Employment Discrimination Lawyer
in Toronto, Ontario
Workplace Discrimination in Ontario Is Illegal. Employees Have the Right to Take Action.
Discrimination at work does not always announce itself. It can surface in a hiring decision, a promotion that never comes, a termination that follows a medical leave, or a workplace that becomes hostile after an employee raises a personal characteristic protected under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Whatever form it takes, workplace discrimination in Ontario is illegal. Employees are not required to accept it, and waiting rarely improves the situation.
At Bune Law, Sezar Bune works directly with employees who have faced workplace discrimination or human rights violations. He provides an honest assessment of the situation, the legal options available, and what pursuing a claim realistically involves.
Human Rights Protection in Ontario Employment: The Legal Framework
Employment discrimination and human rights matters in Ontario are governed primarily by the Ontario Human Rights Code, legislation that prohibits adverse treatment in employment on the basis of protected grounds. Every employee in Ontario is entitled to the protections the Code provides, regardless of the size of the employer, the length of the employment relationship, or the seniority of the role.
The Code applies across all aspects of the employment relationship, from recruitment and hiring through to performance management, compensation, promotions, and termination. Discrimination does not need to be intentional to engage the protections of the Code. What matters is whether a protected characteristic was a factor in the treatment the employee experienced.
Discrimination on any of these grounds, in any aspect of the employment relationship, may give rise to a legal claim under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
What Workplace Discrimination Actually Looks Like
Employment discrimination in Ontario is not always overt. In many cases it is subtle, cumulative, or embedded in decisions that appear neutral on the surface. Each of the following circumstances may give rise to a human rights claim under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Termination connected to a protected characteristic
Being dismissed following a medical leave, a pregnancy, a disability accommodation request, or after disclosing a protected characteristic to an employer.
Failure to accommodate
An employer's failure to meaningfully accommodate a disability, family status obligation, or creed-related need to the point of undue hardship.
Discriminatory hiring or promotion decisions
Being passed over for a role or advancement opportunity where a protected characteristic appears to have been a factor in the decision.
Differential treatment in the workplace
Being subjected to different standards, expectations, or scrutiny than colleagues in comparable roles, in circumstances connected to a protected ground.
A poisoned work environment
A workplace culture that is hostile, demeaning, or unwelcoming on the basis of a protected characteristic, regardless of whether a single incident can be identified.
Harassment connected to a protected ground
Conduct in the workplace linked to a protected characteristic that creates a hostile or intolerable working environment for the employee.
The presence of one or more of these circumstances does not automatically establish a human rights violation, but each warrants careful legal assessment to determine whether a claim exists and what options may be available.
How Ontario Employees Can Pursue a Workplace Discrimination Claim
Employees who have experienced employment discrimination or human rights violations in Ontario may have more than one legal avenue available to them. The appropriate path depends on the specific facts, the nature of the violation, and what the employee is seeking to achieve.
The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario
The Tribunal is the primary forum for human rights claims in Ontario. Applications can be made directly by an employee who believes their rights under the Ontario Human Rights Code have been violated.
The Tribunal has the authority to order remedies including compensation for lost income, compensation for injury to dignity and feelings, and orders requiring the employer to change its practices.
Civil Proceedings
Human rights violations may also be relevant to a civil claim, including where the circumstances of a dismissal involve a human rights dimension. A termination that follows a medical leave, a disability disclosure, or a human rights complaint may give rise to claims beyond a standard employment action.
An employment lawyer can assess which avenue, or combination of avenues, is most appropriate given the specific facts.
Where a termination is connected to a protected characteristic, there may be entitlements beyond the human rights claim. For more information on termination and severance, see:
The Duty to Accommodate: What Ontario Employers Are Required to Consider
The duty to accommodate is one of the most significant, and most frequently misunderstood, obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code. Employers in Ontario have a legal obligation to accommodate employees with needs connected to a protected ground, most commonly disability or family status, to the point of undue hardship.
What this means in practice is that an employer cannot simply decline an accommodation request or terminate an employee because their needs require adjustment. The obligation to explore meaningful accommodation options is a real one, and an employer's failure to engage with it appropriately may give rise to an employment discrimination claim under the Code.
Disability Accommodation
Modified duties, adjusted schedules, remote work arrangements, or other measures that allow an employee with a disability to perform their role.
Family Status Accommodation
Adjustments to hours or scheduling to address childcare or eldercare obligations that cannot reasonably be managed otherwise.
Creed-Related Accommodation
Scheduling adjustments or other measures to address religious observance requirements in the workplace.
Gender Identity and Expression
Workplace policies, facilities, and practices that respect an employee's gender identity and expression, as required under the Code.
