors of the Toronto Children’s Breakfast Club, and the Board of Directors of the Huntington Society of Canada.

Julius H. Grey is a lawyer, professor and one of Canada’s leading socialists and minority rights advocates. Mr. Grey has been a member of the Quebec Bar and the Canadian Bar Association since 1974. He served as president of the Canadian Foundation for Individual Rights from 1985 to 1988.

Mr. Grey believes that: “Tolerance means enthusiastically defending positions with which one profoundly disagrees, be those positions religious, political, ethical, or other.”

While working with ordinary citizens and minority groups to gain recognition of their rights, he has assisted in annulling a stipulation in the Charte de la Langue Française (Bill 101) that forbade the use of different languages on business signboards; defended Montreal’s La Presse Chinoise against Falun Gong’s defamation lawsuit; and argued for the right of an orthodox Sikh student to wear his kirpan, or ceremonial dagger, to school.

Pam Grills is the owner of ErgoPrime Inc. She is a Canadian Certified Professional Ergonomist with 14 years experience keeping employees healthy and productive. Pam performs ergonomic assessments that accelerate return to safe productive work, provides injury prevention training, as well as develops and implements customized ergonomics programs that reduces injury costs. Pam made the Supreme Court Judges sit up and take notice of ergonomics by making their courtroom ergonomically correct. She is based in Ottawa. www.ergoprime.com 

Alden E. Habacon is the Manager of Diversity Initiatives for the English Television Network of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). Reporting to the Executive Director of Network Programming, Habacon designs and manages initiatives that support CBC's commitment to reflect Canada's diversity - both on-the-air and behind the scenes.

He speaks regularly on the Schema Model of Cultural Identity, the key concept behind his views on "Multiculturalism 2.0," and he is the founder of an online magazine, Schema (www.schemamag.ca). He also consults on cultural diversity, multiculturalism, youth and Asian Canadian identity

Habacon has also spoken internationally in Malaysia, the Bahamas and the Philippines.

Corporate Wellness Coordinator
Canadian Pacific Railway
Suite 345, 401 9th Ave. SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 4Z4
Sylvana_leclerc@cpr.ca

Barbara Mittleman is the Director, Employee Relations for Canadian Pacific. She obtained her B.A. with a major in English Literature from McGill University. She has both her Civil and Common Law degrees from the University of Ottawa. She has practiced in the fields of employment, labour and human rights law.

In her current role with Canadian Pacific, she is responsible for compliance with employment related legislation including the areas of Employment Equity, Human Rights, Privacy and Labour Standards. The Employee Relations group provides advice and guidance to managers and employees on workplace related issues such as harassment and discrimination and workplace accommodation.

Barbara is on the Employer Advisory Council to the Canadian Human Rights Commission and also participates in various subcommittees of FETCO, a group of federally regulated employers in the fields of transportation and communication, which deals with employment related policy and legislative issues at the federal level.

Hélène Mombourquette began her career with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in 1975. She held the position of Manager Compensation until she joined the Labour Relations Corporate office in 1085 as a Labour Relations Advisor.

She held various Labour Relations Advisory positions with RCMP, Natural Resources Canada, Department of Finance until she joined Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) in June 2005.

In her role as the Manager of Labour Relations at CBSA, she is responsible for a team of Advisors responsible for all final level grievances, Canadian Human Rights Complaints, direct authorities to Deputy Heads including administration of discipline as well as interpretation of collective agreements.

She has been a member of the Employer Advisory Committee within the Prevention Initiatives and Liaison Division of the Canadian Human Rights Commission since the fall of 2006.

She is married and has one child.

