Competing Human Rights Update – Porter Airlines As Canada continues to diversify, service providers continue to be faced with new challenges in their obligation to balance the needs and human rights of their customers. Issue at Porter Airlines This issue of...
Human Rights Update: Damage Awards for Sexual Harassment Continue to Rise Two weeks ago, I wrote a blog about a vulnerable, low paid employee who obtained $ 150 000 from her former employer by filing a complaint under the Ontario Human Rights Code. This week, I am...
Genetic Information and Discrimination On June 9, 2015, Peter MacKay, the then Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada announced legislative changes aimed at protecting Canadians from discrimination on the basis of genetic information. What Rights are...
Do employers need to accommodate employees who smoke? In a blog last year, we addressed the issue of whether smoking was a disability and the relationship between smoking and employee human rights. To date, we have not yet seen a human rights decision specifically...
At Fault for Sexual Harassment: Employee Awarded $150,000 in General Damages General Damage Awards Before May 15, 2015 Since 2008, adjudicators appointed under the Ontario Human Rights Code have had the power to award unlimited general damages as compensation for...
A “virtual slave” through sexual harassment and violence only awarded $50,000 as general damages A “virtual slave” through sexual harassment and violence only awarded $50,000 as general damages In a recent decision, PN v. MR and FR the British...
Constructive Dismissal Update: Quitting Because of Intolerable Working Conditions If an employer’s treatment of an employee is so bad that it makes continued employment intolerable, an employee has the right to quit and claim damages for constructive dismissal. Is...
Systemic Discrimination and Long-Term Human Rights Violations Systemic Discrimination and Long-Term Human Rights Violations Employees who have experienced discrimination at work can file an application with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (“Tribunal”). The...