Guide Articles Archive

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 Canadian Human Rights Commission and Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and what they do

The Canadian Human Rights Commission deals with discrimination cases. One law that protects you from discrimination is the Canadian Human Rights Act. If you are a federally regulated worker, you can file a formal complaint with the commission saying you’ve been sexually harassed. Sexual harassment under the act is discrimination based on sex.

Your first step is to figure out if the Canadian Human Rights Commission is the right place to start, or if you should go to the human rights body where you live. The commission only deals with cases that happen in federally regulated workplaces. See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters). All other workplaces are handled by the commission or tribunal in your province or territory. Some people think that they can choose between the two or that the provincial commission can be appealed to the federal one—that is not how it works.

The commission helps people to mediate cases or it looks into the case and recommends it to Canadian Human Rights Tribunal for a hearing. If your case goes to the tribunal, the hearing will be less formal than in a court.

When you think about filing a complaint, you might imagine a process that ends in a definitive ruling that what happened to you was either right or wrong. But in reality, that almost never happens. In 2022-23, roughly 100 complaints were accepted by the commission; however, there was only one complaint of sexual harassment decided by a board of inquiry. The same year, a dozen cases were settled through the dispute resolution process.

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 participating in a dispute resolution process could be right for you.

Facts about the Canadian Human Rights Commission

In 2023, the commission accepted about 650 complaints from people who said they had been discriminated against or harassed at work or while getting services from a federally regulated company or a government body.
Twenty percent of complaints to the commission are based on discrimination on the basis of sex.
Of all complaints dealt with by the commission in 2023, 26% were settled in mediation, 16% were dismissed, and 15% were referred to the tribunal for a hearing. The remainder were not moved forward for reasons like being filed too late or having to be dealt with through a union grievance.
About 10% of the 59 cases the tribunal ruled on or decided in 2023 involved sexual harassment.
Sources: Canadian Human Rights Commission 2023 Annual Report, Canadian Human Rights Tribunal 2023 Annual Report.

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’s 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 your job back or get a reference for a new one.
You could request that your workplace make changes that would affect everyone there, not just you, such as improving their employee policies and training around sexual harassment.
It is possible to get some money to recognize the emotional harm you

How to make a complaint to the commission

To start the process of filing a complaint, first check the Am I in the Right Place page of the commission’s website to see if you’re a federally regulated worker and so covered by the Canadian Human Rights Act. You can also learn whether your complaint can be considered by the commission. If it is, complete the online complaint form. You should receive an email confirming the receipt of your complaint within three business days.

Will the commission accept your complaint?

You must be a federally regulated worker to make a complaint to the commission. See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters.)
You have one year from when the harassment happened to file your application. If the harassment happened more than once, the deadline is one year from the last incident of harassment.
Receiving a confirmation email after you submit your complaint form does not necessarily mean it has been accepted. You should receive another email within several weeks that will tell you what will happen next; this could say that the harassment you faced doesn’t relate to a ground of discrimination under the act. In that case, your application will not proceed.
The commission might decide that your complaint would be better dealt with through another process, like filing a grievance with your union.

How mediation works

While both you and the respondent—the person your complaint is about—will be encouraged to participate in mediation, no one can be forced to do this. It involves you and the respondent finding a solution to your complaint—something you both agree to.

The commission will assign you a mediator. How quickly you reach the mediation stage depends on things like how severe the discrimination was and how long it went on.

Mediators are experts 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. They’re not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. Their goal is to try to reach a solution that both parties can approve. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Human Rights Act.

Early on, information will likely be exchanged by email or phone. Formal mediation meetings are almost always done remotely by videoconference; most sessions are scheduled for half a day.

You and the respondent have four months to complete the mediation process. At the end, if you have reached an agreement, you will both sign a settlement agreement. This must be approved by the commission.

For more information

See step four on the commission’s About the Process page for the section on mediation.

Pros and cons of mediation

The mediation process is free.
You don’t need a lawyer to participate in mediation.
You are the one to decide what you will accept from the respondent to make up for the harm they caused.
Reaching a settlement through mediation is faster than a hearing, which could take years to happen.
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.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.

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 letter or a letter confirming your employment.
A change at the workplace, like 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 mediated settlements are private. We do know that in a number of cases the agreements don’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. When money is involved, the types of monetary awards when sexual harassment cases are decided by the tribunal are a guide. In 2023 there were three tribunal decisions that involved sexual harassment; the awards for pain and suffering were between $9,000 and $12,000; there is a cap of $20,000 for such awards.

Beyond mediation

If you and the respondent don’t participate in mediation or the process isn’t successful, a human rights officer reviews and assesses your complaint. This involves carefully considering all the related documents as well as requesting more information and interviewing witnesses, if necessary. At the end of this process, they write a report that recommends what happens next. This can take six months.

You and the respondent then write your responses to the report. The report and your responses are considered by the commission, which decides what will happen to your complaint. This can involve it being dismissed, sent to conciliation, or referred to the tribunal for a hearing. This occurs about 15% of the time. For more information, see steps five and six on the commission’s About the Process page.

Pros and cons of your case being decided at a hearing

The tribunal has expertise in harassment. All it does is handle complaints of discrimination, including harassment.
The tribunal has the power to say that, yes, you were harassed, and that what happened to you was wrong.
The tribunal can order many different remedies. It can award you money. If you were fired or had to quit because of the harassment, it can order your employer to give you your job back or compensate you for lost wages.
If you go to civil court instead of the tribunal, you might end up having to pay the other party’s legal costs if you lose your case. With the tribunal process that can’t happen. You will never end up needing to pay the other party’s legal costs.

It can take years for a hearing to be held.
If you hire a lawyer to represent you, that will be expensive. If you don’t hire a lawyer, as about half the people whose cases are referred to the tribunal don’t, your chances of success are much lower. People who represent themselves at the tribunal are less likely to have their complaints found justified.
Very few people end up being told by the tribunal that they were harassed and what happened to them was wrong—in the last three years, fewer than half a dozen.
Tribunal financial awards for pain and suffering due to sexual harassment are capped at $20,000 and most awards are lower. The amount of an award is affected by how severe the harassment was and how long it went on. And remember, in many tribunal cases, people don’t end up receiving any money at all.
Even if the tribunal awards you money or other things, that doesn’t mean you will necessarily get them. It can be hard to force your employer or the harasser to give you everything the tribunal ordered.
Like in any legal process, your opponents will try to undermine your credibility and make you look bad. You could end up feeling disbelieved and unsupported.
Some psychologists believe it’s a bad idea for people who have experienced sexual harassment to get involved in any legal process. They say legal processes can slow down your ability to heal emotionally from what happened to you, because they keep you focused on the past. These experts believe that it can be healthier for the person who experienced harassment to put the past behind them and focus on their present and their future.

