Much of the work we do each year to protect human rights takes place well behind the scenes. From determining whether a person has the basis to file a human rights complaint at the federal level, to helping redirect people to the organization best suited to help them, we are working every day to help people in Canada who believe they have been treated unfairly.
This part of our work as a screening body helps ensure that the thousands of people who contact the Commission get to the right place to raise their human rights issues. Since we are able to help them resolve their issues informally, or direct them to the appropriate organization to handle their complaint, only a fraction of the people who come to us need to file a discrimination complaint with the Commission.
Once verified, we prioritize complaints where the alleged discrimination is ongoing or severe, or where the outcome may impact a larger number of people. There are a number of steps that may follow, such as mediation, referral to another organization, or being referred to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, which has the power to determine whether discrimination has taken place.
In 2021, we transformed this part of our work to better serve people in Canada.