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.
Written by Erin Mitchell with assistance from Alexander Eddy, Articled Clerk in Halifax Beginning September 1, 2025, employers in Nova Scotia will have a new set of obligations surrounding workplace harassment prevention and workplace safety. On September 20, 2024, the Stronger Workplaces for Nova Scotia Act received Royal Assent and became law. This legislation amends […]
read moreOriginally produced for Advocates for Employers of Canada (AEC) on June 5, 2025 By AEC Federal Sector Group under insights. Written by Jessica Bungay and Jenna Smith. The Canada Labour Code (the “Code”) may soon require federally regulated employers to review the wage rates of certain employees under the Equal Treatment Wage Rate Rules. These changes would […]
read moreWritten by Maggie Hughes, Associate and Kaylee Campbell, Articled Clerk Workplace policies are a helpful tool to provide employees with clear expectations. This may include setting parameters around expected employee conduct or outlining procedures to streamline processes. While there are a wide range of policies that any one organization may implement, it is important to […]
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