If your case goes ahead

The tribunal’s website includes a guide that covers all the steps involved when a complaint reaches that level.

While theoretically it is possible to proceed with a complaint representing yourself, this is very challenging, time-consuming, and potentially harmful to your mental health. Your chances of success are much greater with legal help.

Here are some ways for find legal help, including some free or low-cost services:

The commission staff provide free help and support to people throughout the process. The level of help the commission staff will be able to give you is decided on a case-by-case basis.
The 211 service in your province or territory can lead you to programs that offer support to people making a legal claim. 211 is a free and confidential 24/7 phone and text service that connects you with trained professionals who can help you find support resources, including legal help. Search online for 211 plus the name of your jurisdiction—for example, 211NB.
Read the “best ways to find a lawyer” section of How to find and work with a lawyer. Note that legal aid is only available to low-income individuals.
Justice Net 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.

Important

The CNESST is an agency of the Travail, de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale ministry. It gives benefits and supports to people who’ve been injured at work. These can include replacement of lost wages, health care (including rehabilitation, counselling, and medications), and, in certain situations, retraining.

Facts about the CNESST Occupational Health and Safety division

The CNESST functions like an insurance provider. Employers pay premiums to CNESST for the people who work for them. As a result, those people are entitled to benefits if they suffer a workplace injury.
About 3.8 million Quebec workers are covered by the CNESST. That represents 92% of the workforce.
Roughly 95,000 workers receive wage-replacement benefits for “occupational injuries” each year.
However, most successful claims are for physical injuries. When it comes to psychological injuries resulting from trauma or harassment, the vast majority of claims are rejected because it’s hard to prove they are occupational injuries.
Claims for psychological injuries total less than 5% of the CNESST compensation budget.
If your claim is rejected, you can appeal, but the process is complicated and takes a long time. About half of appeals about psychological injuries are successful.
Sources: CNESST Statistiques annuelle 2023; “Workers’ Compensation for Work-Related Mental Health Problems: An Overview of Quebec Law,” Jennifer Hava and Jason Stober, in Psychosocial Risks in Labour and Social Security Law; Compensation Guide for Quebec Workers

If you’ve been harmed by sexual harassment at work, you might think the CNESST will help you. For instance:

Maybe after you were harassed, you took time off work and so lost income.
Maybe the harassment damaged your mental health, and you ended up needing to spend money on medication for anxiety or depression.
Maybe the harassment had such an effect on you that you had to leave a male-dominated industry and ended up needing to retrain for a new type of work in a different field.

Those are the kinds of expenses—replacement of lost wages, medication costs, retraining costs—that the CNESST normally does reimburse.

And so it might sound like a good idea to file a claim with the CNESST.

But we need to warn you: The CNESST is very unlikely to assist you.

The CNESST gives you benefits and supports if you have suffered a physical injury at work (rare in cases of sexual harassment) or psychological injury (less rare in sexual harassment cases, but hard to prove). It will only help you if the harm you’ve suffered fits into one of those two categories.

Historically, the CNESST has mostly handled claims related to physical injuries suffered by workers in male-dominated industries like construction and manufacturing, and in uniform occupations like policing and firefighting. If you slip at work and break your ankle, or are struck by a falling object, or are injured in a fire or explosion: that is the kind of situation the CNESST was designed for and has a lot of experience handling.

The CNESST has less experience with mental health harms.

Realistically, it’s likely that if you make a claim as a result of sexual harassment, you’ll be turned down. If you want to pursue the claim after being denied, you’ll need to be prepared to go through an appeal process. Appealing can take a long time, and of the few appeals that are heard, many are denied.

There might be other forums—for example, the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse or civil court—where you could have a better chance of success.

Important

The Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse and what it does

The Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ) is an administrative body that deals with cases of discrimination under the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. Discriminatory harassment, which includes sexual harassment, is prohibited under the charter.

The commission’s job is to resolve complaints. If your complaint falls within its jurisdiction, it will accept it for evaluation. Then it will encourage you to try to settle the complaint through mediation. If that isn’t successful, a further investigation may follow. After this, if the commission finds your complaint is supported by the evidence, it can recommend remedies. If the respondent doesn’t comply, your complaint could be referred to a court or to the Human Rights Tribunal. A commission lawyer may represent you before the tribunal free of charge. If the tribunal decides you were harassed, it may order the other party to make amends in some way.

Facts about the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse

In 2023-24, 2,200 complaints regarding human rights were made to the commission. Just under half of these resulted in files being opened.
In 2023-24, the commission considered 28 human rights complaints from people who said they had been discriminated against on the basis of sex, sexual orientation or gender expression in a work context. These made up 7% of all the new labour cases.
20% of complaints went to mediation in 2023-24; two-thirds were successfully resolved.
A quarter of cases at the commission are closed because they have missed a deadline, been abandoned, or settled outside the commission process.
More than 80% of complaints are processed in 15 months or less.
About 1% of complaints are heard by the Human Rights Tribunal.
Sources: CDPDJ 2023-24 annual report (French), Human Rights Tribunal 2024 annual report (French)

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 your job back or get a reference for a new one.
You could request that your workplace make changes that would affect everyone there, not just you.
It is possible you might get some money to recognize the harm you suffered from the harassment.

How to make a complaint to the commission

You can file a complaint online. First, consult the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse website for detailed information about the process of applying and how complaints are dealt with.

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 application?

You should file your complaint as soon as possible. The commission will refuse your case if the harassment took place more than three years ago.
You can file a complaint with the commission if you work in Quebec or if the harassment happened in Quebec, but not if you work at a federally regulated workplace. See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters.)
If you’re unionized, you must make your complaint through your union. See Working with your union. You’re covered if you are non-unionized, temporary or permanent, a volunteer, an intern, an independent contractor, a tourist, or undocumented.
Once the commission receives your complaint, it will be assessed within about four weeks. Fewer than 50% of complaints result in a file being opened.

Important

It is common for the commission to dismiss complaints. Your complaint could be dismissed because it was filed too late, because it’s outside of the tribunal’s jurisdiction, because it is already being handled in another forum, or because the commission believes you have no reasonable chance of succeeding. It’s important to be careful when you’re filling out your complaint, so it doesn’t end up just getting dismissed.

How mediation works

If the commission accepts your complaint, you and the respondent—the person your complaint is about—will be strongly encouraged to participate in mediation. This involves you and the respondent finding a solution to your complaint—something you both agree to.

The commission will assign you a mediator, who will first meet with you and the respondent separately to explain how the process works. Then they bring everyone together in a respectful, informal environment where you and the respondent can explain your point of view on what happened. The goal is to reach an agreement that satisfies both parties. You may bring a lawyer or other support person to this meeting, but they can only offer you advice, not advocate for you.

