South Okanagan Similkameen Mental Wellness Society.

Image Credit: FACEBOOK: South Okanagan Similkameen Mental Wellness Society

A South Okanagan charity that offers support for people with mental illness has failed in its attempt to have a case dismissed after a former employee alleged she was fired because of her mental health.

According to a March 18 BC Human Rights Tribunal decision, former support worker Rebecca Oram claimed the South Okanagan Similkameen Mental Wellness Society failed to accommodate her post-concussion symptoms and fired her after she went on leave.

The decision said Oram has a mental health condition and began volunteering at the centre in 2013. Three years later she was given a paid, part-time peer support worker position.

In early 2020, Oram experienced post-concussion symptoms which affected her and vision and more.

"She says she experienced: issues with reading comprehension, memory, and concentration, difficulty following written instructions, fatigue, poor reading ability, sensitivity to light, and difficulty distinguishing between lines and grids on paper," the decision read.

Oram claims that she told her supervisor about her issues doing paperwork, and was told to wait until a new computer was installed.

Several months later she was told to have all her client files in order and was given a week to do so. She claimed she asked for help regarding the clients' files but didn't get what she needed.

"She alleges 'a pattern of the (Society’s) failure to accommodate (her) medical condition, despite knowing she was suffering from post-concussion symptoms," the decision read.

In the decision, Oram claimed she told her supervisor she was going to take medical leave after she had the clients' files in order and handed her work over.

However, Oram claimed the charity put her on leave the next day, and several months later fired her. One reason for her dismissal was failing to update clients files.

The South Okanagan Similkameen Mental Wellness Society disputed Oram's version of events and said she never asked for any accommodations to complete her paperwork.

In her filing to the BC Human Rights Tribunal, Oram made multiple accusations about the charity's treatment of her during her employment.

Oram claimed her dismissal was a "culmination" of the discriminatory conduct the mental health charity had against her.

While the Tribunal dismissed the majority of Oram's claims – some because they were out of time – it ruled she could continue her claim against the charity that it failed to accommodate her concussion.

"Ms. Oram argues that her request for support in May 2020, the Society’s alleged failure to accommodate, and her subsequent termination were all connected to the same disability-related issues for which she had sought accommodation and support since January 2020," the Tribunal said.

The Human Rights Tribunal ruled Oram's allegation that the charity failed to accommodate her concussion could proceed to a hearing.

Whether the case will go any further isn't yet known, and the Tribunal did recommend the two sides make use of its mediation services.

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