1 / 20

CANADA AND HUMAN RIGHTS

CANADA AND HUMAN RIGHTS. WHAT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS?. the rights of an individual to fair and equitable treatment that are considered basic to life in any human society, including the right to religious freedom and equality of opportunity.

dore
Download Presentation

CANADA AND HUMAN RIGHTS

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. CANADA AND HUMAN RIGHTS

  2. WHAT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS? • the rights of an individual to fair and equitable treatment that are considered basic to life in any human society, including the right to religious freedom and equality of opportunity. • These are benefits and freedoms to which all people are entitled, not because they are citizens of a particular country, but because they are human beings. • When such rights require protection, intervention by the state is necessary.

  3. Since the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, the Canadian government has made universal human rights an essential part of Canadian law. • Unlike the Charter (to be discussed later)which applies to the actions of “public” laws and bodies, including acts of federal Parliament and provincial legislatures, human rights legislation applies to “private” laws and parties.

  4. HOW ARE OUR HUMAN RIGHTS PROTECTED? • In Canada, there are three mechanisms to protect human rights and protect people from discrimination: 1. The Canadian Human Rights Act 2. Provincial human rights legislation, i.e. the Ontario Human Rights Code • The Charter of Rights and Freedoms

  5. THE CANADIAN HUMAN RIGHTS ACT (FEDERAL) • 1977; • Applies to federal government departments and businesses that fall under federal jurisdiction, i.e. Canadian Armed Forces, Canada Post, the CBC; • Also applies to some private companies, such as chartered banks, telecommunications companies, railroads, airlines, and radio and television stations; • Enacted States that all Canadians have the right to equality, fair treatment, and a life free of discrimination; • Prohibits discrimination on 11 grounds.

  6. PROVINCIAL HUMAN RIGHTS CODES • Each province and territory has its own human rights law, called a code; • Each is different and the grounds may vary; • Covers restaurants, retail stores, schools, hospitals, unions, and governments themselves; • The Ontario Human Rights code, proclaimed in 1962, prohibits discrimination on 16 grounds.

  7. THE CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS • The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is part of the Constitution of Canada (it is codified) that guarantees rights for all Canadians that cannot be infringed upon by the government. • If a law is said to infringe on any of the rights that are protected by the Charter, it is declared unconstitutional and must be revised, rewritten, or struck down (eliminated).

  8. Discrimination

  9. IDENTIFYING DISCRIMINATION • DISCRIMINATION is treatment that causes a person to be worse off than he/she would have been if the treatment had not occurred, or worse off than someone else in a comparable position who has not been discriminated against. • For discrimination to exist, intent doesn’t matter. All that needs to exist is a discriminatory act.

  10. TYPES OF DISCRIMINATION • DIRECT DISCRIMINATION (also called “differential treatment” or “intentional discrimination”) – is treatment of others that is unfair and on purpose – clearly discriminatory, i.e. not hiring a woman to be a security guard because you believe that all women are weak and men are better at that type of job. • ADVERSE-EFFECT DISCRIMINATION (also called “indirect” or “constructive” discrimination) – are actions that appear to be neutral but that have the effect of discriminating against an individual or group, i.e. making a woman who wants to become a firefighter have to pass a fitness test that is impossible for any woman to pass.

  11. HOW IS DISCRIMINATION FORMED? STEREOTYPES – PREJUDICE - DISCRIMINATION Discrimination happens when people act on a prejudice or stereotype and treat others unfairly. Stereotype All people living at Jane and Finch are gang members. leads to… Prejudice Mrs. Wedgewood is part of a gang because she lives at Jane and Finch. Which leads to… Discrimination Mrs. Wedgewood is not hired as a teacher because she lives at Jane and Finch and must be a gang member.

  12. HARASSMENT • Harassment is a form of discrimination; • Unacceptable conduct involved in an abuse of a power or trust relationship and the creation of a poisoned environment in the workplace or elsewhere. • Sexual harassment involves both physical and verbal conduct, from unwanted touching , kissing, and caressing to leering, lewd comments, offensive jokes, and sexually suggestive comments about a person’s body or mode of dress. • Racial harassment involves conduct subjecting an individual to offensive racial comments or making an individual the object of practical jokes because of race or ethnic origin. • Sexual or racial harassment/discrimination can also occur when someone fails to act to end the harassment, thereby contributing to a poisoned environment.

  13. SCOPE/GROUNDS OF DISCRIMINATION • Human rights legislation protects us from discrimination in the following areas: • Goods, services and facilities; • Housing and public accommodation; • Employment; • Contracts; and • unions and trade associations

  14. COMPARISION OF GROUNDS OF DISCRIMINATION

  15. LEGAL EXCEPTIONS TO DISCRIMINATION • Discrimination may be acceptable under certain circumstances, including: • BONA FIDE OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT – when the requirement for the job is legitimate, such as an airline not hiring someone to be a pilot if they are blind. • AFFIRMATIVE ACTION – giving advantages to groups who have been discriminated against in the past, such as hiring a visible minority for a job even though their work experience might not be as extensive as other applicants that are not visible minorities. • Employers are required to accommodate up to the point of UNDUE HARDSHIP – the point where the accommodation becomes a financial or health and safety risk that makes it impossible to accommodate a complainant.

  16. ENFORCEMENT OF HUMAN RIGHTS LEGISLATION: HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONS AND BOARDS OF INQUIRY (TRIBUNALS) • Have been established to implement and administer human rights legislation; • Function is to investigate complaints concerning possible human rights violations, to provide legal procedures to hear the complaints, and to try to find solutions; • To file a case dealing with discrimination, the law requires the complainant to establish a prima facie case, meaning that there must be sufficient evidence to justify a finding of discrimination for the complainant in the absence of evidence from the respondent.

  17. If a complaint requires further investigation and the parties cannot resolve their differences and reach an agreement, the commission will send the case to the Human Rights Board of Inquiry of the province for a formal hearing, where the principles of human rights legislation are applied. • Boards of Inquiry have more flexibility than a court of law because it allows the parties and witnesses to plead their case without having to follow strict rules of evidence.

  18. Remedies • The Board of Inquiry determines if there is a violation under the Code, and then on the appropriate remedy. • Remedies can include: • an order requiring the alleged discriminator comply with the Code and refrain from the discriminatory practice; • Ordering the employer to reinstate the employee; • An order to develop harassment or discrimination policies; • An order to provide human rights training for employees; • Compensation. In Ontario, the maximum monetary reward for mental anguish due to discrimination is $10000. • A complainant not satisfied with the remedy or decision in their case may appeal the decision in court.

  19. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wr3ujTt89A&feature=related • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7VbzzfMAuc • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBOfgbAQ8R8&feature=BF&list=SP7DC75B22549B4F2E&index=2 • http://www.ikbis.com/shots/49542 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5W9H73Za-k

  20. Assignment: • Read pages 176-192 and complete the following: • Confirm Your Understanding questions 2 – 5 on page 185. • Confirm Your Understanding questions 1, 3, 5 to 8 on page 191-192. • Landmark Case Activity on page 181 – to be submitted for evaluation by Monday. • Briefly summarize the following grounds of discrimination and provide an example of each: • Discrimination on the Basis of Sex • Discrimination on the Basis of Disability • Discrimination on the Basis of Age • Discrimination on the Basis of Race • Apply the Law Question 15 on page 196 (hmmm....good quiz question).

More Related