Myriam Montrat was appointed Director General of the Discrimination Prevention Branch in May 2007. Prior to joining the Commission, Myriam Montrat was the Director, Service Delivery and Partnerships, Canada Business, at Industry Canada, where she was responsible for government service delivery to small and medium enterprises and directed several multi-jurisdictional (federal, provincial, territorial, municipal levels) initiatives requiring the creation of linkages and development of partnerships between the federal government and key stakeholders. Previously, Myriam was Director, Official Languages, Intergovernmental Affairs at the Privy Council Office, where she coordinated and facilitated the management of major horizontal files affecting the whole of government. She was also Associate Director of the Office of Regulations and Compliance in the Tobacco Control Programme, where she was actively involved in the many facets of regulatory development, including compliance and enforcement. She also led the Quebec Region’s Tobacco Control Programme for one year. Prior to her career in the federal government, Myriam worked for the private sector as a consultant on international issues.  She is a graduate of the Career Assignment Programme and holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy and Public Administration from Concordia University (Montreal) as well as a BA in International Relations from Colby College (Maine).

Chief Warrant Officer Mike Nassif joined the Canadian Forces in 1972.

Promoted to his current rank in 1992, he served in the following areas and positions: 3 Air Maintenance Squadron CWO, Bagotville; National Defence Headquarters in the Air Force Equipment Program Management Office. Defence Ethics Program CWO; Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School CWO, Special Advisor to CDS on Professional Development for the Non Commissioned Member Corps 2020 and as the Director Senior Appointments for Chief Warrant Officers.

CWO Nassif was appointed to the position of the Military Personnel Command Chief Warrant Officer in 2005. He retired from the Regular Forces after 35 years of service in 2007. He is currently serving as a reservist as the Canadian Forces Return to Work Manager in Director Casualty Support Management office in Ottawa.

Since 1996, Insp. O’Rielly has provided conflict analysis, management and resolution services both internally and externally to the RCMP as a practioner and researcher. From 2001 to 2002, he conceived and implemented the Community Relations Group in preparation for the 2002 G8 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta. From 2003 to 2005, he provided support services to RCMP employees as a Divisional Conflict Manager, during which time he developed and implemented an integrated model for the provision of appropriate dispute resolution services. In 2005, Insp. O’Rielly was appointed as a commissioned officer, and assigned to Ottawa with overlapping duties as the Director – Alternate Dispute Resolution and the Director – Member Representative Unit (the defence lawyer contingent for members answering to internal discipline processes), and tasked with expanding the integrated model from Alberta on a national basis. He was subsequently named as the Director of the newly created Workplace Relations Services group in 2007. In this role, he is responsible for the development and implementation of an enhanced, integrated approach to building positive, respectful and healthy workplaces through the timely and appropriate management of conflict in its many manifestations.

Insp. O’Rielly completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Victoria in 1986, and his graduate degree in 2002 at Royal Roads University. He resides in Ottawa with his wife and two children.

Patrick O’Rourke, a Toronto native, has been a lawyer in Ontario since 1987. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Université Laval where he also learned French.

He studied common law at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law. Since being called to the bar, he has specialized in civil and criminal litigation. In 1999, Mr. O’Rourke joined the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s Litigation Services Division. He is currently working within the Legal Advisory Services group.

The Employment Equity and Diversity service ensures diversity and equity in the bank’s policies, programs, their application and the development of corporate strategies, thus supporting management in this field.

Ms. Pelletier is also a speaker at national and international seminars and strategic forums for the advancement of employment diversity.

Ms. Pelletier is a member of the Conseil des partenaires d’Immigration et métropoles, which aims, among other goals, to develop strategies to integrate immigrants into the job market in collaboration with the Canadian Immigration Council. This year, she became a member of the CAMO pour personnes handicapées’ executive committee and board of directors.

Furthermore, she holds an MBA, specialized in human resources and information systems management

Albert Self can take pride in a long career with the public service of Canada. After his roles with the departments of Agriculture and Employment and Immigration, he joined Veterans’ Affairs in 1997 where he is Regional Director of Human Resources for the Western Region of Canada. His office is based in Winnipeg.

He sees the challenges of mental health accommodation issues in the workplace in a different light than most employers. His clients are in a different line of duty and most are soldiers returning from war torn countries, such as Afghanistan.