When an employer fails to engage meaningfully with an accommodation request, or terminates an employee whose needs require accommodation, that conduct may give rise to a claim under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Why Acting Early Makes a Meaningful Difference
Human rights matters in Ontario are subject to limitation periods. Missing those deadlines can close off options entirely.
The steps taken in the early stages also matter. How an employee responds to employment discrimination, how accommodation requests are documented, and what communications have taken place with the employer can all affect what remains available later.
Speaking with an employment lawyer before responding to the employer, before filing anything, and before making any decisions is the most reliable way to keep your options open.
Why Clients Choose Bune Law for Workplace Discrimination Matters
Sezar Bune has represented employees in human rights and discrimination matters across Toronto, the GTA, and Ontario since 2014, across a wide range of industries, protected grounds, and workplace circumstances.
Sezar Bune is a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Bune Law provides employment discrimination and workplace human rights legal services to employees in Toronto and throughout Ontario.
Experience on Both Sides. Now Entirely on Yours.
Sezar's background includes working in Ontario employment law and human rights law since being called to the bar in 2014. That experience gives him a precise understanding of how employers and their legal teams approach discrimination complaints and accommodation requests — and how to navigate that effectively as a workplace discrimination lawyer on behalf of employees.
You Speak With Sezar Directly.
When you contact Bune Law, you speak with Sezar Bune directly. Not a junior associate, not a paralegal, and not an intake coordinator who passes your file down the line. Every client receives the same standard of thorough, direct attention regardless of the nature or complexity of their matter.
Honest Assessment. No Volume Practice.
Bune Law is not a high-volume referral operation. Sezar takes the time to understand the full picture of what happened, assess the legal implications of your specific circumstances, and give you an honest assessment of your options before you make any decisions. Learn more about Sezar Bune.
Facing discrimination at work in Ontario? Speak with an employment discrimination lawyer at Bune Law to understand your options.
Schedule a ConsultationFrequently Asked Questions
Employment discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code occurs when an employee is treated adversely in the workplace, in hiring, compensation, promotion, working conditions, or termination, and a protected characteristic is a factor in that treatment. Discrimination does not need to be intentional to engage the protections of the Code. Whether a specific situation constitutes employment discrimination under Ontario law is a fact-specific determination that requires careful legal assessment.
The duty to accommodate is an obligation under the Ontario Human Rights Code requiring employers to take meaningful steps to address workplace needs connected to a protected ground, most commonly disability or family status, to the point of undue hardship. What constitutes undue hardship depends on the specific circumstances of the employer and the nature of the accommodation required. An employer's failure to engage meaningfully with an accommodation request may give rise to a human rights claim.
In some circumstances, yes. Understanding how different legal avenues interact is an important part of assessing the full picture following a termination that may involve a human rights dimension. The appropriate approach depends on the specific facts of the situation. An employment lawyer can assess which avenue, or combination of avenues, may best serve the circumstances and the outcome being sought.
Limitation periods in human rights matters depend on the nature of the claim and the specific avenue being pursued. What is consistent across all human rights matters is that acting promptly preserves options. Delays can affect what avenues remain available. Speaking with an employment lawyer as early as possible is the most reliable way to ensure nothing is lost through inaction.
The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario has the authority to order a range of remedies where a violation of the Ontario Human Rights Code is established, including compensation for lost income, compensation for injury to dignity and feelings, and orders requiring changes to employer practices or policies. The remedies available depend on the specific facts of the matter and the nature of the violation. An employment lawyer can provide an assessment of what may be relevant based on the circumstances of your situation.
Speak With a Toronto Employment Discrimination Lawyer
If you have experienced discrimination or a human rights violation in your workplace, or if you are uncertain whether what happened may give rise to a legal claim, the most important step you can take is to get an honest legal assessment before making any further decisions.
Sezar Bune is a Toronto employment discrimination lawyer who has represented employees in human rights and discrimination matters across Ontario since 2014. He understands how employers and their legal teams approach discrimination complaints and accommodation requests, and what it takes to navigate those matters on behalf of employees. Every matter at Bune Law receives direct, senior-level attention from the first conversation through to resolution.
Whether you have faced discriminatory treatment at work, been denied an accommodation, or been dismissed in circumstances connected to a protected characteristic, Bune Law will give you a straight answer about where you stand. Bune Law serves employees in Toronto, the GTA, and throughout Ontario.
This page provides general legal information about Ontario employment law and human rights for educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Every situation is different. Contact Bune Law to discuss the specific facts of your matter.
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Speak directly with Sezar Bune. No junior associates. No handoffs.