The Yukon Human Rights Commission

	About Us		Commissioner Profiles
	2008-09 Annual Report (352Kb PDF)		Commission Staff
	2008-09 Annual Report French PDF		Going to Potlatch
	All Living Equally

TAKE NOTE (Disclaimer):
Any reference to the “Unofficial Consolidation” of the Yukon Human Rights Act or Regulations refers to documents which incorporate the new 2009 amendments to the Act and Regulations. When using the legislation for official purposes, individuals should refer to the official original documents of the Acts and Regulations printed and published by the Yukon Queen’s Printer which are available from queens.printer@gov.yk.ca or at the Yukon Public Law Library yukon.law.library@gov.yk.ca and at Yukon public libraries.

History | The Yukon Human Rights Commission was established in 1987 to administer the Yukon Human Rights Act | French PDF (Due to recent changes in the Act, this is an unofficial consolidated version in English and French.) The Commission is independent of government and is made up of three to five Commissioners appointed by the Territorial Legislature.

NEW TIME LIMITATIONS | Time limit for making a human rights complaint has been increased from 6 months to 18 months and the Commission may extend the time limit in certain cases.

Jurisdiction | Employment with the federal government or with areas regulated by federal law is covered by the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Because the Canadian Constitution gives jurisdiction to Canada over “Indians and Lands Reserved for Indians”, the Yukon Human Rights Commission refers complaints against Indian Act bands to the federal Commission, located in Ottawa. Some self-governing First Nations have told YHRC that they have “exclusive” power over human rights for their employees and citizens because of the language of Chapter 13 in the Self-Government Agreements here in the Yukon. This is an area of research that YHRC will be undertaking with First Nations and the Canadian Human Rights Commission.  

Areas Covered | The mandate of the Commission is the promotion of human rights and the resolution of situations of discrimination under the Yukon Human Rights Act. We provide training and educational resources to schools, community groups, employers, service providers and the public. The Yukon Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the areas of:

• Employment
• Services to the public
• Membership in unions and other
  occupational groups
• Tenancy
• Public contracts

PROHIBITED GROUNDS | Under the Yukon Human Rights Act it is illegal to discriminate against people based on the following grounds:

• Ancestry, including colour or race
• National origin
• Ethnic or linguistic background/origin
• Religion or creed
• Age
• Sex, including pregnancy
• Sexual orientation
• Physical or mental disability
• Criminal charges or criminal record
• Political belief, association, or activity
• Marital or family status
• Source of income
• Actual or presumed association with any
  of the grounds listed above

Harassment based on any of the above grounds is also discrimination. Harassment is any behaviour that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, or makes a demand or a sexual solicitation, and that a reasonable person should have known would be unwelcome. It includes a “course of vexatious conduct” or usually more than one action, comment or display occurring over a period of time.