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What is discrimination prevention?
Discrimination prevention aims to increase opportunities for employers to confront and deal with discriminatory behaviour in the workplace before it becomes a poisoned environment. The goal is to increase respect for human rights in the workplace by encouraging employers to ensure the principles of equality and human dignity are realized in the workplace. What are the key principles of the Commission’s Discrimination Prevention Program? The program is based on four key principles: active prevention, strategic partnerships, tailored services and leveraged resources. The Commission believes that - preventing discrimination is far more efficient than reacting to it;
- prevention is best achieved through strategic partnerships with stakeholders;
- the needs of stakeholders must be considered to succeed in prevention-related activities with employers; and
- achieving the ultimate goal of respectful and inclusive workplaces is best realized by leveraging resources with stakeholders.
How will prevention work in concrete terms? The Commission envisions its role as consultative and collaborative. Using quantitative and qualitative information, Commission staff will identify specific organizations for targeted prevention activities, determining problematic areas or issues affecting the workplace. The Commission will consult with an organization’s executive and management teams to identify the key areas of concern and develop a strategy to address those concerns. Commission staff will work in partnership with these employers and their unions to assist them in shaping work environments that foster and support human rights. What is the Commission’s authority or mandate to engage in prevention activities? Section 27 of the Canadian Human Rights Act states that the Commission has a responsibility to foster greater understanding of human rights principles and to discourage and reduce discriminatory practices. The Commission is also responsible for the Employment Equity Act which includes provisions for discrimination prevention. As stated in subsection 42(1), the Commission is responsible for developing and conducting information programs to foster public understanding of the Act. How does prevention equate to savings? Preventing discrimination, as opposed to redressing discrimination through a human rights complaint, can greatly reduce the costs to all parties. The time, financial cost and emotional turmoil of a human rights complaint may be reduced by resolving the dispute earlier, putting in place appropriate policies so employers and employees are aware of their rights and responsibilities, or preventing the dispute altogether. Building respectful relationships is more effective than repairing the broken relationships that inevitably develop when discrimination occurs. How will prevention shape the Commission’s relationship with respondents? Through the Discrimination Prevention Program, the Commission works to ensure that managers are aware of their rights and responsibilities under the Canadian Human Rights Act, and help employers and service providers fulfill their responsibilities related to the following: - preventing discrimination;
- putting in place and supporting human rights-related policies and practices;
- establishing or maintaining appropriate and effective mechanisms to address complaints internally; and
- dealing more effectively and expeditiously with human rights concerns, thereby reducing the number of formal complaints filed internally and with the Commission.
What kind of prevention work has the Commission begun with large employers under federal jurisdiction? The Commission has begun establishing memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with employers under federal jurisdiction. These MOUs focus on large employers that are willing to work with the Commission to prevent discrimination and resolve complaints effectively and quickly. In general, the Commission will consult with the management teams of these organizations to select the main areas of concern and develop strategies to deal with them. Commission staff will work closely with stakeholders on solutions to human rights issues. These solutions could include creating new policies or changing existing ones; sharing best practices through human rights training and information; and developing instruments to assist employers, such as case studies, presentations, posters and interactive teaching tools. An important feature of these MOUs is that the Commission and the other parties involved have agreed to review the employer’s progress every 12 months. Does the Commission have the resources to support such a program? The Discrimination Prevention Program will concentrate initially on key stakeholders. By leveraging resources, the Commission will enhance the impact of its work and show measurable results in the short term. Over time, the Commission will evaluate the Discrimination Prevention Program to assess employers’ demand for prevention initiatives. What are the expected outcomes of prevention work with employers and service providers? The ultimate goal of the Discrimination Prevention Program is to foster a human rights culture in the workplace. Solutions could include developing new policies or revising existing policies, and sharing best practices through human rights training and education. The Commission will also develop various tools—such as case studies, presentations, posters, articles and interactive teaching tools—and make these available on the Commission’s website. As such, not only will the initial target organizations have immediate access to the Commission’s expertise, but any organization interested in developing and delivering its own training material will also be able to avail itself of it. How will the Commission measure the success of prevention? As work with stakeholders progresses, the success of the Discrimination Prevention Program will be measured, in part, by the reduction in the number of complaints filed and the number of complaints requiring an investigation by the Commission. Since discrimination prevention is expected to affect more than the complaints system, however, other measures will be developed as the prevention strategy develops. The Commission will determine, where possible, the extent to which mechanisms internal to respondent organizations meet the human rights principles supported by the Commission. More requests for consultations and presentations would also be a measure of the program’s success.
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