Genetic testing is becoming more common. As this scientific field develops, testing methods and options continue to advance and can provide both interesting and important information about ancestry and medical conditions that are genetically linked. Of course, this...
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Labour And Employment Law
Vancouver firefighter alleges race discrimination and harassment
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | Jun 13, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
The CBC reports that a 33-year-old man of El Salvadoran heritage who has lived in Canada since he was a boy has filed a human rights complaint with the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal alleging employment discrimination and harassment based on race in his former...
Introduction to section 13 of the BC Human Rights Code
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | Jun 7, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
The British Columbia Human Rights Code (the "Code") forbids discrimination in employment based on certain protected employee characteristics. Employees in BC who believe that they are the victim of employment discrimination may file a complaint with the BC Human...
BC tribunal finds human rights violations by police employer
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 23, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal has sided with a Victoria police officer and his claims that the Victoria Police Department, his employer, interfered with his right to express his political beliefs as guaranteed under the BC Human Rights...
Discrimination alleged for BC maternity benefit clawback
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 18, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
A BC woman has filed a human rights complaint after the BC government clawed back her maternity and parental benefits in order to reimburse the province for her partner's disability payments. The woman has alleged sex discrimination, according to a media release by...
BC bill introduced to make gender identity a protected class
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 17, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
On April 27, BC MLA Spender Chandra Herbert introduced a bill in the Legislative Assembly that would add gender identity and gender expression to the characteristics protected against discrimination in employment. The bill would amend the BC Human Rights...
RCMP settles sexual harassment suit brought by BC Mountie
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 10, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
A 49-year-old British Columbia Mountie awaiting trial in a highly publicized lawsuit she filed four years ago against the RCMP for sexual harassment in the workplace has had her matter settled out of court. The corporal, a spokesperson for the force, said that she has...
Pay equity for women in the federally-regulated employment sector
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 5, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
Federal laws require that women get pay equal to that of men for work of equal value within any federally-regulated employer of any size. The Government of Canada website defines pay equity between the genders as a "fundamental human right ... known as equal pay for...
Vancouver bus drivers’ contract negotiation at critical stage
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | May 3, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
Almost 100 percent of the 4,700 unionized Vancouver-area transit workers employed by TransLink subsidiary Coast Mountain Bus voted late Thursday to support a strike in stalled contract negotiations. According to the Vancouver Sun, the president of the local Unifor...
Privacy rights and employer concerns in the BC workplace
On Behalf of Overholt Law LLP | Apr 26, 2016 | Labour And Employment Law
The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association, known as FIPA, is a public interest group that promotes Canadian privacy rights, including those applicable to employees in the workplace. As part of their public outreach, FIPA provides extensive information to...