Protection Against Discrimination

The Saskatchewan Human Rights Code sets out prohibited grounds of discrimination. The Code protects you from discrimination based on these prohibited grounds. The prohibited grounds of discrimination are:

• religion or creed
• marital status, such as being single or married
• family status, such as having or not having children
• sex, sexual orientation and gender identity
• pregnancy or pregnancy-related illness
• disability
• age if you are 18 or over
• ancestry, nationality and birthplace
• race or perceived race and colour
• receiving social assistance

Discrimination means experiencing a negative impact based on one of the prohibited grounds. This only applies in certain situations, however. The Code prohibits discrimination when people are:

• shopping in a store, renting a hotel room, eating in a restaurant or using other public services
• renting property, including a place to live
• working or applying for a job
• buying a house or land
• starting a business
• applying to or going to school, including trade schools, universities and colleges
• offering any kind of contract to the public, such as a cell phone contract

Examples of discrimination include:

• a business refusing you service because of your nationality
• a landlord setting conditions like “Adults Only”, “Must be Working”, or “No Single Mothers”
• an employer asking about religion on an application form or in an interview
• being fired because you are pregnant

In some cases, the Code permits discrimination even in the situations mentioned above. For example…

• An apartment building or other housing complex can be only for people of one sex or people over 55.
• Businesses can charge lower rates for children, families or seniors.
• Bathrooms can be for only one sex.
• Schools can require that students be a certain age before starting.
• Employers can require employees to have the qualifications needed for the job.