A woman who came forward with allegations of workplace sexual harassment is welcoming a move by the Manitoba government to address how harassment complaints are handled and dealt with.

In early February, Joelle Saltel-Allard and several other women brought forward allegations they were tickled and harassed by former New Democratic Party (NDP) cabinet minister Stan Struthers.

Saltel-Allard worked as a press secretary for the Manitoba NDP between 2008 and 2011.

“That’s always been my goal since the beginning. To come out, tell my story, to encourage change,” said Saltel-Allard.

Allard told CTV News she believed that change could start with an announcement from the Province Thursday, that it’s taking steps to make the workplace environment safer for government employees.

“I think it’s the first ray of light that I’ve seen in the last couple of weeks since the story broke; I’m feeling hopeful,” said Saltel-Allard.

The province said the move comes “in light of recent revelations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour in the government workplace.”

The strategy includes five measures, including introducing a ‘no wrong door’ policy that allows staff to report complaints in a number of ways as opposed to just their direct supervisor or the chief of staff. The province is also consulting employees to learn more about their experiences, bringing in an expert to review current procedures and make recommendations, and mandating respectful workplace training for all cabinet and political staff.

It is also “implementing a public reporting process” that will provide access to data about instances of harassment, including the number and types of allegations made by employees and information about the outcomes of investigations.

“The culture that allowed this behaviour to go unreported and unpunished is not acceptable,” said Pallister, in a release. “Our public service and our political staff are the engines that drive government. We need the best and the brightest working here.”

The NDP also released a draft of its own anti-harassment policy on Thursday, procedures it said would “address complaints of harassment or misconduct brought forward by constituency assistants, caucus staff, and elected officials.”

Commenting on the Pallister government’s announcement, NDP MLA Nahanni Fontaine said she looked forward to seeing the results of some of the consultations and what policies would be developed.

“I think we are all more informed that sexual misconduct and sexual harassment in any way is just unacceptable,” said Fontaine.

“And we have to do more. And certainly as legislators we have a responsibility to take that lead.”

Saltel-Allard also told CTV News that after pouring over the province’s five initiatives, she looked forward to seeing how they would be implemented.

“I do feel that if some of these mechanisms had been in place when I was there, that we wouldn’t be here today.”