Mediators are experts 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. They’re not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.

For more information

To learn more about what will happen during mediation, read the commission’s description of the process and its brochure on the subject.

Pros and cons of mediation

The mediation process is free.
You don’t need a lawyer to participate.
You are the one to decide what you will accept from the respondent to make up for the harm they caused.
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 could go on to the investigation stage.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.

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 letter or a letter confirming your employment.
A change at the workplace, like 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 mediation 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.

Beyond mediation

If you and the respondent can’t come to an agreement through mediation, the next stage is investigation. First, the investigator reviews relevant documents and gathers information by interviewing the parties involved and any witnesses. You may have a lawyer or other supportive person assist you. At any time during this phase you and the respondent can choose to settle the complaint or close the case.

The investigator writes a report summarizing the evidence. They share this with you and the respondent and submit it to the complaints committee, which is made up of three commissioners.

If the committee finds that your complaint is supported by the evidence, it determines the appropriate remedy or remedies. These could include financial compensation and/or requiring the respondent to put an end to the behaviour. When a respondent doesn’t comply, the case could be referred to the courts or the Human Rights Tribunal for enforcement. If this occurs, the commission may represent you for free, though very few cases reach this point: in 2023-24, only 10 were determined by a court.

For more information

The commission’s website includes a section that outlines the investigation process.

Legal help

Having legal advice during the commission process could be helpful. Here are some places that offer free or lower-cost legal services:

You may be eligible for legal aid (Commission des services juridiques) if your income is low. In 2025, a single person’s gross income had to be under $29,300 to be able to access this service.
The Quebec Help and Information Center on Sexual Harassment in the Workplace (GAIHST) supports people who have been subjected to sexual and/or psychological harassment at work. It can provide advice and, in certain circumstances, support or assistance with legal claims.
Justice Net 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.

For advice on hiring a lawyer, see How to find and work with a lawyer.

Important

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.

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.

Important

WorkplaceNL is an independent Newfoundland and Labrador governmental agency. It gives benefits and supports to people who’ve been injured at work. These can include replacement of lost wages, health care (including rehabilitation, counselling, and medications), and, in extreme situations, retraining.

Facts about WorkplaceNL

WorkplaceNL functions like an insurance provider. Employers pay premiums to WorkplaceNL for the people who work for them. As a result, those people are entitled to benefits if they suffer a workplace injury.
More than 95% of Newfoundland and Labrador workers are covered by WorkplaceNL.
Every year, about 4,300 WorkplaceNL claims are filed. Most claims are for physical injuries.
WorkplaceNL accepts more than 90% of claims.
Sources: Workplace NL, Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, , WorkplaceNL Annual Performance Report 2023, WHSCRD Annual Performance Report 2022-23

If you’ve been harmed by sexual harassment at work, you might think WorkplaceNL will help you.

Maybe after you were harassed, you took time off work and so lost income.
Maybe the harassment damaged your mental health, and you ended up needing to spend money on medication for anxiety or depression.
Maybe the harassment had such an effect on you that you had to leave an industry and ended up needing to retrain for a new type of work in a different field.

Those are the kinds of expenses—replacement of lost wages, medication costs, retraining costs—that WorkplaceNL often covers.

However, historically, WorkplaceNL has mostly handled claims related to physical injuries suffered by workers in male-dominated fields like construction, manufacturing, and uniform occupations like policing and firefighting. If you slip at work and break your ankle, or are struck by a falling object, or are injured in a fire or explosion: that is the kind of situation WorkplaceNL was designed for and has a lot of experience handling.

But if the injury is to your mental health, WorkplaceNL coverage currently “does not include stress other than stress that is a reaction to a traumatic event or events.” The agency has been considering expanding its policy to include chronic stress from workplace violence and harassment, but as of early 2025, this had not happened. So realistically, unless or until this change occurs, there is little chance of a claim for harm due to sexual harassment would be successful.

Check the WorkplaceNL website regularly to see if the policy has changed.

In the meantime, your options could include making a complaint to the Human Rights Commission or taking legal action.

Important

The PEI Human Rights Commission and what it does

If you’ve been sexually harassed, you may be able to file a formal complaint with the PEI Human Rights Commission. One law that protects you from discrimination is the PEI Human Rights Act. Sexual harassment under the act can constitute discrimination based on sex. The commission will review your complaint and assess whether it should be accepted. If it is, commission staff encourage parties to reach a settlement through dispute resolution; if that’s not successful, they may investigate the issues. The commission staff may recommend a complaint for a hearing; when that happens, the case will then go to the PEI Human Rights Commission Panel.

When you think about filing a complaint, you might imagine a process that ends in a definitive ruling that what happened to you was either right or wrong. But in reality, that almost never happens. Complaints are much more likely to closed at the commission level than referred to the human rights panel for a decision

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 participating in mediation process could be right for you.

Facts about the PEI Human Rights Commission

In 2023-24, 7% of complaints filed with the commission were by people saying that they have been sexually harassed.
The majority of complaints to the commission never get decided by the commission’s Human Rights Panel. In 2023-24, one complaint involving sexual harassment was referred to the panel.
About 25% to 30% of complaints are resolved through some type of settlement, including mediation.
Between 2013 and 2023, the panel only ruled on one complaint involving sexual harassment; it found in favour of the person who filed the complaint.
Sources: PEI Human Rights Commission, PEI Human Rights Commission Annual Report 2022-23.

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:

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

To start the process of filing a complaint, first check the Am I in the Right Place page of the commission’s website to see if your complaint is covered by the PEI Human Rights Act or call the commission (902-368-4180)—staff can explain what the law is and how it might apply to your situation. If it seems that you have been discriminated against, then complete the complaint form, which is included in the Complaint Form and Guide document on the commission’s website. Once you’ve filed a complaint, a commission staff member might contact you for more information or to clarify what you’ve said on the form.

You can file an application 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 PEI or if the harassment happened in PEI, 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 unionized or non-unionized, temporary or permanent, an independent contractor, or undocumented.
In 2023-24 about 30% of cases were dismissed by the commission without a finding of discrimination for reasons such as they’re not being in the commission’s jurisdiction or the deadline for filing had passed.

How mediation works

If both you and the respondent—the person your complaint is about—agree, you can take part in mediation to try to settle your complaint. This process might involve the mediator working with you and the respondent individually to assist you both to work toward a settlement by phone, email or in person. The mediator can also use a more formal, structured process. It is a way of encouraging the parties to settle their dispute without a formal investigation taking place, which could result in your complaint being dismissed.

Mediators are experts 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. They’re not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Human Rights Act.

Early settlement is encouraged but mediation can happen at any time before there’s a decision by the Human Rights Panel after a hearing.

For more information

To learn more about what will happen during mediation, read the commission’s description of mediation and settlement.