Mr. Self is very sensitive to the issue of accommodating mental health: “One of the major difficulties in dealing with mental health remains the hidden stigma associated with it,” he says.

Under her capable and inspired leadership, reachAbility has grown from a basic legal referral service and education program for persons with disabilities, into a multi-service agency that today also includes research and new knowledge, legal programming, and employment and education programs.

Tova comes from a background of disability, where she feels that it is important to establish a support system for persons with disability. An organization that is for people, not for profit, and that will help persons with disabilities in any and every way that it can. Tova plans to make reachAbility a self-sustaining non-profit group, by taking Disability Awareness Training (DAT) across the country. In doing this, she will continue to raise awareness and remove the stigmas surrounding disabilities.

Keenly aware of the diversity issues in the workplace, Ms Weist is very proud of the network’s accomplisments in raising awareness and building capacity for an inclusive human rights culture in the workplace.

She strongly believes in the potential of our youth and is a volunteer fundraiser to help children access sports and cultural activities. She advocates that children involved in extracurricular activities are more likely to stay in school and achieve better results.

Carole is the former Co-Chair of the National Council of Federal Employees with Disabilities (NCFED) for the National Capital Region. She is currently National President of the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association (CHHA).

Facilitators

Gérard Cormier has been an executive officer in the Professional Development branch of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union since August 1, 2004. He is mainly in charge of outreach programs and equity services. Gérard speaks fluent French and English and offers workshops in both official languages.

Gérard has been a keynote speaker at numerous professional development conferences. He has often been asked to address the impact of homophobia and heterosexism in schools. He also gives motivational speeches on educational issues in general.

Gérard has spoken at many local, provincial and national conferences and seminars. He also took part in international professional development projects involving teachers in Ghana. His workshops focus on eliminating homophobia in schools, respecting diversity in teaching, time management, class management and greater professionalism. Furthermore, he gives leadership workshops to NSTU managers in local branches.

Gérard graduated from Dalhousie University with a Bachelor of Arts, specializing in French literature and linguistics as well as a Bachelor of Education. Prior to joining the NSTU, Gérard taught lower and upper-level high school students at the École du Carrefour in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. In addition to his work with teachers, Gérard enjoys playing bridge and reading English and French literature.

Dominique Dennery, founder of Dennery Resources Inc., is a well-known facilitator, coach and trainer with over 25 years of experience providing expert services to clients in Canada and abroad. Her knowledge acquired in the Canadian Public Service, the private sector and as principal of her firm has positioned her well to support communities and individuals who want to transform themselves and their organizations to achieve positive outcomes.

Dominique is recognized as a leading practitioner in the field of Employment Equity and Diversity. Since the mid-nineties, she has supported government and non-governmental organizations in areas such as strategic planning, public consultations, focus groups and program development in diversity and equity. She is recognized for her expertise in facilitating national and international dialogues and consultations on ethnicity, race, gender and disability. Her skills in managing complex group processes in multicultural environments are sought after.

Dominique holds a Masters in French Literature from University of Ottawa, numerous certificates in fields related to human development and emotional intelligence in the workplace, including accreditations from Corporate Coach University and the International Association of Facilitators (IAF).

Dominique is fluent in both French and English.

Barbara Hoff-Morin CHRP– has been employed with the Public Service of Canada for 33 years. She has spent the past 12 years as an H.R. Consultant with the Canada Revenue Agency and Public Works and Government Services Canada.

In her role of H.R. Consultant, Barbara has had the opportunity to work in the continually evolving area of Employment Equity and Diversity in the Public Service. As an Employment Equity Practitioner, Barbara has worked with people in the various representative groups, and has been involved as an educator and advocate for employees.

Through various networking groups, both within the Federal Public Service and the City of Edmonton, the knowledge gained and expertise developed have enabled Barbara to encourage change in the attitudes involved in accommodating employees in the workplace and in workplace policy.

Working with community organizations that include Northern Alberta Alliance for Race Relations and the Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights keeps her up-to-date and involved in issues that are important to building and maintaining a healthy community and a healthy workplace.