Important

This is not legal advice! What you are getting here is just general legal information. It is not a substitute for advice from an actual lawyer about your specific situation. If you need legal advice, we urge you to find a lawyer who can help you. 

The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission and what it does

The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission is the agency where you can file a formal complaint saying you’ve been sexually harassed. One law that protects you from discrimination is the Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Act. Sexual harassment under the act is a type of discrimination based on sex. If your complaint falls within the commission’s jurisdiction, it will accept it for processing.

When you think about filing a complaint, you might imagine a process that ends in an adjudicator definitively ruling that what happened to you was either right or wrong. But in reality, that almost never happens. The majority of cases are dismissed or settled through mediation, not by an adjudicator.

We’re not saying don’t make a complaint to the commission, but it’s very unlikely the outcome will be a public acknowledgement of the fact that you were harassed. If you think you would be satisfied with a private settlement, which could involve such things as money to compensate you for the harm you experienced, an apology or a job reference, then having your complaint mediated could be right for you.

Facts about the Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission

  • Between five and 15 people a year file a complaint with the commission saying that they have been discriminated against or harassed on the basis of sex.
  • The majority of complaints to the commission never get decided by adjudication. They are instead settled in mediation, abandoned, withdrawn, or dismissed. The Human Rights Commission panel of adjudicators rules on about five complaints of all types per year. 
  • When the panel of adjudicators decides that someone was discriminated against or harassed, it sometimes gives them an award of money as compensation for financial losses that they suffered, and the hurt and loss of dignity that they experienced. There is technically no limit to the amount of money the commission can award, but it generally awards between $2,000 and $5,000 for emotional harm in cases of sexual harassment.
  • Sources: Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission annual reports, CanLII

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

If you decide to file a complaint with the commission, here are a few things you may get out of the process:

  • It could be a chance to tell the harasser what they did is not okay.
  • You might get back money you lost because of the harassment—maybe you didn’t get a special project or a promotion, or were fired.
  • You might get a reference for a new job.
  • You could request that your workplace make changes that would affect everyone there, not just you, like improving employee policies and training around sexual harassment.
  • It is possible you might get some money to recognize the emotional harm you suffered from the harassment.

How to make a complaint to the commission

First, review Filing a Complaint on the commission’s website. If your complaint seems to be the type the commission can respond to, then complete the form and submit it online. Your complaint will be reviewed, and the intake officer may contact you, likely online, to ask follow-up questions about the events and the effect the harassment had on you. 

You can file a complaint against anybody who is sexually harassing you at work—your employer, a co-worker, a supervisor, a customer, or a contractor. In your application, you can also name the company or organization you were or are working for. Even if your employer is not the one who’s harassing you, they have to protect you from sexual harassment and a harassing environment. See How to report sexual harassment to your employer. 

Will the commission accept your complaint?

  • You have one year from when the harassment happened to file your complaint with the commission. If the harassment happened more than once, the deadline is one year from the last incident of harassment. 
  • You can file a complaint with the commission if you work in Newfoundland and Labrador or if the harassment happened in Newfoundland and Labrador, but not if you work at a federally regulated workplace. See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters.) 
  • You’re covered if you’re temporary or permanent, an independent contractor, or undocumented.
  • If your complaint doesn’t fall under the Human Rights Act, a human rights officer may refer you to another agency for help. 

How mediation works

Once you have filed your complaint, the intake officer might attempt early, or pre-complaint, resolution. The respondent—the person your complaint is about—is not served with your complaint form and instead the human rights officer tries to resolve the case quickly through a phone call or a meeting. This is more likely to be proposed if you must have an ongoing relationship with the respondent. 

If early resolution isn’t appropriate or is unsuccessful, your complaint will be served on the respondent, and the mediation process will begin. The human rights officer is an expert in dispute resolution and human rights law who listen to you and the respondent and work with both of you to come to a settlement. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Human Rights Act.

You and the respondent must sign an Agreement to Participate, which outlines the rules of mediation—like agreeing to be respectful and listen to the other person. The mediation can happen in person, by email, by phone or electronically, individually or together. The mediator is not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. 

Sometimes, though, the two parties can ask the mediator what they might do if they were deciding the case.

For more information

The commission’s website includes a detailed page about the mediation process.

Pros and cons of mediation

  • The mediation process is free.
  • Many people participate in mediation without a lawyer.
  • You are the one to decide what you will accept from the respondent to make up for the harm they caused.
  • More creativity is possible in mediation. For example, you can’t ask for an apology in a hearing.
  • Everything you say is considered confidential, or “without prejudice”—it can’t be used against you later.
  • There is no risk in participating in mediation. If it fails, your complaint may still be referred to investigation or to a hearing, though the executive director can instead decide to dismiss it.
  • Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
  • You can’t share details of any settlement you reach—the outcome is confidential.
  • You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise. 
  • If your complaint is settled through early resolution, financial compensation isn’t a possibility.

What you might ask for

Money to compensate you for:

  • The harm to your dignity, feelings, and self-respect.
  • Lost wages.
  • The cost of counselling sessions you’ve needed and/or money to cover future counselling.

Besides money:

  • An apology.
  • A reference for a new job.
  • A change at the workplace, like moving the harasser or including a sexual harassment section in the policies handbook.
  • Your employer having to take a course about preventing and dealing with sexual harassment. 

What are you likely to get?

Details of settlements reached through conciliation are private. However, we know that in a number of cases the agreement doesn’t involve money at all; instead, the respondents are ordered to do things like take human rights training or create a human rights policy that all managers have to be trained about. There is a cap of $5,000 on monetary awards for emotional harm when sexual harassment cases are decided at a hearing. 

If mediation isn’t successful

When mediation fails, your case may be referred to investigation or to a hearing, but it’s possible to reach a settlement at every stage. If a hearing is scheduled, before it happens a commission-directed mediation process takes place; the mediator will be more actively involved, indicating the possible outcome of a hearing. However, sexual harassment complaints very seldom reach the hearing stage.

Where to get help with the process

Navigating the complaint process can be complicated and stressful. Here are some ways that you might get free or lower-cost advice:

  • You can call the commission. Its role is to help people file their complaint and protect human rights. The commission staff are trained to help you with the process. 
  • Public Legal Information Association of Newfoundland and Labrador is a non-profit organization that offers legal information and support to people who experience sexual harassment. Its services include a lawyer referral service and a legal information line.
  • 211 Newfoundland and Labrador is a free and confidential 24/7 phone and text service that connects individuals to services in the province. You can call or text 2-1-1 to be connected with trained professionals to help find support services.
  • JusticeNet is a not-for-profit service for those whose income is too high to qualify for legal aid but too low to afford regular legal fees. To qualify you must have a net family income under $70,000, or $90,000 if there are three or more people in your family, and be experiencing financial difficulties. Participating lawyers’ reduced rates vary depending on your family size and income.
  • Your workplace union, association, or employee assistance program may be able to help you find legal services or cover part of your legal fees.