Pros and cons of mediation

The mediation process is free.
You don’t need a lawyer to participate.
You are the one to decide what you will accept from the respondent to make up for the harm they caused.
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 could go on to the investigation stage.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.
Your complaint can be dismissed if you refuse what commission staff believe is a fair and reasonable settlement offer.

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 letter.
A change at the workplace, like including a sexual harassment section in the policies handbook
Your employer having to participate in an education session about preventing and dealing with sexual harassment.

What are you likely to get?

Details of mediated settlements are private. However, we know that in a number of cases agreements don’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 would have to be trained about. Where there is a financial settlement for emotional harm, it is usually quite modest: an award above $10,000 is uncommon.

If early mediation isn’t successful

If you and the respondent aren’t able to reach a settlement, the respondent may ask the executive director to rule on whether the settlement offer they’ve made is fair and reasonable. When the executive director says it is, cases are closed. Otherwise, the file moves to the investigation stage. This involves your and the respondent’s documents being considered; witnesses could also be questioned. After investigation, a complaint might be referred to the panel, although this hardly ever happens with sexual harassment cases.

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 contact the commission. Staff are trained to help you with the process.
RISE provides up to four hours of free legal advice and support to eligible people who have experienced sexual violence, intimate partner violence or workplace sexual harassment.
211 PEI 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.

Important

The Workers Compensation Board of PEI is an independent Prince Edward Island organization funded by Island employers that gives benefits and supports to people who’ve been injured at work. These can include replacement of lost wages, health care (including rehabilitation, counselling, and medications), and, in extreme situations, retraining.

Facts about the Workers Compensation Board

The WCB functions like an insurance provider. Employers pay premiums to the WCB for the people who work for them. As a result, those people are entitled to benefits if they suffer a workplace injury.
About 95% of workers are covered by the WCB because most workplaces are required by law to register with the board.
Every year, the WCB assesses about 1,700 claims. It approves 90% of those claims.
Since January 2025 the WCB covers psychological injuries due to work-related harassment and bullying.
Before the definition of psychological injury was expanded in 2025, one percent of all claims accepted were for this type of harm.
Sources: Workers Compensation Board of PEI Annual Report 2023, Workers Compensation Board of PEI, Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada

If you’ve been harmed by sexual harassment at work, you might think the WCB will help you.

Maybe after you were harassed, you took time off work and so lost income.
Maybe the harassment damaged your mental health, and you ended up needing to spend money on medication for anxiety or depression.
Maybe the harassment had such an effect on you that you had to leave an industry and ended up needing to retrain for a new type of work in a different field.

Those are the kinds of expenses—replacement of lost wages, medication costs, retraining costs—that the WCB often covers.

Historically, the WCB has mostly handled claims related to physical injuries suffered by workers in male-dominated fields like construction, manufacturing, and uniform occupations like policing and firefighting. If you slip at work and break your ankle, or are struck by a falling object, or are injured in a fire or explosion: that is the kind of situation the WCB was designed for and has a lot of experience handling.

Since January 2025 the WCB has accepted claims for psychological injuries caused by workplace harassment. But at this writing not enough time has passed for us to say how likely that kind of claim would be successful. In many other jurisdictions they often aren’t accepted.

Psychological injury claims

The WCB defines ‘harassment’ as “inappropriate sexual conduct…including, but not limited to, sexual solicitations or advances, sexually suggestive remarks, jokes or gestures, circulating or sharing inappropriate images, or unwanted physical contact.” It’s most likely that a harasser will be a co-worker, though cases involving clients or members of the public might be accepted.

To make a claim you need a diagnosis from a psychiatrist or psychologist based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders-5. Examples include trauma disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. The reaction to the harmful behaviour must be “acute.”

The WCB won’t cover every kind of mental stress that arises at work. If you develop a mental health condition caused by your employer making changes to your shifts or other working conditions, for example, or firing you, or due to interpersonal conflicts that don’t involve harassment, you aren’t eligible to file a claim.

How to make a WCB claim

You can begin filing your claim on the WCB website. Claims must be made within six months by reporting to your employer, health-care provider or the WCB.

For more information

The WCB’s website includes a page covering frequently asked questions about psychological injuries due to work-related harassment.

Legal help

Representing yourself is possible when first making a claim. But if your claim is denied, appealing is more complicated. Here are some places that offer free or lower-cost legal services:

The RISE program provides legal supports to PEI workers who have experienced workplace sexual harassment. This includes free legal advice from a lawyer for up to four hours.
The Office of the Worker Advisor is an independent government agency that can provide information, advice, and representation to you throughout the WCB process. It also represents workers who appeal to the Workers Compensation Appeal Tribunal.
Community Legal Information can help you understand the law and navigate the justice system. If it thinks you need to speak to a lawyer, it will refer you to one for a 45-minute consultation. The cost of this consultation is $25.
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.

For advice on hiring a lawyer, see How to find and work with a lawyer.

Important

The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission and what it does

The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission is the agency that receives and investigates discrimination cases. One law that protects you from discrimination is the Nova Scotia Human Rights Act. Sexual harassment under the act can constitute discrimination based on sex.

If your complaint falls within the commission’s jurisdiction, it will accept it for investigation.

When you think about filing a complaint, you might imagine a process that ends in a definitive ruling that what happened to you was either right or wrong. In Nova Scotia that decision would be made by a board of inquiry. But in reality, that almost never happens. In 2022-23, roughly 100 complaints were accepted by the commission; however, there was only one complaint of sexual harassment decided by a board of inquiry. The same year, a dozen cases were settled through the dispute resolution process.

Facts about the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission

In the last few years up to 10 people annually have filed a complaint with the commission saying that they have been discriminated against on the basis of sexual harassment.
The majority of complaints to the commission are closed for reasons such as there being no significant issue or the complaint being without merit.
Between 2020 and 2023, a board of inquiry ruled on two complaints that involved sexual harassment. One was still ongoing; in the other case, the complainant was awarded $7,500 for the harassment he experienced.
On average, it takes more than two years from the time someone first contacts the commission to the point at which the matter is concluded.
Source: Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission Annual Report 2022-23

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

The commission recommends that you first complete its complaint self-assessment form. If your answers indicate that your complaint might be within the commission’s jurisdiction, the next step is reviewing the online guide to the dispute resolution process, then filling out the inquiry form and submitting it by email to [email protected]. If you have questions, you can call 902-424-4111.

The commission will respond to your inquiry form by asking for more information; or by telling you that it has not been accepted and explaining the reason for this decision; or by creating a complaint form that you sign, which means your complaint will move to the investigation stage.

Will the commission accept your application?

