By Kyla Stott-Jess

Employers in Canada can’t discriminate against employees based on mental disabilities. But the broad interpretation that courts and arbitration boards frequently apply to human rights laws often makes it difficult to know where the boundaries of “mental disability” lie.

In a recent arbitration decision in Ontario, Windsor (City) and WPFFA (Elliot), the arbitrator found that an employee’s mood problems and stress issues weren’t classifiable as mental disorders. He didn’t qualify as having a mental health disability requiring accommodation. read more…

By Alix Herber and Keri Bennett

Human Rights Tribunals across Canada are constantly expanding the interpretation of prohibited grounds. Ontario has recently joined Manitoba and the Northwest Territories and gone one step further by recognizing gender identity as a prohibited ground. read more…

By Jennifer M. Shepherd and Hannah Roskey

It’s well established that discrimination against an employee on the basis of a physical or mental disability is prohibited in Canada. Drug or alcohol addictions constitute a “disability” under most human rights legislation such that employers are prohibited from discriminating against employees on the basis of their addictions.

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By Kyla Stott-Jess

The Alberta Court of Appeal has recently added to the ongoing debate in Canada over who is or isn’t an employer in the human rights context. In its recent decision in 375850 Alberta Ltd. v. Beverly Noel and the Director of the Alberta Human Rights Commission, the dismissal of the complainant’s appeal illustrates that naming the correct employer is vital to the outcome. read more…

By Charles Harrison

The answer to the question in the title is yes, a Canadian court confirmed recently.
Sexual harassment is discrimination. Overturning a decision of the British Columbia Supreme Court, the British Columbia Court of Appeal recently clarified that evidence of unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature is alone sufficient to establish discrimination on the basis of sex.

That decision overturned a lower court decision that had held that the harassment of a female couldn’t be found to amount to sexual discrimination without evidence that males were treated differently. read more…

By Brian P. Smeenk

It’s common practice across Canada, when settling a discrimination or wrongful termination claim, to agree that the deal will remain confidential. What can an employer do if employees fail to honor that agreement? What if they blab about the settlement to their coworkers? read more…