Alberta Human Rights Information Service March 4, 2009

In this issue:

Commission news

Human rights and diversity news from Alberta Culture and Community Spirit

Other human rights and diversity news:
Alberta news
Canadian news

Related publications and resources

Notice to subscribers


COMMISSION NEWS 

1. The Commission has recently updated its website with the following panel decisions, including a preliminary decision about a severance agreement:

Jan Loimand v. Syncrude Canada Ltd. (January 14, 2009; W. P. Baergen, Panel Chair)
Severance agreement valid and enforceable and therefore the Commission has no jurisdiction to proceed with the complaint: The complainant worked in the main operations laboratory for Syncrude. He suffered from bouts of depression and experienced personality conflicts with co-workers and supervisors. The complainant requested and was consequently offered a severance package. After signing the release, the complainant alleged that his severance agreement was not valid and argued that he felt intimidated during the severance meeting and signed the release while suffering depression and under heavy medication. The panel held that the complainant did not prove any factors as outlined in Chow v. Mobil Oil sufficiently to invalidate the release. These factors included: a) the language of the release, b) unconscionability, c) undue influence, d) the existence or absence of independent legal advice, e) duress, f) the knowledge of the party executing the release as to their rights under the Act, and g)other considerations. The panel determined that the severance agreement was valid and enforceable, and as a result the Commission did not have jurisdiction to proceed with the complaint.

Andre (Bill) Jodoin v. City of Calgary (November 24, 2008; Beth Bryant, Panel Chair)
Failure to accommodate an employee's physical disability to the point of undue hardship is discriminatory: The complainant, a driver/labourer in the waste and recycling department with the City of Calgary, injured his back at the workplace, and then required surgery. The injury left him only able to perform sedentary duties. When the complainant's WCB benefits ceased, his employer argued that he lost his employee status and that there were no sedentary positions available for him, and therefore they terminated his employment. The panel found discrimination in the area of physical disability. The respondent knew of the disability and failed to accommodate the complainant's disability to the point of undue hardship. The panel awarded the complainant $5,000 in general damages, and $17,307.69 for lost wages.  

2. Summary of important court decisions related to human rights:

Robert Baum and the Director of the Human Rights and Citizenship Commission v. City of Calgary (Alberta Court of Queen's Bench, December 22, 2008)
Court of Queen's Bench upholds panel decision that dismissed complaint based on discrimination on the ground of physical disability: The complainant millright was employed by the City of Calgary and suffered from bursitis, osteoarthritis and gout. The complainant alleged the respondent discriminated against him on the ground of physical disability. A human rights panel dismissed the complaint, finding that the complainant had not established a prima facie case of discrimination and the respondent had accommodated the complainant's disability to the point of undue hardship. The complainant appealed the panel decision, arguing the panel did not apply the appropriate test to determine whether a prima facie case of discrimination was established, and further, the panel failed to give sufficient reasons for its decision. The appeal was dismissed. The court found that the employer made appropriate efforts to find an accommodated position, and treated the employer reasonably without any evidence of discrimination.

C.S.W.U. Local 1611 v. SELI Canada and others (No. 8) (British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal, December 3, 2008)
Temporary foreign workers awarded $2.4 million compensation for pay discrimination on Olympics construction project: A group of Latin American temporary foreign workers on temporary work visas with the respondents, SNC Lavalin Constructors (Pacific) Inc. and SELI Canada Inc., were hired to work on a construction project for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games. All of the workers had previous experience with SELI. A second group of foreign workers from Europe were later hired by the respondents to perform the same work, but were paid more and were provided with a higher standard of accommodation, meals and expenses compared to the group of Latin American workers. The Construction and Specialized Workers' Union Local 1611 (CSWU) filed a complaint with the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal on behalf of the group of Latin American workers. CSWU alleged the respondents discriminated against the Latin Americans as compared to the European workers on the basis of race, color, ancestry and place of origin in terms and conditions of employment which included lower salaries, adverse housing, adverse meal arrangements and adverse expense arrangements.

