Wrongful Dismissal
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Workplace discrimination and human rights lawyer.
You have the right to a workplace free from discrimination and harassment. If you've been treated unfairly, bullied, harassed, or punished for asserting your rights, we can help you understand your options under Ontario and federal human rights law and pursue them.
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Human Rights at Work in Canada
What human rights law protects
Federally regulated workers are protected under the Canadian Human Rights Act (the "CHRA"), and Ontario workers are protected under the Ontario Human Rights Code (the "Code"). Both prohibit discrimination and harassment in the workplace, on grounds including age, race, colour, religion, sexual orientation, sex, and disability.
What discrimination can look like
- Being fired, demoted, passed over, or disciplined because of a protected ground
- Harassment or a "poisoned" work environment based on who you are
- An employer's failure to accommodate a disability, religious practice, or family-status need
- Reprisal: being punished for raising a complaint or asserting your rights under the Code or CHRA
The duty to accommodate
Employers have a legal duty to accommodate needs connected to a protected ground, such as disability or family status, up to the point of undue hardship. That can mean modified duties, adjusted schedules, leaves, or other reasonable changes. An employer who refuses to genuinely explore accommodation, may be violating the Code or CHRA.
Human rights issues frequently overlap with a dismissal. If you were let go in circumstances connected to a protected ground, you may have both a wrongful dismissal claim and a human rights claim, and human rights damages can be pursued alongside your severance. It's worth having the full picture assessed.
Your options and time limits
Depending on the situation, an application under the Code can be brought before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (the "Tribunal"), while a complaint under the CHRA is brought to the Canadian Human Rights Commission; human rights damages can also be pursued as part of a civil claim, such as for wrongful dismissal. Remedies can include compensation for injury to your dignity, feelings, and self-respect; lost wages, and other orders. Time limits are strict: under the Code, an application to the Tribunal generally must be filed within 1 year of the event, and strict deadlines apply under the CHRA as well, so it's important to act promptly.
How Pelsmakher Law can help
- Assess whether what happened engages the Code or CHRA
- Advise on the best forum: the Tribunal, a civil claim, or both
- Help you document and preserve evidence
- Pursue compensation and other remedies on your behalf
Discrimination & Human Rights FAQs
Common questions about workplace human rights.
Practical, Canadian-law guidance for employees navigating a dismissal, in Toronto and across Ontario and Canada.
The Ontario Human Rights Code (the "Code"), or the Canadian Human Rights Act (the "CHRA") for federally regulated employees, prohibits being treated unfairly in employment because of a protected ground, such as race, sex, age, disability, religion, family status, and others. It can include being fired, demoted, being bullied or harassed, being exposed to a poisoned work environment, or a failure to accommodate a disability. Discrimination doesn't have to be intentional to be unlawful.
Employers must accommodate certain employee workplace needs, such as regarding a disability or family matter, up to the point of undue hardship. Refusing to genuinely explore reasonable accommodation, or dismissing someone rather than accommodating them, can violate the Code or CHRA.
Generally, an application to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario under the Code must be filed within 1 year of the incident (or the last in a series of incidents). Federally regulated employees instead file a complaint under the CHRA with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and strict deadlines apply there too. Because these windows are short and strict, it's important to get advice quickly.
Yes, where a dismissal is connected to a protected ground under the Code or CHRA, you may be able to pursue human rights damages alongside your wrongful dismissal claim. Which forum makes the most sense depends on your situation.
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