School trustee denied medical leave, could be a human rights, charter violation

The denial of a Hanover school trustee’s request for medical leave has been called unethical, lazy, and just plain mean and a possible human rights and charter violation.

In a three to two vote against, trustee Danielle Funk was denied her request for unpaid medical leave for the second time during a closed committee meeting of school trustees on Jan. 20. Funk had requested leave for the first time in February 2025 and was denied.

Chair Dallas Wiebe couldn’t say the reason behind the board denying the leave as he excused himself during discussion and vote on the matter at the meeting. Vice-chair Jeff Friesen took over for Wiebe and was asked by The Carillon what the board’s rationale was for the denial, but he did not respond.

Wiebe was asked if he thought it was heartless to deny Funk’s medical leave request and he responded, “No.” When asked why, he said, “I don’t.”

“What you are describing is a decision by trustees of Hanover School Division to refuse a legitimate request for absence (often medical – means there is a doctor’s note to legitimate it). This is unethical, unlawful, lazy and just plain mean,” stated University of Manitoba law professor Dr. Laura Reimer in an email. She clarified that the move was unlawful as it is a twisting of the law and questions whether this is a human rights violation.

Reimer is a former school trustee who has written two books on school governance and specializes in education policy.

Reimer said the trustees are elected because the public chose them to be there and it is not up to trustees to decide who can sit on the board. She called the move by the board “governance bullying.”

“This is a disgusting, anti-democratic display of bullying. As a board of educational leaders, trustees must find a sound way to work collegially with the people they were duly elected to serve with – and the members of their school division – including the ones they don’t like or understand.”

Going forward, Wiebe pointed to the Public Schools Act as to the consequences should Funk not attend upcoming regular board meetings. The Act states that a trustee must attend a regular board meeting at least once every three months and should the trustee be absent from four consecutive regular meetings, or for a period of three consecutive months, whichever comes first, the board has the right to invalidate her as a trustee and, if the board chooses, may call an election to fill the vacancy.

Funk was suspended and sanctioned unanimously by the board on June 3, 2025, for six weeks (which came into effect September 2025) making her miss the September and October meetings. She was not paid her indemnity during that time.

Chair at the time, Jeff Friesen, said the matter was “sensitive” and that Funk had violated certain sections of the board member code of conduct policy as the reason for the sanction and suspension.

Funk had 10 days to appeal the board’s decision. It is unknown whether she took that step.

Because the board has refused her two medical leave requests, Funk is forced to attend at least one regular meeting during the three-month exemption period. She has been on leave since Feb. 18, 2025, and has attended the August 2025 and January 2026 meetings.

Funk declined a request for an interview about the matter.

The actions of the board could be a violation of the Human Rights Act of Manitoba, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Public Schools Act, according to local civil litigator Justin Vincent.

Vincent said the Human Rights Code applies to local authorities and the board of trustees meets the definition of a local authority. He argues that Funk is considered an employee, even though she is an elected official, as she has a contract for work or services provided and she is receiving pay through her indemnity.

“So, if she’s stating, I, a trustee am requesting you to accommodate my medical condition to allow me to remain a trustee on the board, under the Human Rights Code, they do have a duty to accommodate her to the point of undue hardship. And if they say, no, we’re within our rights to engage in the discrimination against you, then the board has to provide bona fide and reasonable cause for their discrimination. And if they’re unable to do that, then arguably they are in breach of the Human Rights Code.”

He added that under the Public Schools Act, the board must afford Funk reasonable accommodation to attend meetings virtually, such as through Teams or Zoom, if she is not able to attend in person.

Wiebe and Friesen were asked if accommodations were made to allow Funk to attend the meetings virtually and neither responded.

Even if accommodations were given to Funk to attend meetings virtually she still has to be physically present at least once every three months (the board meets once a month), unless the board agrees to allow her absence.

Vincent agreed that the move by the board could also be seen as a charter violation.

“Presuming here that the trustee in question is being discriminated against on the basis of a mental or physical characteristic or disability, if you will, then I think that could give grounds to a charter challenge under Section 15, which is the equality rights set forward in the charter. And as you know, the charter applies to all public institutions, right? And the school board is a public institution.”

Vincent also pointed to an information package from The Manitoba School Boards Association (MSBA) which states, “effective board members are characterized by the ability to work as members of a team. They maintain open minds. And effective board members respect the needs and feelings of other people and have a well-developed sense of fair play.

“So, with the limited information I have…it doesn’t sound like it’s being followed.”

The MSBA was contacted about Funk’s matter, but it did not respond.

There is precedent for allowing leave for trustees in the division. In March 2021, the school board at the time approved trustee Shannon Friesen’s request for leave unanimously. It is unknown the duration of that leave. Trustees sitting on that board who are on this board were Brad Unger, Funk, Ron Falk, and Lynn Barkman. While two trustees voted to approve Funk’s request during the Jan. 20 meeting, it is unknown who they were as no trustee asked for a record of the vote to be taken.

Minster of Education and Early Childhood Learning Tracy Schmidt said that trustees, like all Manitobans, deserve understanding when facing genuine medical concerns.

“The (Public Schools) Act requires trustees to attend at least one meeting every three months unless the board authorizes a longer absence. I believe compassion and fairness must guide these decisions.”

Prior to her request for leave and her sanctioning and suspension from the board, Funk had been calling for transparency.

In November 2024, Funk had called for transparency when dealing with matters in private in-camera meetings that she felt should be done in regular public meetings.

In January 2025, she made a motion for an independent and external reviewer to conduct a comprehensive review of governance practices and the effectiveness of the board’s code of conduct. The review would have looked at the existing codes of conduct to assess effectiveness in guiding board members’ behavior and decision making.

Further, the reviewer would have conducted a historical investigation into the compliance of the current board to establish governance practices and code of conduct, and report all findings in a public document. Her motion was voted down by the board.

At the time of Funk’s request for an external reviewer, provincial advisor Kelly Barkman was monitoring and advising the board on governance practices and any matters that the board needed guidance on. He was appointed by then Minister of Education Nello Altomare in September 2024, after a local parent group expressed concerns of discriminatory practices by six trustees in an April 2024 letter to the minister.

Earlier this month Barkman left his position with the board. Schmidt didn’t comment on whether he would be replaced.