The tribunal concluded that the complaint is justified. CSWU established a prima facie case that the respondents discriminated against the complainants in treating them differently from the European comparator group in respect of salaries, accommodation, meals and expenses. The respondents did not establish a justification for their discriminatory conduct. The tribunal ordered the respondents to pay each member of the complainant group the difference between the salary paid to them and the average salary paid to the comparator group, the difference between the expenses paid to the two groups, and compensation for injury to dignity and self respect in the amount of $10,000 each.

The respondents have announced that they will appeal the decision to the B.C. Supreme Court.

Airlines denied leave by Supreme Court of Canada to appeal a Canadian Transportation Agency ruling: A Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) decision of January 10, 2008 held that Air Canada, Air Canada Jazz and West Jet could not charge a fare for additional seats for persons with disabilities who are required to be accompanied by an attendant, who are disabled by obesity, and those who require additional seating to accommodate their disability to travel by air. The airlines' application for leave to appeal the CTA ruling by the Federal Court of Appeal was dismissed. That is, the airlines were denied their request to review the order issued by the CTA. The airlines were also denied leave to appeal by the Supreme Court of Canada. As per normal practice, the Supreme Court did not provide reasons for its November 20, 2008 denial of appeal.

The airlines argued that implementing a one-person fare policy would impose undue hardship in the form of excessive costs. The impact would be a reduction of .09 per cent of Air Canada's before-tax revenue and .16 per cent of West Jet's before-tax revenue. The CTA concluded that this would not constitute undue hardship and gave the airlines twelve months to implement a new policy.

Read the executive summary of the CTA ruling.

3. Human rights in the workplace public workshops scheduled: Human rights in the workplace public workshops are now scheduled for spring 2009. The workshops, intended for managers, supervisors, team leaders, human resource professionals, union leaders, and small business owners, will provide participants with:

Read more about the workshops that are scheduled for May 13 in Edmonton and May 28 in Calgary. A registration form is available online.

4. Diversity Leadership Award:

Western Canada Operations of Frito Lay Canada is this year's recipient of the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission Diversity Leadership Award of Distinction. The award recognizes organizations that embrace diversity in their workforce and encourage respect and inclusion.

Other finalists recognized for their commitment to diversity and inclusion were Cobra Group of Limited Partnerships and Chrysalis: An Alberta Society for Citizens with Disabilities.

The Diversity Leadership Award is one of the Alberta Business Awards of Distinction. The winner was announced at a ceremony in Edmonton on February 27. Read the news release from the Alberta Chambers of Commerce.

5. Commission publication showcased at UNESCO exhibit: The Commission's publication Human rights in Alberta was showcased at a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) exhibition of educational resources, held in December 2008 in Paris. The publication was featured with other learning materials from over 50 member states. In addition to the exhibit, a round table discussion was held, entitled "Putting Human Rights into Practice: Role of Education," in which the Commission's Director of Education and Community Services, Cassie Palamar, participated. UNESCO organized the events to mark the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Commission participated in the round table at the request of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO.

6. Commissioners re-appointed: The Lieutenant Governor in Council re-appointed two commissioners, effective January 1, 2009.  Brenda Scragg was re-appointed for a term to expire on December 31, 2010, and Delano W. Tolley was re-appointed for a term to expire on December 31, 2009. Read the commissioner biographies.

7. Coalition of Municipalities Against Racism and Discrimination (CMARD) update:
  • The Council for the City of Calgary recently approved their report on how the city can move forward on CMARD, and also approved funding to move this work forward. Read more in the City of Calgary CMARD newsletter, which also outlines some specific advances Calgary is making on delivering culturally appropriate front-line services as a result of the CMARD initiative.

  • Two additional Alberta municipalities, Grande Prairie and St. Albert, have joined the Coalition, bringing the number of Alberta municipalities involved in CMARD to eight. Read the List of Signatory Municipalities who have joined the Coalition.

  • On March 18th, 2009, the Commission and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO are jointly hosting a welcome reception for representatives of municipalities from across Canada that have joined CMARD as they gather in Calgary for the second Pan-Canadian CMARD meeting. The Commission is a partner in organizing the full-day working meeting, scheduled for March 19th, 2009. The first Pan-Canadian meeting was also held in Calgary in June 2007.

