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General

B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner asks community and rights-related organizations to continue to share their priorities

Vancouver, B.C. – Early responses to a survey from B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner indicate poverty and housing are top concerns for service and rights-related organizations in the province. Of the over 400 organizations that have so far responded to the Commissioner’s “Baseline” survey, approximately a fifth cited either housing and…

May 24, 2023
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General

Commissioner asks B.C. service organizations to weigh in on human rights priorities

Vancouver, B.C. – What are the most pressing human rights issues facing people across B.C. and what can be done about them? B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner is asking organizations working in community service and rights-related fields to identify their human rights priorities and concerns in a new survey. The survey…

May 4, 2023
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Discrimination

Court of Appeal affirms broader protections for parents and caregivers in the workplace

Vancouver, B.C. – On Friday, the B.C. Court of Appeal issued a decision that clarifies the circumstances in which parents and caregivers can seek accommodation in their workplaces. The Court released their decision in Gibraltar Mines Ltd. v. Harvey, a case alleging discrimination against the mother of a young child…

April 24, 2023
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COVID-19

Human Rights Commissioner troubled by end of mask mandates in healthcare settings

Vancouver B.C. – On April 12, 2023, B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender released the following statement on the recent announcement that universal mask mandates in healthcare settings would be eliminated.   “As mask restrictions have been lifted in B.C., I have repeatedly expressed concerns about the human rights implications of…

April 12, 2023
Decolonization

B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner appears in court on mineral rights cases with important implications for…

Vancouver B.C. – B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner will appear in court this week on two cases being heard together, Gitxaala Nation v. Chief Gold Commissioner of B.C. et al. and Ehattesaht First Nation v. His Majesty the King in right of B.C. et al. These cases mark the first legal…

April 3, 2023
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Discrimination

Pay transparency legislation too weak to close gender wage gap

Vancouver B.C. – In reaction to the tabling of pay transparency legislation in the B.C. legislature earlier today, B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner states that while there are some positive elements to the bill, it lacks the approach necessary to make a significant difference on pay equity in the province. B.C.…

March 7, 2023
Hate & racism

Inquiry into hate in the pandemic releases final report calling for targeted action to address…

Note: Translations of the Commissioner’s quotes are available below in the following languages: simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Tagalog, French, Farsi, and Punjabi. Vancouver B.C. – The final report of the Inquiry into hate in the pandemic (the Inquiry) reveals a dramatic spike in hate incidents across B.C. during the COVID-19…

March 7, 2023
Hate & racism

Advisory: Embargoed release and launch event for final report of the Inquiry into hate

Vancouver B.C. – B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner, Kasari Govender, will release the final report of the Inquiry into hate in the pandemic on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at an in-person joint media and community event that is being livestreamed across the province from 10:00am to 11:30am PDT.   Media are invited…

March 3, 2023
Hate & racism

Advisory: Media are invited to receive embargoed release of final report of the Inquiry into…

Vancouver B.C. – B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner, Kasari Govender, will release the final report of the Inquiry into hate in the pandemic on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at an in-person joint media and community event that is being livestreamed across the province from 10:00am to 11:30am PDT. Media are invited…

February 28, 2023
Decolonization

B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner is granted intervenor status in cases that will test B.C.’s Declaration…

Vancouver B.C. – B.C.’s Supreme Court has granted B.C.'s Human Rights Commissioner leave to intervene in two cases—Gitxaala Nation v. Chief Gold Commissioner of B.C. et al. and Ehattesaht First Nation v. His Majesty the King in right of B.C. et al.—that will mark the first legal tests of B.C.'s…

January 6, 2023
Decolonization

B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner applies for intervenor status in cases that could set important precedent…

Vancouver B.C. – BC's Human Rights Commissioner has filed applications for leave to intervene in two cases concerning B.C.'s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act). The Declaration Act was passed by the provincial government in 2019 to affirm the application of the United Nations Declaration on…

December 15, 2022
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Discrimination

Letter to school trustees on human rights concerns with the use of School Liaison Officers…

Vancouver B.C. – B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner issued a letter to the BC School Trustees Association recommending that the use of School Liaison Officers (SLOs) in British Columbian schools be ended by all school districts, unless and until they can demonstrate an evidence-based need for them that cannot be met…

November 25, 2022