Major League Soccer has released the findings of an independent investigation into the Vancouver Whitecaps organization’s handling of allegations of misconduct brought by members of the Whitecaps’ women’s team against former coach Bob Birarda in 2008 and former coach Hubert Busby, Jr. in 2011. MLS engaged Janice Rubin of Rubin Thomlinson LLP, one of Canada’s foremost experts in workplace investigations, to conduct the investigation.
The independent review found that the Whitecaps’ response to the allegations was appropriate and that the club acted expeditiously to hire an experienced workplace investigator, relied on the investigator’s judgment, and adhered to all of the investigator’s recommendations. While the report notes that the club could have initially done more to support the players following the 2008 investigation, the investigators found that the Whitecaps adopted a more player-centered response to the 2011 allegations and have since strengthened their policies and practices. The report did express concerns about the external investigations conducted at the time, but did not attribute those concerns to the Whitecaps, who relied on the external investigator’s expertise. The investigation also found that there was no evidence that the club attempted to dismiss or cover up the 2008 and 2011 allegations, but rather took it seriously and actively ensured that the allegations were addressed.
The report also evaluates the Whitecaps current policies and procedures and found that the Whitecaps have strong measures in place to ensure a safe environment, in the form of well-developed policies and procedures, robust training, vetting practices for coaches and confidential reporting lines. Nonetheless, the investigators offer several recommendations for how the MLS’ league office and Whitecaps organization can continue to enhance and strengthen their efforts to create safe work environments moving forward. While many of those enhancements are already underway, the league and club have committed to adopting and implementing all of these recommendations immediately.
MLS remains firmly committed to ensuring the league and its clubs provide players and staff with a safe environment, free of all forms of harassment and fear of retaliation. MLS thanks Janice Rubin and the entire Rubin Thomlinson LLP team for their work on this investigation, as well as members of the Whitecaps organization for their participation and cooperation throughout this process.