    Following the Pan-Canadian meeting, the Commission is joining with the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) and the Human Rights and Citizenship Branch of Alberta Culture and Community Spirit to convene a meeting of Alberta members of CMARD and other municipalities involved in building welcoming and inclusive communities. The Commission, AUMA, and Alberta Culture and Community Spirit are members in a three-year Welcoming and Inclusive Communities (WIC) partnership to support municipalities in building their capacity to be welcoming and inclusive, and to combat racism and discrimination.

8. Frontiers of Canadian Migration conference: Commission staff will present two sessions at the Eleventh National Metropolis Conference, Frontiers of Canadian Migration, to be held in Calgary from March 19 to 22, 2009. The full-day pre-conference session entitled Justice and Policing in a Diverse Western Canada: Meeting the Challenges will be presented with the Calgary Police Service and the Alberta Hate Crime Committee. The second session, Creating Change through Collaboration, presented with the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, provides participants with an opportunity to recognize key components of success in creating welcoming and inclusive communities and combating racism and discrimination. Register for the conference.

9. AHRIS reader survey: In October 2008, the Commission invited all AHRIS (Alberta Human Rights Information Service) subscribers to participate in an online survey to determine subscriber satisfaction with the newsletter. Read the survey highlights and follow-up actions based on the survey findings. 

PLEASE NOTE: In the following sections of the newsletter, we publish news and information provided by other organizations. We also link to other websites related to human rights and diversity. The Commission provides this information as a service and is not responsible for the content provided by other organizations on their websites or by other means. Please direct comments or inquiries regarding these organizations or their websites to the organization in question.

HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY NEWS FROM ALBERTA CULTURE AND COMMUNITY SPIRIT
 
1. The Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Education Fund:

                    

The Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Education Fund provides financial assistance to community organizations to help make changes that will:

  • foster equality and reduce discrimination and racism,
  • remove organizational barriers that exclude some Albertans, or
  • increase community capacity to develop and sustain work in building inclusive organizations and communities.

To apply for financial assistance from the HRCM Education Fund, please contact a grant consultant. The next deadline for application is May 1. Grant guidelines and the application form are available online.

Recent projects completed:

  • The Northern Alberta Alliance on Race Relations (NAARR) and Cross Cultural Understanding Society has developed a series of Cultural Crossroads Catalogues for teachers with the support of the HRCM Education Fund. The bilingual catalogues list multicultural and anti-racism tools and resources to support the new Alberta social studies curriculum. The catalogues include books, DVDs, online resources and music that highlight citizenship and identity as well as culture and community. The result is a colourful catalogue of annotated bibliographies for teaching grades 4-6, 7-9, and 10-12. The catalogues are available online, or by contacting the Teachers' Book Depository at 780-453-7092.

  • With a grant from the HRCM Education Fund, The Calgary Police Service Diversity Resources Unit has completed their external evaluation of their Hate: Don't Buy In project which educates junior and high school students about hate and bias issues. Conducted by an independent research firm, the evaluation describes teacher and student feedback on the program. The feedback indicates a better understanding of the difference between hate incidents, hate crimes and bias, and the consequences of hate incidents that are more serious than originally thought. The youth surveyed indicate an increased intent to report hate incidents and/or hate crimes and report an increased sensitivity to the type of harmful language used in schools. Learn more about Hate: Don't Buy In.  

Read about other projects that the HRCM Education Fund has funded.

2. Significant dates:

March 2nd to March 8th is International Adult Learners' Week (IALW) in Canada: From the Canadian Commission for UNESCO website: "The Week celebrates adult learners across the country and the joy of learning throughout life." Read more about IALW and read the Government of Alberta information bulletin. To mark IALW, the Commission is highlighting its publication Human rights in Alberta in this newsletter. Human rights in Alberta is aimed at adult learners, particularly literacy and ESL (English as a Second Language) students. Written in plain language, it uses stories, photos and drawings to make information on human rights in Alberta accessible to adults who are improving their English literacy skills. The audio version of the publication allows learners to listen to the publication being read aloud while they read along. Teaching notes are also available for teachers and tutors to use with learners. You can read more and link to the various versions of the publication and to the teaching notes.

