Facing Discrimination at Work?
The Human Rights Code protects people from discrimination that is based on certain protected characteristics, or grounds, in different areas of life, including in employment. This means that an employer or coworker cannot discriminate against you based on one or more of the protected characteristics.
In any given situation, there could be limits or exceptions to be aware of, but you will find a general description of the protected characteristics in the area of employment below:
? Your right to work free from discrimination starts before you get hired and might apply even if you are not employed.
For example, you are protected from discrimination during job recruitment, hiring, job assignment, termination, pay rates, and conditions of work.
Race, colour, place of origin, and ancestry
Sometimes these characteristics are grouped together in a complaint. This can include a country outside of Canada that someone is from, or that someone’s family is from, race, or ethnicity.
An employer who makes comments based on stereotypes related to a certain ethnicity could be an example of discrimination based on these characteristics.
Indigenous identity
An example of discrimination might include an employer who enforces a policy or dress code that characterizes aspects of someone’s Indigenous culture or attributes as unprofessional or inappropriate for work.
Age
An example of discrimination could include an employer who does not hire a qualified applicant that is much older, in favour of a less qualified applicant who is younger. Generally, this characteristic refers to those ages 19 years and older.
Mental disability
An example might include an employer who makes certain assumptions about an employee based on their mental health, such as treating an employee as unreliable when they take sick days for their mental health.
Physical disability
An example of discrimination could include an employer who fails to make their workplace accessible to employees that use a wheelchair.
Family status
Family status can refer to discrimination based on who you are related to, or a certain type of family (for example a family with children, a single mother, and so on).
An example could include an employer who refuses to accommodate their employee so that they can care for their sick child, or an employer who refuses to promote a qualified employee because the employer has a personal conflict with the employee’s family member.
Sex
Includes discrimination based on being female, male, intersex, and also includes sexual harassment.
For example, an employer who fails to or refuses to address sexual harassment that has been reported to them.
Gender identity and expression
Can include any gender identity. Discrimination on this ground can include transphobic conduct or comments, discriminatory enforcement of a company dress code, bullying and harassment based on someone’s gender expression, and more.
Sexual orientation
An example of discrimination could be an employer who repeatedly doesn’t address an employee’s homophobic conduct at work.
Marital status
Includes discrimination that is based on whether someone is married, divorced, single, widowed, and so on. Discrimination on this ground might include an employer who acts based on negative assumptions related to someone’s marital status, or who denies an employee an opportunity because of their marital status.
Religion
Also protects someone who does not have religious beliefs. One example of discrimination could be an employer who refuses to accommodate an employee’s work schedule in order to attend church on Sundays.
Political belief
This refers to association with partisan politics, but is also more inclusive of beliefs that could be considered political in nature. It could also include engagement with Government, such as advocacy for a change in legislation.
For example, an employer might be discriminating against an employee if they fire them because they voted for someone their employer does not like.
Human Rights Complaint Process
If you experience discrimination it is your right to file a human rights complaint with the BC Human Rights Tribunal. Your complaint must usually be filed within 1 year from the incident your complaint is about. (After 1 year, you can also file a late complaint including an additional section describing why it is filed late, and the Tribunal can make the decision to accept it).
Step-by-step guide
| Complaint Submission | You can find the complaint form here. At this time, the Tribunal website requests that Google Chrome be used to submit the complaint forms, to avoid technical errors. |
| Complaint Accepted |
First, the Tribunal verifies if your complaint is timely, in the right jurisdiction, and if it has “reasonable prospect of success”. It is common for employers to submit that your complaint doesn’t meet those criteria by filing an application to dismiss. In those cases, the Tribunal will share the application with you and allow you to respond before making a decision regarding accepting your complaint. |
| (Optional) Mediation |
Both parties will be asked if they will mutually agree to a mediation. This is an opportunity to resolve the issues in a faster, informal way via a settlement both parties agree with. If a mediation is unsuccessful (you don’t reach a settlement) or undesired, the complaint will continue to move forward towards a formal decision. |
| Response and Disclosure |
The Respondent (employer), may reply to your complaint. You and the Respondent will exchange evidence, including: ● A list of documents possibly relevant to your complaint ● A copy of the documents ● A list of witnesses, if you plan to include any ● Details of what outcome you want from your complaint. This list may be incomplete. Failing to disclose appropriately may negatively affect the outcome of your complaint. You can find more information about this on the Human Rights Tribunal’s website here. |
| Written Submissions or Hearing |
The Tribunal may schedule a hearing for your complaint. If the Tribunal determines that a hearing is not necessary in order to decide your complaint, the parties will only be required to make written submissions. You can find out more about this on the Human Rights Tribunal’s website here. |
Have You Experienced Retaliation?
The BC Human Rights Code protects you from retaliation. If you filed a human rights complaint, are named in a complaint, or if you give evidence or help someone file a complaint you are protected from retaliation at work.
Retaliation is established in a 3 part test:
- Your employer was aware about a complaint made;
- Your employer evicted, discharged, suspended, expelled, intimidated, coerced, imposed a penalty on, denied a right or benefit to, or otherwise treated you adversely; and
- Your employer intended to engage in that conduct or can reasonably have been perceived to have engaged in that conduct in retaliation.
? Getting help:
Request support with the Worker Solidarity Network!
If you are on the mainland, The BC Human Rights Clinic provides free legal support.
Is it legal for employers to refuse to hire me because of a past criminal charge/conviction?
Under the BC Human Rights Code, employers can’t discriminate against you because of a criminal conviction or criminal charge that is unrelated to your employment or a job you are applying to. Employers can’t refuse to hire you, refuse to promote you, or fire you because of a criminal charge or conviction unrelated to the job.