You have one year from when the harassment happened to file your application 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 Nova Scotia or if the harassment happened in Nova Scotia, but not if you work at a federally regulated workplaces See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters.)
If you’re unionized, you must make your complaint through your union. You’re covered if you’re non-unionized, temporary or permanent, an independent contractor, or undocumented.
After you submit your application, the commission might decide that the harassment you faced doesn’t relate to a ground of discrimination under the code. In that case, your application will not proceed.

How mediation works

The commission can encourage mediation even before a complaint has been formalized—for example, in situations where the complainant could be facing immediate consequences of discrimination.

After a complaint has been accepted and the respondent—the person your complaint is about—has been notified, a human rights officer will conduct an investigation, and if they find that a discrimination has occurred, a date for a resolution conference will be set. A resolution conference is how the commission tries to settle your case by you and the complainant coming to an agreement through mediation. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Human Rights Act.

Resolution conferences are scheduled in all commission cases. They can take up to a day and usually are held at a commission office; these are located in Halifax, Sydney, and Digby,

The human rights officer will mediate the case. They are a neutral party who will not take a side before, during, or after the process. They work with both sides to try to find a resolution that works for everyone. You can provide information or show documents to a mediator and request they keep them confidential from the other side. When a settlement agreement is reached, it must be approved by the commissioners.

The commission can help the parties mediate at any point up to a hearing before a board of inquiry.

For more information

The commission’s website includes a detailed guide to the dispute resolution 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.
Reaching a settlement is usually faster than a hearing, which could take years to happen.
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, you still may have the option of a hearing.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.

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 letter or a letter confirming your employment.
A change at the workplace, like 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 mediated settlements are private. However, we know that in a number of those cases the agreement didn’t involve money at all; instead, the respondents were ordered to do things like take human rights training or create a human rights policy that all managers would have to be trained about.

Beyond mediation

When mediation in a resolution conference is unsuccessful, the commissioners will decide whether to refer your case to a board of inquiry for a hearing that is much like a civil trial. If this happens, the chief judge of the provincial court appoints one to three people to hear the case. It is very unlikely that your case would reach this stage—some years only one case is decided.

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 and talk to a human rights officer before making a complaint. The commission staff are trained to help you with the process.
The Dalhousie Legal Aid Service is a community-based office in Nova Scotia and a clinical program for law students at the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University. The DLAS serves low-income individuals. It has experience filing complaints with the commission and can help guide you through the process.
The Halifax Workers’ Action Centre is an organization whose aim is to improve conditions for low-wage and marginalized workers. If your income is low, WAC offers free legal advice, which may help you regarding filing a complaint with the commission.
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.
211 Nova Scotia 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.
Your workplace union, association, or employee assistance program may be able to help you find legal services or cover part of your legal fees.

Important

The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board is an independent Ontario governmental agency that operates “at arm’s length” from the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development. It gives benefits and supports to people who’ve been injured at work. These can include replacement of lost wages, health care (including rehabilitation, counselling, and medications), and, in extreme situations, retraining.

Facts about the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board

The WSIB functions like an insurance provider. Employers pay premiums to the WSIB for the people who work for them. As a result, those people are entitled to benefits if they suffer a workplace injury.
About 75% of Ontario workers are covered by the WSIB.
Every year, approximately 250,000 WSIB claims are reported. The WSIB approves about 75% of those claims.
However, most successful claims are for physical injuries. When it comes to mental stress resulting from trauma or harassment, more than 90% of claims are rejected.
In 2023, fewer than100 chronic mental stress claims were approved.
If your WSIB claim is rejected, you can file an appeal, but most appeals are unsuccessful.
Sources: WSIB Health and Safety Statistics, Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, Toronto Star

If you’ve been harmed by sexual harassment at work, you might think the WSIB will help you.

Maybe after you were harassed, you took time off work and so lost income.
Maybe the harassment damaged your mental health, and you ended up needing to spend money on medication for anxiety or depression.
Maybe the harassment had such an effect on you that you had to leave an industry and ended up needing to retrain for a new type of work in a different field.

Those are the kinds of expenses—replacement of lost wages, medication costs, retraining costs—that the WSIB often covers.

However, historically, the WSIB has mostly handled claims related to physical injuries suffered by workers in male-dominated fields like construction, manufacturing, and uniform occupations like policing and firefighting. If you slip at work and break your ankle, or are struck by a falling object, or are injured in a fire or explosion: that is the kind of situation the WSIB was designed for and has a lot of experience handling.

The WSIB has less experience with mental health harms. It has only accepted claims for chronic mental stress with no physical injury since 2018. And for these types of claims, the WSIB requires you to prove that your workplace was the “predominant” cause of your injury, whereas proof for other claims is only that the workplace was a “substantial” cause. That higher standard, worker advocates say, is another reason, in addition to the established WSIB culture, why so few harassment claims to the WSIB are successful.

Though we’re not saying don’t bother applying for WSIB benefits, you should be aware that it’s unlikely your claim will be successful. If you want to pursue the claim after being denied, you’ll need to be prepared to go through an appeal process. Appealing can take a long time, and, of the few appeals that are heard, many are denied.

Important

Legally, if your employer has WSIB coverage, they are required to report any injuries that occur in their workplace. But really most are unlikely to do this in sexual harassment cases, because they often deny the harassment occurred.

Important

If you want to apply for disability insurance through your workplace provider, the insurer may require you to apply to the WSIB first, and appeal if you are turned down.

Pros and cons of going to the WSIB

It isn’t expensive or very complicated.
WSIB benefits can be generous. Wage replacement is up to 85% of your net salary.
You submit your claim directly to WSIB. No need to wait for your employer to investigate.
Representing yourself is possible when first making a claim. But if your claim is denied, appealing is more complicated. There may be some legal resources to help if you still want to represent yourself.

You can’t apply to the WSIB secretly. Your employer will know about your claim, which means they will have information about your private health circumstances.
Your employer will have the opportunity to dispute your claim and it’s very likely they will do this, in which case proving your case will be more difficult.
The WSIB has an extremely high rate of denying chronic and traumatic mental stress claims.
If the WSIB rejects your claim and you appeal, the appeal process may go on for years.
Your employer will be updated about any changes to your claim. That means they may continue to know about your personal health situation, even if you don’t work for them anymore.
The WSIB doesn’t investigate or adjudicate whether you were sexually harassed. If you are looking for someone to tell you that you were sexually harassed, and to punish the harasser or your employer for allowing the harassment, the WSIB won’t give you that.
To make a claim, you will need a medical professional to say that you’ve suffered an injury. If you don’t have easy access to a medical professional who will do this, making a claim will be harder.

Psychological injury claims

The WSIB awards benefits due to the injury you sustained, which in your case would be damaged mental health. This requires a diagnosis of conditions described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5, like depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, adjustment disorder, or anxiety.

