Am I in the Right Place?
Before filing a complaint with the PEI Human Rights Commission, please ask yourself the following questions. Click on each question for additional information.
- Age
- Association (with an individual or group protected under another characteristic)
- Colour, Race, Ethnic or National Origin
- Creed or Religion
- Criminal Conviction
- Disability
- Family or Marital Status
- Gender Expression
- Gender Identity
- Having filed a complaint or given assistance/evidence under the Human Rights Act
- Political Belief
- Sex or Gender
- Sexual Orientation
- Source of Income
See protected areas and grounds.
Examples:
- Was your age a factor in what happened?
- Do you have a disability and if so, was your disability a factor in what happened?
- Do you have a criminal record? Is it unrelated to the work that you will be doing? Determining whether a record is related to work is an individual process that considers the nature of the work and the nature of the criminal record. It may also be necessary to look at the circumstances at the time and since, as well as the risk of harm to the employer. This ground only relates to complaints in the area of employment.
A complaint must have occurred within the province of PEI in order for the Commission to consider your complaint. If the circumstances occurred in another province, you should contact the Human Rights Commission for that province.
Incidents involving the Government of PEI would fall under the jurisdiction of the PEI Human Rights Commission; however, incidents involving the federal government would fall under the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
If you answered YES above, you may have reasonable grounds for filing a human rights complaint. If you answered NO to one or more questions, the complaint may not fall under the PEI Human Rights Act.
Before you attempt to file a complaint with the PEI Human Rights Commission; however, please review the following information:
Does your complaint involve being discriminated against during employment as a federal employee or while receiving services from a federal public office or federally regulated private company such as:
- Federal Crown Corporation
- Bank (with the exception of Credit Unions)
- Airport or Airline
- Ship or Navigation
- TV or Radio Station
- Phone or Internet Provider
- Interprovincial Transportation Company
- RCMP?
If your answer is YES, your complaint is within the jurisdiction of the Canadian Human Rights Commission rather than PEI.
If you believe your firing can be linked to one of the protected characteristics listed above, you may have a human rights complaint. If, however, your termination of employment is NOT linked to one of the protected characteristics, it does not fall under the Act. In this case, you may seek assistance from the Employment Standards Board, your union, or a lawyer.
If the harassment is linked to a prohibited ground, you may have a human rights complaint. If the harassment cannot be linked to a prohibited ground, contact the Workers Compensation Board of PEI regarding general harassment at work. If you are a union member, please seek assistance from your union.
Some complaints about police conduct should be sent to the Chief of Police or the Office of the Police Commissioner. However, if the incident can be linked to a protected characteristic, you may also have grounds for a human rights complaint. If the complaint is about the RCMP, that is a federal matter and you should contact the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
If you are unsure if the PEI Human Rights Commission is the right place, you can call the Commission to discuss your situation.
In some cases it may be necessary to file a complaint in more than one place to be sure you meet the time limits. In this case, the Commission may wait to see what happens with the other matter (such as a union grievance), or help to determine whether the case should be dealt with by PEI or another jurisdiction.
Having viewed all of the information above, if you still believe your complaint should be filed with the PEI Human Rights Commission, please proceed to the Complaint Form and Guide.
Did you know?
- Complaints must be made with one year of the alleged discrimination.
- General complaints about unfair actions are not able to be dealt with by the Commission, one of the protected characteristics must be a factor in the action.
- Discrimination related to pregnancy falls under the ground of “Sex.”
- Everyone has the right to use washrooms and changerooms based on their lived gender identity.
- Each situation is unique and must be considered on a case-by-case basis. The Commission does not provide legal advice but does provide information.
- Employers and service providers are required by law to accommodate an individual’s disability-related needs up to the point of undue hardship. This means meeting the needs of individuals up to the point at which they become cost-prohibitive or pose a risk to the health and safety of the person requiring the accommodation or others.