What Can I Do If I'm Being Harassed at Work in Canada?

Reporting workplace harassment: the steps that apply to you

What you can do depends first on who regulates your workplace, because the complaint process is different in each system. Federally regulated employers (banks, airlines, telecommunications, and other federal undertakings) fall under the Canada Labour Code. Provincially regulated employers in Ontario fall under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and the Human Rights Code. Provincially regulated employers in Alberta fall under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code and the Alberta Human Rights Act. The general sequence below applies across all three, with the differences flagged at each step.

1. Identify the type of harassment and who regulates your employer. Federally, “harassment and violence” is defined broadly under the Canada Labour Code as any action, conduct, or comment (including of a sexual nature) that could reasonably be expected to cause offence, humiliation, or physical or psychological injury (Canada Labour Code, RSC 1985, c L-2, s 122(1)). Ontario and Alberta both regulate workplace harassment through their OHS legislation, and separately through human rights legislation when the harassment is tied to a protected ground such as sex, race, disability, or religion.

2. Document every incident as it happens. Record dates, times, what was said or done, who was present, and how it affected you. This record supports an internal complaint, an OHS complaint, or a human rights application later, and there is no fact-pack source suggesting any of these processes waives the need for evidence.

3. Report internally under your employer’s policy. Employers are legally required to have a harassment policy in each jurisdiction covered here. Federally, employers must develop a workplace harassment and violence prevention policy in consultation with the workplace committee or health and safety representative, and must assess the risk of harassment and violence. In Ontario, employers must prepare a written workplace harassment policy and review it at least annually (Occupational Health and Safety Act, RSO 1990, c O.1, s 32.0.1(1)(b)). In Alberta, employers must develop and implement a violence and harassment prevention plan, including procedures to investigate complaints, take corrective action, and inform the parties of the results (Occupational Health and Safety Code, Alta Reg 87/2009, Part 27, s 390(1)).

4. Use the formal notice or complaint mechanism your jurisdiction provides. Federally regulated employees have the right to file a “notice of occurrence” with their employer if they feel they are a victim or witness of workplace harassment and violence. This starts the employer’s obligation to respond under the Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations.

5. Escalate to the regulator if the employer does not respond appropriately. In Ontario, a worker can file a complaint with the Ministry of Labour if they reported harassment and the employer failed to ensure an appropriate investigation was conducted, or has no harassment policy or training in place. In Alberta, anyone, not only employees, can report unsafe or unhealthy workplace conditions, including harassment, through the OHS Complaints Portal.

6. File a human rights complaint if the harassment is tied to a protected ground. Federally, harassing someone on a prohibited ground of discrimination in matters related to employment is a discriminatory practice under the Canadian Human Rights Act, and a complaint can go to the Canadian Human Rights Commission (RSC 1985, c H-6, s 14(1)(c)). In Ontario, harassment may fall under the Human Rights Code, and an application to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario must generally be filed within one year of the last incident. In Alberta, the Alberta Human Rights Act protects workers from negative or unfair treatment based on protected grounds, and a worker who believes their human rights were denied can file a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission.

7. File a reprisal complaint if you are punished for reporting. In Ontario, a worker who believes they were fired or punished for exercising OHSA rights, including reporting harassment, can file a reprisal complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board. In Alberta, workers have the right to a safe, hazard-free workplace free from bullying, harassment, and discrimination, and cannot be fired for complaining about or refusing unsafe work.

Where the jurisdictions differ at a glance

Job-protected leave in Ontario

Ontario workers needing time off because of domestic or sexual violence against them or their child may be entitled to a job-protected leave of absence under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (SO 2000, c 41, s 49.7). The sources reviewed do not confirm an equivalent statutory leave for this specific circumstance in Alberta or federally, so workers in those jurisdictions should check directly with the applicable labour standards office or their employer’s policies.

What escalation actually looks like

None of these routes are mutually exclusive. A worker can report internally, then file an OHS complaint if the investigation was inadequate, and separately pursue a human rights application if the harassment involved a protected ground, all for the same underlying conduct. What changes by jurisdiction is which government body receives each type of complaint and what deadline applies. Confirming whether your employer is federally or provincially regulated, and which province if provincial, is the first fact that determines every subsequent step.