Under WSIB guidelines there are two categories of mental health injuries:

Chronic mental stress covers injuries from ongoing events where the injury develops over time. This might apply to a case where you are repeatedly harassed by a co-worker.

Traumatic mental stress results from a specific traumatic event, such as harassment that includes physical violence, the threat of physical violence, or a life-threatening situation. The incident itself is the source of the trauma. While TMS claims are often based on a single traumatic event, the WSIB can also consider multiple incidents if the “cumulative impact” is traumatic. This means that, if events are looked at on their own and aren’t traumatic, they may be considered traumatic when looked at together. It’s not likely this type of claim fits your situation.

The WSIB won’t cover every kind of mental stress that arises at work. If you develop a mental health condition caused by your employer making changes to your shifts or other working conditions, for example, or firing you, or due to interpersonal conflicts that don’t involve harassment, you aren’t eligible to file a claim.

Historically, the WSIB is more likely to accept traumatic mental stress claims than chronic mental stress claims. But the acceptance rate is low for both.

How to make a WSIB application

First, you must decide if filing a claim with the WSIB is the right choice for you. If you choose to go to the WSIB, read Submitting an Injury or Illness Report. Submit the completed Form 6 (Worker’s Report of Injury/Disease) electronically by following the directions on the WSIB website.

To file a claim with the WSIB, you must be employed in a business or industry that is covered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act. About 75% of workers in Ontario are included under the act.

For more information

If you do choose to go to the WSIB, you’ll find more information about work-related mental stress injuries and the application process on the website.

Legal help

Representing yourself is possible when first making a claim. But if your claim is denied, appealing is more complicated. Here are some places that offer free or lower-cost legal services:

ProBono Ontario’s legal advice hotline (1-855-255-7256) offers low-income, non-unionized callers up to 30 minutes of free legal advice.
You can get a free 30-minute consultation with a lawyer or paralegal through the Law Society Referral Service. Request a referral online and LSRS will provide you with the name of someone who can help you identify your legal options.
The Office of the Worker Adviser is an independent governmental agency that provides free and confidential services about workplace injuries and compensation to non-unionized workers. This office can provide information, advice, and help with representation to you throughout the WSIB process. It also has an extensive network of supports for injured workers and may be able to direct you to other organizations that can help.
There are several specialty Legal Aid Ontario clinics that provide free services to low-income individuals. If you’re below the financial threshold, which in 2024 was just under $23,000 for a single person, these may provide you with representation or legal advice:
- Industrial Accident Victims Group of Ontario (IAVGO) is particularly concerned about migrant workers and offers services in a number of languages.
- Injured Workers Community Legal Clinic focuses on WSIB matters.
- Workers’ Health and Safety Legal Clinic helps low-income, non-unionized workers with WSIB, health and safety, human rights, and employment reprisal cases.
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.

For advice on hiring a lawyer, see How to find and work with a lawyer.

Important

The Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia is an independent Nova Scotia governmental agency that gives benefits and supports to people who’ve been injured at work. These can include replacement of lost wages, health care (including rehabilitation, counselling, and medications), and, in extreme situations, retraining.

Facts about the Workers’ Compensation Board

The WCB functions like an insurance provider. Employers pay premiums to the WCB for the people who work for them. As a result, those people are entitled to benefits if they suffer a workplace injury.
About 75% of Nova Scotia workers are covered by the WCB.
Every year, roughly 20,500 claims are registered. Of these, about 25% are claims that involve time lost from work.
The Office of the Worker Counsellor represents over 70% of people appealing WCB decisions to the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal.
Since September 2024 the WCB has allowed claims for “gradual onset psychological injury.” This can include workplace bullying and harassment.
Sources: Workers’ Compensation Board, Workers’ Compensation Board Annual Report 2023, Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal Annual Report 2024, Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, Office of the Worker Counsellor

If you’ve been harmed by sexual harassment at work, you might think the WCB will help you.

Maybe after you were harassed, you took time off work and so lost income.
Maybe the harassment damaged your mental health, and you ended up needing to spend money on medication for anxiety or depression.
Maybe the harassment had such an effect on you that you had to leave an industry and ended up needing to retrain for a new type of work in a different field.

Those are the kinds of expenses—replacement of lost wages, medication costs, retraining costs—that the WCB often covers.

However, historically, the WCB has mostly handled claims related to physical injuries suffered by workers in male-dominated fields like construction, manufacturing, and uniform occupations like policing and firefighting. If you slip at work and break your ankle, or are struck by a falling object, or are injured in a fire or explosion: that is the kind of situation the WCB was designed for and has a lot of experience handling.

For many years, the only kind of harm to mental health the Nova Scotia Workers’ Compensation Act covered was “traumatic psychological injury,” which is defined as an “acute reaction to a traumatic event.” Close to two-thirds of the people receiving benefits for work time lost due to this type of injury were first responders who experienced post-traumatic stress disorder.

In September 2024 the act was amended to include coverage of “gradual onset or traumatic mental stress.” This is defined as a harm “wholly or predominantly caused by one or more significant workplace stressors or a cumulative series of significant workplace stressors.” When we were writing this it wasn’t yet clear how likely a claim for harm because of sexual harassment would be successful.

Important

Legally, if your employer is a WCB member, they are required to report any injuries that occur in their workplace. But really most are unlikely to do this in sexual harassment cases, because they often deny the harassment occurred or that it caused real harm.

Important

If you want to apply for disability insurance through your workplace provider, the insurer may require you to apply to the WCB first, and appeal if you are turned down.

Pros and cons of going to the WCB

It isn’t expensive.
WCB benefits can be generous. Wage replacement is up to 85% of your net salary.
If the WCB asks for a psychological assessment, it will cover the cost of an evaluation by a registered psychologist or psychiatrist.

The WCB doesn’t investigate or adjudicate whether you were sexually harassed. If you are looking for someone to tell you that you were sexually harassed, and to punish the harasser or your employer for allowing the harassment, the WCB won’t give you that.
If the WCB rejects your claim and you appeal, the appeal process may be lengthy.
Usually, you and your employer must complete an injury report together, although it is sometimes possible to open a claim on your own.
Your employer will have the opportunity to dispute your claim. It’s very likely they will do this, in which case proving your case will be more difficult.
Your employer will be updated about any changes to your claim. That means they will continue to know about your personal health situation, even if you don’t work for them anymore.

Gradual onset psychological injury claims

The WCB awards benefits due to the injury you sustained, which in your case would be damaged mental health. Under the WCB guidelines, to qualify for coverage:

your injury must have been “wholly or predominantly” caused by “a significant workplace stressor” due to bullying or harassment
a registered psychiatrist or psychologist has diagnosed the injury, which could include anxiety or depression

How to make a WCB application

First, you should complete WCB’s self-assessment to determine whether your claim might be accepted. If it seems as if you could be eligible for coverage, call 1-833-491-8889 to speak to a WCB Client Care Navigator.

