Human Rights & Accommodation
In today’s workplace, employees must ensure they’re not treated differently due to personal characteristics like race, sexual orientation, disability, or family status. Employers have a legal duty to accommodate these characteristics unless it causes undue hardship, a high legal threshold. Employees should seek legal advice if they believe accommodation issues arise. We assist employees throughout the accommodation process and provide representation at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.
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Discrimination
Under the Human Rights Code, every person has the right to equal treatment and no one should be subject to any discrimination whatsoever. The following grounds of discrimination are protected under the Human Rights Code: Race; Ancestry; Place of origin; Colour; Creed (religion); Ethnic origin; Citizenship; Age; Sex/gender; Sexual orientation; Marital status; Family status; Disability; or Receipt of Public Assistance.
If you find yourself in a situation where you are being discriminated in the workplace and it cannot be resolved or the situation continues, you should seek legal advice on how to deal with all concerns, complaints, or incidents of workplace discrimination in a fair and timely manner.
Bullying & Harassment
In recent years there has been a rise in harassment and bullying in the workplace. Bullying can take the form of verbal, social or cyber bullying and can have significant implications for companies if it is not managed pro-actively. Under the Occupational Health and Safety act, employers have a mandatory legal obligation to ensure a harassment and violence free workplace and to take all reasonable steps to ensure their workers are safe in the workplace.
Employers have a mandatory legal obligation to ensure a harassment and violence free workplace and if you believe you are the victim of harassment and/or bullying, it is recommended that you speak to an Employment Lawyer to understand your rights and responsibilities. These situations can be emotional and challenging and our team is here to assist you as needed.
Accommodation
Accommodation requires a ‘reasonable’ not a ‘perfect’ solution. If an employer fails to fulfill their duty to make reasonable accommodation they could risk facing human rights violation. However, there are limitations to the accommodation. The limitation to the ‘Duty to Accommodate’ requires that the employer demonstrate that accommodation would result in undue hardship. Case law reflects that the duty to accommodate requires risk, cost, and creativity from all parties. You should seek legal advice from an employment lawyer to assist you in navigating this often challenging process.
