Province mum on whether MLA accused of harassment still on Manitoba Hydro board

The provincial government is refusing to say whether a veteran MLA accused of harassment still has a seat on the Manitoba Hydro board.

Crown Services Minister Colleen Mayer deflected the question Tuesday, as her government remains tight-lipped on the political futureof Emerson MLA Cliff Graydon.

"Internal discussions are happening and it is a cabinet decision and it will be discussed as soon as we are able to convene together," Mayer said.

Manitoba Hydro has declined to comment.

Graydonreportedlyasked a female legislative staff member to sit on his lapduring a recent meeting wherethere wereno chairs available, according to a government source familiar with the situation.

The matter came to light on Friday when the ProgressiveConservatives saidthe complaintwas dealt with internally.The government andPC caucus have not said what measures were taken or even acknowledgedGraydonis the MLA involved or if he apologized to the staff member.

Graydonhas not spoken withCBCNews, but he told the Canadian Press last weekend the decision appeased everybody involved.

Taken seriously

When asked, Mayer declined to commentonthe allegations, nor share whether she's witnessed any untoward behaviour byher colleague.

Mayer said harassment allegations of any kind should beinvestigated promptly.

"When I became an MLA, I stated as a woman first of all, all allegations in any workforceanywhere are taken seriously," she said, insisting an appropriate resolution must be soughtin every case.

Graydonwas the lone holdout on the Manitoba Hydro board when every other director resigned en masse earlier this year due to multiple disagreements with the government.

Justice Minister Cliff Cullen said the harassment allegationhas been addressed with the original complainantto their satisfaction.

"We will be meeting as a caucus next week to review the facts. We will have a caucus discussion," he said.

Cullen said Monday that more information on the harassment complaintmay soon be forthcoming.

The PC government announced its new sexual harassment policylast February. Thenew"no wrong door" policygives all staff, including political employees, the option to take their complaints to Fred Meier, the clerk of the executive council the highest ranking civil servant.

This is not the first time Graydonhas been in hot water politically.

Earlier this year, the Emerson MLAwas disciplined for tweeting thatasylum seekers were "illegals"in Canada and a "drain on society."Graydon was required to undergo sensitivitytraining. He apologized.

With files from Kristin Annable, SeanKavanagh