For more information

See the Gradual Onset Psychological Injury page on the WCB’s website. It includes frequently asked questions about gradual onset psychological injury claims.

Legal help

Through Legal Info Nova Scotia you can contact legally trained counsellors who provide free, practical information about Nova Scotia law. It also offers lawyer referral services for a small fee. The Lawyer Referral Service can put you in contact with a lawyer who will offer a 30-minute initial consultation for a fee of no more than $20.
If your claim was denied and you want to pursue an appeal, the Workers’ Advisers Program offers free legal services for eligible applicants. The government-funded WAP is independent from the WCB. It can help you appeal a WCB or Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal decision. It will assess your case and only represent you if an adviser thinks you are likely to win.
The Office of the Worker Counsellor, a project of the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour, provides free assistance to people dealing with the workers compensation system in the province.
Nova Scotia Legal Aid offers low-income individuals advice and support but not representation for WCB-related issues.
Justice Net 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.

For advice on hiring a lawyer, see How to find and work with a lawyer.

Important

The Manitoba Human Rights Commission and what it does

If you’ve been sexually harassed, you may be able file a formal complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission. One law that protects you from discrimination is the provincial Human Rights Code. Sexual harassment under the act can constitute discrimination based on sex.

The commission will review your complaint and assess whether it should be accepted. Commission staff encourage parties to reach a settlement through mediation; if that’s not successful, they may investigate the issues. If the commission staff recommends a complaint for a hearing, the case will then go to the Human Rights Adjudication Panel.

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. In 2022, only one complaint was closed this way. The greatest number of cases are settled through mediation.

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 dealt with in a conciliation process could be right for you.

Facts about the Manitoba Human Rights Commission

Every year, the commission registers between 200 and 300 complaints; 30 to 40 of those are by people who say they have been discriminated against or harassed on the basis of sex.
Roughly 15% of complaints are resolved through mediation at some step in the process.
About 60% of complaints are dismissed before being investigated, in many cases because they are found not to be in the commission’s jurisdiction.
Many complaints are closed after being investigated because they are withdrawn or abandoned.
The wait time for the commission to investigate a complaint of discrimination or harassment is about 24 months.
Source: Manitoba Human Rights Commission Annual Report 2022

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’s 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, such as improving their employee policies and training around sexual harassment.
It is possible to get some money to recognize the emotional harm you suffered from the harassment.

How to make a complaint to the commission

If you believe you have been sexually harassed, you should first read the commission’s Guide to Filing a Complaint. The next step is speaking to or emailing a human rights officer at the commission (1-888-884-8681; [email protected]), who will ask you to fill out a questionnaire and provide a written statement. In this you will describe the events, the effect the harassment had on you, the remedies you are asking for, and whether you are interested in mediation.

You can arrange an in-person appointment at the commission’s Winnipeg or Brandon office.

If your information indicates that the Human Rights Code applies to your situation, then the commission will complete a complaint form that you must sign.

Will the commission accept my 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 Manitoba or if the harassment happened in Manitoba, but not if you work at a federally regulated workplace. See Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters.)
If you’re unionized, you must make your complaint through your union. You’re covered if you’re non-unionized, temporary or permanent, an independent contractor, or undocumented.
If your complaint doesn’t fall under the Human Rights Code, a human rights officer will refer you to another agency for help.

How mediation works

Mediation is the process of trying to settle your case by coming to an agreement with the respondent—the person your complaint is about. Its purpose is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the code but a way of encouraging the parties to settle their dispute instead of continuing with the process. Mediation is optional, but highly encouraged by the commission at every stage, including even before a complaint is registered.

Neither party chooses the mediator. The commission will assign one to your case. Mediators are human rights experts who listen to you and the respondent and work with both of you to come to a settlement. They are expected to behave neutrally: They’re not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. However, they can provide guidance, including sharing information about previous settlements and the remedies involved.

How the mediation will go depends on the type and complexity of the complaint. It may involve the mediator talking to you and the respondent in separate telephone calls; it could require in-person meetings. Usually, the parties have up to 60 days to try to reach an agreement.

It’s important to know that if you turn down a settlement that the executive director of the commission thinks is reasonable, you will be given one final chance to accept it; if you don’t your file will be closed.

For more information

The Human Rights Commission’s website includes a detailed guide to mediation.

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.
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 could still be heard by the panel, though it’s possible it might be dismissed at the investigation stage.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You may not be able to share details of any settlement you reach; a confidentiality agreement can be part of the terms.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.

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 letter or a letter confirming your employment.
A change at the workplace, like 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 mediation are generally 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. The Human Rights Code caps financial awards for emotional harm at $25,000; this amount is most likely to be granted if the harassment was particularly bad and went on for a long time. The commission’s Guide to Remedies contains more information about possible awards and the way in which they are determined.

If early mediation isn’t successful

Complaints that aren’t resolved in early mediation may then go to the investigation stage. This involves the investigator speaking to people who might have relevant information and you providing the investigator with evidence about the harassment you experienced. See Document everything.

However, the executive director of the commission has the power to dismiss complaints without investigating them. This is called the early assessment process, which might happen if:

Your complaint is considered “frivolous” or “vexatious” under the law.
Your complaint doesn’t involve a violation of the Human Rights Code or the commission doesn’t have the jurisdiction to consider it.
You’re a union member and your complaint is covered under your collective agreement.
The complaint has been dealt with in another forum.
Pursuing the complaint isn’t going to benefit you.

The most recent numbers show that more than 60% of complaints that reach this point are dismissed. See the commission’s Guide to Early Assessment and Dismissal Without Investigation for more information.

If a complaint is going to be investigated, that process will take four to 12 months. After the investigation process, the remaining complaints are generally resolved through mediation or privately settled. Just one or two complaints a year are decided by the adjudication panel.

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:

Commission staff are trained to help you with the process of filing a complaint. You can call or email the commission to reach a human rights officer or book an appointment with an officer in the Winnipeg or Brandon office. They will assess your situation and help you draft a complaint.
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 for families of three or more, and be experiencing financial difficulties. Participating lawyers’ reduced rates vary depending on your family size and income.
211 Manitoba 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.
Your workplace union, association, or employee assistance program may be able to help you find legal services or cover part of your legal fees.

Important

The New Brunswick Human Rights Commission and what it does

The New Brunswick Human Rights Commission is the agency that deals with discrimination and harassment complaints. One law that protects you from discrimination is the New Brunswick Human Rights Act. Sexual harassment under the act is discrimination based on sex.

The commission receives, mediates, and investigates complaints. If a complaint can’t be resolved, the matter may be referred to a hearing at the Labour and Employment Board, which is completely separate from the commission. The commission is only able to make the decision to either dismiss a complaint or send it to the board. The board has the authority to make a finding of discrimination and award a variety of remedies.

