In 2009, the Ontario government passed Bill 168 -- a law requiring employers to implement policies and procedures to deal with instances of workplace harassment and violence. Since then, Bill 168 has become a topic of much discussion in boardrooms and lunch rooms alike.

For small and medium employers, the experience of having to develop and implement policies to address workplace harassment and violence complaints has been cumbersome and expensive.

They're often required to redirect limited resources that, in their eyes, could be better used toward growing their businesses.

For employees, the experience of having workplace policies in place to deal with their concerns about workplace harassment (as opposed to violence) has been equally frustrating.

At first, employees feel empowered by the opportunity created by these policies to bring forward concerns about workplace conflict. But all too often, employees end up feeling disappointed and exposed once they realize Bill 168 not only imposes few consequences upon an employer who fails to meaningfully address their workplace conflicts, but also offers little protection to these same employees if they're targeted for having raised such concerns.

This isn't to say that all experiences with Bill 168 have been negative.

Many workplaces have used their Bill 168 policies to meaningfully address workplace conflicts. Case in point: I was recently involved in a workplace investigation pursuant to a Bill 168 complaint that resulted in the termination of a notorious workplace bully.

Lesson for employees: Your rights under Bill 168 are limited, hence complaints about workplace conflict should be carefully considered before being raised directly with your employer.

Lesson for employers: Bill 168 can be used to create powerful tools to address workplace conflicts and improve employee morale.