Prince Edward Island recently became the third Atlantic Canadian province to expressly include “gender expression” and “gender identity” as protected grounds under the Human Rights Act, RSPEI 1988, c H-12 (the “Act”). The Act was amended by Bill 11, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Act, to include the new protected grounds. Royal assent was granted on December 6, 2013.
Although past claims dealing with discrimination or harassment on these grounds have been accepted under the enumerated ground of “sex,” this legislative amendment reiterates the message that transgender, transsexual, intersex, crossdresser, trans, and other persons who express gender differently than their birth-assigned sex are afforded protection under the Act.
The new grounds are not defined in the Act; however, the Ontario Human Rights Commission defines “gender identity” as being “linked to a person’s sense of self, and the sense of being male or female.” Whereas “gender expression” refers to external attributes, behavior, appearance, dress, etc.
As a result of the Cannabis Act, cannabis was legalized on October 17, 2018. Prior to that, cannabis was regulated under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. There was, however, a legal exemption for the medical use of cannabis. Despite the recent legalization of cannabis, a framework for access to cannabis for medical purposes still exists, but under new regulations passed under the authority of the Cannabis Act.
read moreWhen is it appropriate for an employer to discipline an employee for their activity on social media? This is a question that employers often struggle with, due to the fact that it raises complex and nuanced issues, such as the divide between a person’s private life and their employment responsibilities, and the extent to which […]
read moreIn Temple v. Aviva Insurance Company of Canada,1 the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador determined that the plaintiff, a seasonal worker, was not employed at the date of the motor vehicle accident. As a result, he did not qualify for loss of income payments under Section B of Newfoundland and Labrador’s standard automobile insurance […]
read more
