Alberta Human Rights Information Service July 5, 2004
In this issue:
Appeals of Commission panel decisions
Notable court and tribunal decisions from other jurisdictions
Alberta Community Development diversity news
Other human rights and diversity news
Commission news
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The Commission has released its 2004-2005 Strategic Plan.
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The Commission has published a background paper called Using Mediation to Resolve Human Rights Issues in the Workplace. This 49-page publication introduces readers to a wide variety of dispute resolution methods that can be used to resolve human rights issues in the workplace and offers a comprehensive discussion about mediation.
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The Commission has revised its information sheet Employment: Releases, severance agreements and human rights law. The revised sheet clarifies that employment releases are not in themselves discriminatory. Rather, if an employee believes their employer has discriminated against them and they believe that the release they signed is not valid, then they can make a human rights complaint to the Commission.
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The Commission has recently posted these panel decisions on its Web site:
Kathleen (Kaye) Hayes v. Alberta Justice and Attorney General (April 21, 2004)
Rolando Cabalde v. City of Calgary (January 28, 2004)
Ruby Anne Repas v. Albert's Family Restaurant and Lounge, Red Deer (January 19, 2004)
You can read summaries of these decisions.
Appeals of Commission panel decisions
- Gwinner, Stephens, Hancharyk, Rusinek and Bolin v. The Crown in Right of Alberta as Represented by the Minister Responsible for Alberta Human Resources and Employment (May 28, 2004)
The complainants filed a complaint under sections 3(a) & (b) of the Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act, alleging discrimination based on marital status. As the Widows' Pension Act provided substantive benefits to widows and widowers in the age group of 55 to 59 years and excluded divorced, separated and never-married individuals who may be in the same or greater need, the director found merit to the complaint. A human rights panel heard the matter and found the discrimination to be reasonable and justifiable.
The respondent appealed the panel decision that discrimination was reasonable and justifiable to the Court of Queen's Bench. The Court said that in the case of divorced and separated people, the discrimination was not reasonable and justifiable and in that respect there is a contravention of the Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act.
Justice Greckol determined that:
"The Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act (HRCMA) must be viewed as fundamental law, which prevails over other Alberta legislation when there is a conflict. This approach results from the clear supremacy language of section 1(1) of the Act as well as jurisprudence."
The respondent appealed. The Court of Appeal gave a decision from the Bench, dismissing the appeal and agreeing with the Queen's Bench decision. - United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 401 v. Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission, 2003 ABCA 246 (August 13, 2003)
The complainants, employees of Safeway, alleged discrimination on the ground of physical disability in the area of employment. The complainants were not eligible for a buyout program because they were on sick leave. The Commission found merit in the complaint, and a human rights panel was appointed.
On May 14, 1999, a human rights panel ruled that a buyout program reached by agreement between United Food and Commercial Workers Local 410 and Canada Safeway failed to accommodate certain disabled employees. (Read the panel decision.) The employees had not been eligible to participate in the buyout program because they were on sick leave. The panel found the union and Safeway equally liable.
The union appealed the panel decision to the Court of Queen's Bench with regard to the finding of unlawful discrimination by the union and the equal dividing of liability between Safeway and the union. In addition, the union challenged the impartiality and independence of the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission, alleging a breach of administrative law principles and an infringement of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Alberta Bill of Rights.
The Court found the buyout program did constitute prima facie discrimination. The Court said the union and Safeway are equally liable. The Court also concluded that the human rights panel was sufficiently impartial and independent, and that there was no apprehension of bias under the Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act or infringement of the Bill of Rights.
The union appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal on the merits of the case only, and not on the impartiality and independence of the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission. The Court dismissed the appeal. The Court said the judge properly analyzed the situation and concluded that discrimination occurred. Neither Safeway nor the union offered accommodation. Safeway failed to prove that accommodation of the complainants would result in undue hardship. The union failed to make reasonable efforts to accommodate the complainants.
The union and Safeway filed for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. The director of the Commission argued that these applications do not warrant leave to appeal as the law has already been established, and this is not a matter of national importance.
Leave to appeal to the Supreme Court was denied.
PLEASE NOTE: In the following sections of the newsletter, we publish news and information provided by other organizations. We also cite other Web sites related to human rights and diversity. The Commission is not responsible for the content provided by other organizations on their Web sites or by other means. Please direct comments or inquiries regarding these organizations or their Web sites to the organization in question.
Notable court and tribunal decisions from other jurisdictions
- Human Rights Commission v. Workplace Health Safety Compensation Commission and Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Newfoundland and Labrador as represented by the Minister of Labour, 2004NLSCTD94 (May 13, 2004)
The Human Rights Commission of Newfoundland and Labrador appealed a decision of a Board of Inquiry that declined jurisdiction to hear complaints under the Human Rights Code. The remedy sought by the complainants was to render section 65.1 (1) of The Workplace Health Safety and Compensation Commission Act invalid.
The Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador Trial Division said that the Board of Inquiry was correct in declining jurisdiction because the Code does not provide a board of inquiry with the authority to strike down or declare invalid or inoperative validly enacted legislation. If the legislature intended the Board of Inquiry to have such sweeping powers, it should have said so explicitly, as does Alberta's human rights legislation.
Section 1 (1) of Alberta's Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act states:
"Unless it is expressly declared by an Act of the Legislature that it operates notwithstanding this Act, every law of Alberta is inoperative to the extent that it authorizes or requires the doing of anything prohibited by this Act."
Alberta Community Development diversity news
- The Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Education Fund provides financial assistance to community organizations that are undertaking human rights and diversity initiatives that lead to change. A few projects that have received Education Fund support are highlighted below:
The Don't Buy In Youth Empowerment Project is working with young people to create an environment where they are no longer encouraged to buy into hate, but rather to stand up against it.
Northern Alberta Alliance on Race Relations (NAARR) recently conducted a research project in the Edmonton Public and Edmonton Catholic School Systems to investigate the state of race relations and the equity of education that the schools were providing. The research report, titled Equity in Edmonton Schools, is available online.
Artists of the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts in Edmonton have spent much of the past year creating art with a social theme. These works are based on a project that brought together artists to explore the broad themes of human rights, citizenship, discrimination and disability. The Human Rights and Citizenship Through the Eyes of Artists exhibit also has a companion art book. - Alberta Community Development is now home to the newly established Office for Disability Issues (ODI). ODI will assist government in responding to the Alberta Disability Strategy, released by the Premier's Council on the Status of Persons with Disabilities in December 2002, by creating a mechanism for stakeholders and various government departments to work together to address the recommendations within the strategy.
Other human rights and diversity news
- Directions for Immigrants in Trades and Professional Careers (DITPC) is a career service that assists foreign-trained skilled immigrants to restart their careers in Calgary.
- Statistics Canada reports:
"Twelve major Canadian police forces reported a total of 928 hate crime incidents during 2001 and 2002. While the majority of these incidents involved one hate motivation, in some cases more than one motivation was recorded. Overall, over one-half of these hate crimes were motivated by race or ethnicity (57%). The second most-common hate motivation of incidents was religion (43%). Sexual orientation was the motivation in about one-tenth of incidents.Blacks and South Asians were among those most frequently targeted in hate crime incidents motivated by race or ethnicity. The majority of incidents motivated by religion involved anti-Semitism followed by those targeting Muslims." Read the article.
- The Law Society of Alberta has published a Report on Equity and Diversity in Alberta's Legal Profession. From the report's executive summary: "In 2003, the Joint Committee on Equality, Equity and Diversity commissioned a study on bias and equity in Alberta's legal profession. The objectives of the study were to determine if and how changes have occurred since the 1991 study on gender bias; to collect more extensive baseline data on the nature and extent of bias in the profession on other grounds of discrimination in addition to gender, including race, ethnicity, religion, disability, and sexual orientation; and to collect information about lawyers who move to the inactive list and the reasons motivating their decisions."
- Concerned Children's Advertisers' strong new anti-bullying commercial, Words Hurt, focuses on psychological bullying and the need to create awareness and empathy on this vital issue.
- CBC Television will re-broadcast Human Cargo, "an unflinching look at the world of refugees, and the people who sacrifice their lives to help or hinder them," in July and August. Lesson plans and other teaching resources are available online.
- Canadian chief executive officers say middle managers are likely the most vulnerable to mental health problems in today's workplace. A survey of 16 Canadian CEOs--sponsored by BMO Financial Group--finds CEOs saying top corporate leaders should assume responsibility for reducing problem stress at work and eliminating the stigma of mental illness in the workplace. Not doing so, they say, will hinder companies' ability to recruit and retain the people they need to remain competitive. The unique survey was commissioned by the Global Business and Economic Roundtable on Addiction and Mental Health and carried out by GPC Research who conducted 16 one-on-one elite interviews by telephone among CEOs of some of the best known and largest companies in Canada. Read the news release.
Related Websites
- Visit www.mentalhealthworks.ca. Mental Health Works is an initiative of the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario. From the Web site:
"Launched in 2001 as a partnership project involving the voluntary sector, government and business, Mental Health Works has emerged as a unique program that responds to a growing concern about mental health in the workplace. Mental Health Works helps organizations to realize the important role they can play in supporting the mental health of their employees and how they can respond appropriately when employees experience mental health problems. - www.aaisa.ca is the new Web site of the Alberta Association of Immigrant Serving Agencies.
- Visit the Diversity Watch Web site at www.diversitywatch.ryerson.ca. From the Web site:
"Diversity Watch is dedicated to improving the often-troubled relationship between minority groups and the Canadian media. We do this by analyzing specific media coverage of minority groups and by providing tools for journalists and others interested in diversity issues."
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to complaints of discrimination using the Internet.
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if you have a specific complaint.
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