Pregnancy
There are often two possible administrative remedies for pregnancy related issues. Ontario's Employment Standards Act, like many provincial and territorial minimum standards statutes, allows for a reinstatement remedy where the…
Family Status
Family Status Statutory Definition The first issue to be decided on this topic is how exactly “family status” is to be defined. Many jurisdictions which offer protection to “family status”…
Addiction
Addiction, as discussed elsewhere, has been recognized as a protected ground as a disability. The issue becomes, particularly in addiction cases, an analysis of the termination decision to determine if…
Age
Factors As A Proxy for Human Rights Violation An early Ontario decision found for the applicant in an age discrimination case. It relied upon an American case, which stated that…
Dress Code
No Adverse Impact - Neutral An employer is allowed to require a dress code such as one requiring a certain standard of professional attire as long as it is neutral…
Creed – Religious Beliefs
The applicant must establish that he holds a sincere religious conviction. The person making this assertion need not prove “the conformity of that belief with established religious doctrine”. It must…
Pension Plans & Mandatory Retirement
Mandatory retirement has been eliminated in most jurisdictions in Canada, mainly by statutory reform and certain cases through the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Ontario abolished mandatory retirement in 2005,…
Disability
Defining a Disability Most Canadian jurisdictions define a physical or mental disability by the relevant human rights statute. British Columbia is unique in allowing case law to define these terms.…
Protected Human Rights
Grounds of Adverse Treatment All Canadian jurisdictions ban adverse treatment in an employment context based on race, religion, gender, age, marital or family status and disability. The precise definition of…