What can I do if I experience discrimination?
Ontario's Human Rights Code says that everyone has the right to be treated equally and not be discriminated against:
- at work
- in housing
- in a or professional group
- by a provider, like a store employee, restaurant, or school
Employers, landlords, union representatives, and service providers aren't allowed to discriminate for reasons that are against human rights laws.
This means that, in most cases, you can't be treated differently based on personal characteristics listed in the Human Rights Code. For example, you can't be treated unfairly because of your:
- race
- , including an addiction
- age
- sex
- sexual orientation
Employers, landlords, union representatives, and service providers usually have a duty to you unless they can prove .
Direct discrimination
A person or an organization might treat you worse than they treat other people because of a personal characteristic that is protected by the Human Rights Code. This is sometimes called direct . Here are some examples:
- An employer won't hire women who wish to start a family. This is discrimination based on sex and family status.
- A landlord won't rent an apartment to a person because they prefer to rent to someone of their own ethnic background. This is discrimination based on ethnic background.
Indirect discrimination
Indirect discrimination happens through another person or organization. For example, a landlord hires a property manager and tells them not to rent to Indigenous tenants. The landlord is discriminating through the property manager.
Constructive discrimination
Sometimes a rule or practice is applied to everyone in the same way. But the rule might affect one group of people differently and can lead to unfair treatment. This is called constructive discrimination or adverse effect discrimination. Here are some examples:
- A building has stairs at its entrance and this is the only way to get in or out of the building. This can be discrimination against people who use wheelchairs and need a ramp instead of stairs.
- An employer has a uniform that requires a specific hat. This can be discrimination against people who wear hijabs, turbans, or other religious head coverings.
