Find out how to make a human rights claim

You may be able to apply to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario if:

• you were harassed at work for reasons that go against your human rights
• your employer punished you for reporting the harassment

The Tribunal can decide if you were harassed at work for reasons that go against your human rights. You start the process by making an application to the Tribunal.

What the Tribunal can do

If the Tribunal decides that your employer broke the law, they can order that the employer:

• pay you money
• give you a job
• change things at work so you don't have to work with someone who harassed you
• change its practices so they follow human rights laws

You can ask for money to cover costs that you had or to replace money that you were forced to spend because of what the employer did.

You can also ask for money because of how the employer's actions affected you. When an employer does not respect your human rights, this can hurt you. The Tribunal can order the employer to pay you money for the hurt they caused you. You don't have to show that their actions cost you money.

What to say in your application

In your application, you say:

• what happened
• why you think the things that happened were against your human rights

For example, harassment is against human rights laws if it's because of:

• your race, colour, ancestry, ethnic origin, citizenship, or where you were born
• your religious beliefs
• a physical or mental disability, including an addiction
• having children, planning to have children, or being pregnant
• your marital status, for example, married, divorced, single, or living common-law
• your sex or gender
• your sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression
• your age if you are at least 18

Time limits

The deadline to apply to the Tribunal is one year from the date you were harassed.

If you miss the deadline, you can still apply. But in your application, you need to explain why you're applying late. If you have a good reason, for example, you couldn't apply because you were in the hospital, the Tribunal can decide to let you apply late.

Learn more about applying to the Tribunal in Completing your human rights Application under Section 34 of the Human Rights Code (Form 1).