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Understanding Your Rights: Ontario's Human Rights Code

Join the Fall Workshop Series to learn about your rights under Ontario's Human Rights Code. Topics include discrimination, accommodation, and legal resources.

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Understanding Your Rights: Ontario's Human Rights Code

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  1. Your Human RightsHealth Justice Initiative Fall Workshop Series2 - 4pm, October 20, 2015St. James Town Health Centre3rd Floor, 410 SherbourneStreet

  2. Agenda

  3. Introductions & Group Guidelines • Human rights friendly space • Accommodation as needed • Speaking from the “I” perspective – not assuming that other group members share our view. Taking ownership for our own words • Respectful speaking • Confidentiality • Keeping personal stories personal or brief – not enough time in group and weakens your ability to preserve your confidentiality e.g. with health care professional/with Dr./counsellor • Preferred gender pronouns

  4. Focus of Today’s Session • Understand your rights under the Ontario’s Human Rights Code • Understand what you can do if your human rights have been violated

  5. Disclaimer • This presentation contains legal information for educational purposes and not legal advice • Please contact a lawyer or paralegal if you need legal advice for a particular situation • If you have low income and need legal advice about human rights, there are free legal services you that you may be eligible for • See slides 16-17 for more information

  6. What are human rights?

  7. United Nations Definition of ‘Human Rights’ • Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status • We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination • These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible

  8. What is Discrimination? • Discrimination means treating people negatively, or worse because of certain factors • Example: Denying someone a benefit, excluding someone from an opportunity, and/or imposing a different obligation on someone • Discriminatory treatment includes • Inactions or inactions with or without intent to treat unfairly • Direct discrimination- The action itself is discriminatory • Indirect/adverse discrimination - The action or policy treats everyone the same, but it has a worse effect on some people

  9. Citizenship • race • place oforigin • ethnic origin • colour • ancestry • disability • age • creed • sex/pregnancy • family status • marital status • sexual orientation • gender identity • gender • expression • receipt of public assistance(in housing) • record of offences(in employment) OntarioHuman Rights Code • All Ontario laws must follow this Code • It protects you from discrimination in five protected social areas – based on one or more grounds Protected Social Areas Grounds

  10. Ontario Human Rights Code To establish discrimination under the Code, • You have a quality that is a protected ground listed in the Code; • You were treated negatively because of the protected ground; and • This negative treatment happened in a protected area listed in the Code.

  11. Defence to Discrimination • A defence to discrimination can be argued if the ‘violator’ has a reasonable explanation that is not discriminatory(costs, health, or safety concerns)

  12. Focus: Discrimination and Disability • If you are a person with a disability, you may require accommodations so that you are not discriminated against. • What is accommodation? • Accommodations are things that are put in place or changes that are made to prevent someone with a disability being disadvantaged.

  13. Duty to Accommodate a Person with a Disability • Accommodation must be for your own personal needs • You will likely have to ask for the accommodations • You might need to help someone understand what you need • You do not have to tell what your disability is but you might need a medical professional to explain your accommodation needs • Accommodations should be provided in a timely manner

  14. Duty to Accommodate a Person with a Disability • Someone can only refuse to make the changes that are needed to accommodate you if they can show it would cause “undue hardship” • Undue hardship may include: • Health and safety risk • It would change the nature of the job • Too costly – it would be impossible to pay the costs

  15. What should you do if you’ve been discriminated against? • Write everything down! • Keep all relevant documents you have • Have witnesses (friends, family, or strangers!) present if you can when speaking to the other side • If you require medical or other health related assistance, seek help • Take pictures/videos • Get legal advice about your options

  16. Getting Legal Help if you are Low-Income • Human Rights Legal Support Centre – provides advocacy support, advice and representationTel: 1-866-625-5179Website: www.hrlsc.on.ca • Centre for Equality in Accommodation – provides legal support with discrimination related to housingTel: (416) 944-0087 Website: www.equalityrights.org/cera/

  17. Getting Legal Help if you are Low-Income • African Canadian Legal ClinicTel: 1-888-377-0033 Website: www.aclc.net • ARCH Disability Law CentreTel: 1-866-482-2724 Website: www.archdisabilitylaw.ca • Community Legal Clinics - Find your local legal clinicTel: (416) 979-1446 Website: www.legalaid.on.ca

  18. Filing a Human Rights Complaint Process 1. File a human rights complaint by application to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario within ONE year of the discrimination: 655 Bay Street, 14th floor Toronto, ON M7A 2A3 Phone: 416-326-1312 or 1-866-598-0322 www.sjto.gov.on.ca/hrto/contact/ 2. The alleged violator will have a chance to reply to your claim 3. You will have a “mediation” with the violator or their representative 4. If mediation does not fix the problem you will have a hearing. Testimony at hearing may take credibility into consideration. You must prove that, ‘on a balance of probabilities’, you experienced discrimination 5. If the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal agrees that there is discrimination, they can give you compensation/remedy for the breach of your right

  19. Remedies given by the Tribunal • Public Interest Remedies • Example - training for your employers (ordered in 75% of settlements) • General Damages for Injury to Dignity, Feelings and Self Respect • Determined based on the effect on you, the seriousness, and how often the offensive treatment occurred • Restitution • Example - getting your job back • Interest • Example -awards for lost wages

  20. Health Justice Initiative Contacts Rosa Tavares, Legal Program Assistant 416-864-6060  ext. 77235 tavaresr@lao.on.ca Johanna Macdonald, Onsite Lawyer Tel : (416) 864-3005 macdonaj@lao.on.ca St. Michael’s Hospital Academic Family Health Team 80 Bond Street, Lower Level Rosa and Johanna can also be reached at : ARCH Disability Law Centre 425 Bloor Street East, Ste. 110 Tel :  (416) 482-8255 or 1-866-482-2724 ext. 227 TTY : (416) 482-1254 or 1-866-482-2728 www.archdisabilitylaw.ca

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