March 8 is International Women's Day: This year's theme is Strong Leadership + Strong Women + Strong World = Equality. From the Status of Women Canada website: "The theme reflects the government's firm belief that increasing women's participation and access to leadership roles and opportunities will help women and girls thrive, reach their full potential and fulfill their dreams, and help build a more prosperous Canada." Read more about International Women's Day.

March 21 is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination: International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed all around the world to focus attention on the problems of racism and the need to promote racial harmony. The United Nations designated this day in memory of anti-apartheid demonstrators killed in Sharpeville, South Africa in 1960. Albertans are invited to participate in events organized across the province. See the calendar of provincial events.

April 21 is Yom ha-Shoah Holocaust Memorial Day: Albertans are encouraged to remember the systematic persecution and annihilation of European Jewish men, women and children during the Holocaust, as well as millions of others who have perished in acts of genocide. See Alberta's Holocaust Memorial Day and Genocide Remembrance Act. Teachers may be interested in the publication Guidelines for teaching about the Holocaust.

See the list of significant days on the Help Make a Difference website.

3. Welcoming and inclusive communities in Alberta: With the assistance of Alberta Employment and Immigration, Alberta Urban Municipalities Association and Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, a number of communities in Alberta are incorporating welcoming and inclusive communities activities from a toolbox, Attracting and Retaining Immigrants: A Toolbox of Ideas for Smaller Centres. The toolbox includes practical ideas on how to attract and retain immigrants, and information on the immigration process.

OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY NEWS

Alberta news

1. Alberta human rights law and policy report released: On January 29, 2009, The Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership released a report entitled Toward Equal Opportunity for all Albertans: Recommendations for Improvement of the Alberta Human Rights Commission and hosted a panel discussion about the findings in the report. The report notes that the Commission needs renewed political commitment and support if Alberta is to adequately protect human rights. The Honourable Lindsay Blackett, Minister of Culture and Community Spirit, spoke at the event. 

2. Recent report on family violence and bullying: In December 2008, the Alberta government released Taking Action on Family Violence and Bullying: Report to Albertans 2008. The report highlights how government and communities have been working together to address family violence and bullying. The report was a follow-up to the 2004 Alberta Roundtable on Family Violence and Bullying, which aimed to help individuals and families impacted by these issues.

3. Service Dogs Act now in effect: As of January 1, 2009, Albertans with disabilities who use qualified service dogs have access to all public places in the province. These are the same rights that apply to blind and/or visually impaired persons who use a guide dog. It is an offence to refuse access to any public place to a person with a disability who is using a qualified service dog. It is also an offence for a person without a disability to claim benefits under the law. Read the information bulletin and read more about the Service Dogs Act.  An application form for service dog certification is available online.

Canadian news

1. Ignite Change Now! Global Youth Assembly 2009 call for proposals: Dynamic presenters are invited to submit their proposals for the upcoming Ignite Change Now! Global Youth Assembly 2009, to be held in Edmonton on July 30 to August 2, 2009. Learn more about the call for proposals. The deadline for proposals is March 15, 2009.

RELATED PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES

1. The Rights Angle: Human Rights Education Using the Newspaper: The Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre offers a teaching resource for incorporating the use of newspapers to teach human rights. The Rights Angle: Human Rights Education Using the Newspaper is a free downloadable resource that is available for each province and territory. The resource, intended for grades 7 to 12, includes information on newspapers, international human rights issues, Canada and the provinces and human rights, as well as youth and human rights.

2. Website showcasing good practices in the integration of urban migrants: Cities of Migration is a website that features good practices in the integration of urban migrants; promotes innovative ideas that create equity, social cohesion and urban prosperity; and offers a free online newsletter. From the website: "Connect with cities around the world to learn more about labour force integration, inclusive communities, healthy neighbourhoods and city leadership on migration issues."

3. Human rights index of United Nations documents website: The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights offers a new website, Universal Human Rights Index of United Nations Documents, that will serve as a useful research tool for students and researchers in the field of international human rights. The database provides instant access to human rights information from the United Nations system.

4. Canadian hate crime literature and legislation information hub website: Reading Hate: Hate Crime Research and Scholarship in Canada, a website intended for students and scholars, features summaries of Canadian hate crime literature. The website was developed by Dr. Barbara Perry, a professor at University of Ontario Institute of Technology.

5. New employer's guides available:


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