When you think about filing a complaint, you might imagine a process that ends in a definitive ruling that what happened to you was either right or wrong. But in reality, that almost never happens. Complaints are much more likely to be closed at the commission level than referred to the board for a decision; about a quarter of complaints are closed as a result of mediation.

Facts about the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission

Every year, 10 to 15 people file a complaint with the commission saying they have been sexually harassed in the workplace.
Of the complaints closed by the commission in 2022-23, a quarter were successfully mediated, half were dismissed by the commission director or the commission members, and the remainder were withdrawn, abandoned, or found to be outside the jurisdiction of the commission.
Hardly any complaints to the commission are referred to the Labour and Employment Board: six in each of 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Complaints that are referred to the board for a hearing are seldom sexual harassment cases.
Sources: New Brunswick 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

The commission suggests that if you are considering making a complaint and want more information to first call or email (506-453-2301; [email protected]). The intake officer you deal with can mail you a complaint kit; otherwise, you can download the forms you need from the commission’s website. The Completing the Human Rights Complaint Form guide contains detailed information about how to fill out the three required forms. See also How to File Human Rights Complaint: New Brunswick.

Will the commission accept your application?

You have one year from when the harassment happened to file your application with the tribunal. 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 New Brunswick or if the harassment happened in New Brunswick, 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 unionized or non-unionized, temporary or permanent, an independent contractor, or undocumented.
After you file your complaint, the commission might decide that the harassment you faced doesn’t relate to a ground of discrimination under the code. In that case, your application will not proceed. This happens about half the time.

How mediation works

While both you and the respondent—the person your complaint is about—will be encouraged to participate in mediation, no one can be forced to do this. Mediation involves you and the respondent finding a solution to your complaint—something you both agree to. It can happen at any point, including through pre-complaint intervention, before your complaint is formally accepted.

If you agree to the process, the commission will assign you a mediator. Mediators are experts 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. They’re not supposed to pick a side, and they aren’t supposed to favour either you or the respondent. The purpose of this process is not to determine whether you were sexually harassed according to the Human Rights Act.

Mediation is usually conducted in person; you and the respondent are in different rooms and the mediator shuttles between the two of you.

About 25% of complaints are resolved through mediation and more than half of settlements happen at the early stage of the complaint process. But mediation can occur right up to the point where a complaint is referred to the Labour and Employment Board.

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 letter or a letter confirming your employment.
A change at the workplace, like 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?

For more information

This chart outlines all the steps in the complaint process, including where mediation might occur.

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.
Reaching a settlement is usually faster than a hearing, though the process can take one to two years.
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, the complaint process continues.

Mediation doesn’t give you a chance to publicly say what happened to you or be told that it was wrong.
You will likely not get everything you ask for—you have to be ready to compromise.

Beyond mediation

Complaints that aren’t settled through early mediation are analyzed by the commission’s legal team, which may recommend that the complaint be investigated. An investigator gathers information through conducting interviews and reviewing documents, then writes a report recommending either dismissing the complaint or referring it to the Labour and Employment Board for a hearing.

Pros and cons of your case being decided by the Labour and Employment Board

The Labour and Employment Board has the power to say that, yes, you were harassed, and that what happened to you was wrong.
The board of inquiry can order many different remedies. It can award you money. If you were fired or had to quit because of the harassment, it can order your employer to give you your job back. It can order your employer to provide anti-harassment training.

It can take years for a hearing to be held.
If you hire a lawyer to represent you, that will be expensive. If you don’t hire a lawyer, your chances of success are much lower.
People who represent themselves are less likely to have their complaints found justified.
The board usually only awards money for things like lost wages or your expenses as a result of the harassment; it seldom makes awards for harm to your dignity and feelings.
Very few people end up being told by a board of inquiry that they were discriminated against and what happened to them was wrong.
If you reach the hearing process stage, you may close the door to other legal options.
Even if the board awards you money or other things, that doesn’t mean you will necessarily get them. It can be hard to force your employer or the harasser to give you everything the board ordered, or what you agreed to in mediation.
Like in any legal process, your opponents will try to undermine your credibility and make you look bad. You could end up feeling disbelieved and unsupported.
Some psychologists believe it’s a bad idea for people who have experienced sexual harassment to get involved in any legal process. They say legal processes can slow down your ability to heal emotionally from what happened to you, because they keep you focused on the past. These experts believe that it can be healthier for the person who experienced harassment to put the past behind them and focus on their present and their future.

If your case goes ahead

While theoretically it is possible to proceed with a complaint representing yourself, this is very challenging, time consuming, and potentially harmful to your mental health. Your chances of success are much greater with legal help.

Here are some places that offer free or lower-cost legal services:

You can call the commission. The commission staff can provide some guidance throughout the process.
The Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick’s Legal Information Line may be able to provide you with general information about New Brunswick law, your options, and how a lawyer might help you.
Sexual Violence New Brunswick runs a support line (506-454-9437) for people who have been affected by sexual violence or harassment; it is open daily from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m.
211 New Brunswick 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.

The Canadian Human Rights Commission and Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and what they do

Facts about the Canadian Human Rights Commission

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

How to make a complaint to the commission

Will the commission accept your complaint?

How mediation works

For more information

Pros and cons of mediation

Pros

Cons

What you might ask for

Money to compensate you for:

Besides money:

What are you likely to get?

Beyond mediation

Pros and cons of your case being decided at a hearing

Pros

Cons

If your case goes ahead

Facts about the CNESST Occupational Health and Safety division

The Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse and what it does

Facts about the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

How to make a complaint to the commission

Will the commission accept your application?

How mediation works

For more information

Pros and cons of mediation

Pros

Cons

What you might ask for

Money to compensate you for:

Besides money:

What are you likely to get?

Beyond mediation

For more information

Legal help

The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission and what it does

Facts about the Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

How to make a complaint to the commission

Will the commission accept your complaint?

How mediation works

For more information

Pros and cons of mediation

Pros

Cons

What you might ask for

Money to compensate you for:

Besides money:

What are you likely to get?

If mediation isn’t successful

Where to get help with the process

Facts about WorkplaceNL

The PEI Human Rights Commission and what it does

Facts about the PEI Human Rights Commission

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

How to make a complaint to the commission

Will the commission accept your complaint?

How mediation works

For more information

Pros and cons of mediation

Pros

Cons

What you might ask for

Money to compensate you for:

Besides money:

What are you likely to get?

If early mediation isn’t successful

Where to get help with the process

Facts about the Workers Compensation Board

Psychological injury claims

How to make a WCB claim

For more information

Legal help

The Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission and what it does

Facts about the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission

Why consider filing a complaint with the commission

How to make a complaint to the commission

Will the commission accept your application?