Discrimination Archives - Page 7 of 8

Cultural understanding vs. “culturalism” in workplace investigations

March 25, 2019

One of my most embarrassing moments occurred in high school when I had dinner with a friend, whose grandmother was visiting from Iran. She had made us a wonderful meal, and because she didn’t speak any English I tried to convey my gratitude with two enthusiastic thumbs up. She gave me a shocked look and ran out of the room, while my friend and her parents dissolved into horrified giggles. Apparently, the “thumbs up” gesture does not mean the same thing throughout the world.

What triggers a duty to investigate an allegation of discrimination?

March 8, 2019

The first question employers need to ask themselves when a complaint is raised, is whether they need to investigate. The case of Gu v. Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area Inc., 2018 ONSC 2725 (CanLII) helps to answer that question. It illustrates that a general allegation of discrimination without any details after an attempt has been made to obtain those details, does not trigger an employer’s duty to investigate.

Believing the complaint is not enough: Guidance on appropriate investigations into inappropriate comments

January 28, 2019

Guidance on appropriate investigations into inappropriate comments
As investigators, we see that harassment often comes in the form of derogatory comments about people’s racial and ethnic background, as well as their sex, gender identity and gender expression. What we do not see as investigators, but can reasonably assume, is that these comments often go uninvestigated. Why?

What do you do with half a story? Ask yourself these four questions.

December 4, 2018

A complainant files a harassment or discrimination complaint and then quits. A respondent says the allegations are ridiculous and refuses to participate.
What do you do when the individuals who have the most important information refuse to participate in a workplace investigation?

BC employer’s lackluster response to sexual harassment offers helpful reminder to us all

September 24, 2018

n employer’s recent application to dismiss a complaint at the BC Human Rights Tribunal—which the tribunal rejected—reminds us of the importance of training and policies to arm employees with the tools to respond appropriately to incidents of workplace sexual harassment.

Racial profiling and human rights: Important reminders from a recent HRTO decision

May 11, 2018 | By Katharine Montpetit

The recent Ontario Human Rights Tribunal decision of Wickham v Hong Shing Chinese Restaurant 2018 HRTO 500 provides some important reminders on employer liability for racial profiling. The adjudicator found that the Applicant and his three friends were racially profiled when they were asked to pre-pay for their meal at a sit-down Chinese food restaurant.

Pink jobs vs. blue jobs: Sexism in the skilled trades

August 31, 2017

In August 2017, the federal government launched a $73 million work-placement program for students through paid co-op opportunities in industries such as science, engineering and skilled trades. This is one of many examples of recent initiatives attempting to attract more people into the skilled trades. Both federal and provincial governments have acknowledged a shortage of

#4 Discriminatory grounds such as family status, age, marital status, etc. that deal with the duty to accommodate

April 7, 2016

This posting builds upon an earlier one entitled “#2 Mental health or physical disabilities that deal with the duty to accommodate”. As indicated in that post, the duty to accommodate is always a tricky exercise and one that should be treated with the utmost circumspection. The Accommodation Process The Ontario Human Rights Code lists a

Serious insight for serious situations.