Ontario

Introduction

  1. This document summarizes and updates the measures that the province of Ontario has taken since the Fourth Report (for the period covering April 1994 to March 1998) with respect to provincial policies, legislation and programs relevant to the articles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

Articles 2 and 3: Anti-Discrimination Measures and Measures to Ensure the Advancement of Women

  1. Ontario is committed to the strong enforcement of the Ontario Human Rights Code (the "Code") which provides every person with the right to equal treatment without discrimination because of sex, race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed and a number of additional grounds. The Code protects women from discrimination, including harassment and sexual harassment, under the ground of sex in the areas of services, contracts, housing accommodation, employment and vocational associations.

  2. Specific sections of the Code operate to allow female-only services and/or facilities where this is necessary for reasons of public decency or for the protection of women from abusive situations. The Code permits special measures ("special programs") and protects organizations that promote women's right to equality, and employment that contributes to equal opportunity for women.
  3. The Ontario Human Rights Commission continues to be the agency under the authority of the Code to enforce the right to freedom from discrimination on the ground of sex. In 1994-95, approximately 24 percent of all complaints to the Commission primarily involved discrimination on the basis of sex, pregnancy or sexual harassment. This figure was 27 percent for 1995-96, 26 percent for 1996-97, and 25 percent for 1997-98.
  4. In 1995, the Government of Ontario introduced the Equal Opportunity Plan, based on the Code's prohibition against discrimination. The Plan embodies four basic principles:
  1. The Equal Opportunity Plan includes a range of components. For example:
  1. In 1996, the Ontario Human Rights Commission released its detailed policy statement and plain language brochure dealing with sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination (see paragraph 429 of Canada's Fourth Report on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women).

  2. In 1997-98, the Commission modified its complaint procedures to ask callers reporting sexual harassment if they have personal safety concerns. Commission staff now direct such persons immediately to the appropriate authorities, i.e., the police, support groups and/or shelters. The Commission developed specialized training on sexual harassment to respond to these issues. In addition, the Commission ran a sexual harassment awareness campaign on local transit systems throughout the province.

Women Who Face Multiple Forms of Discrimination

  1. Where specific human rights situations are not listed as grounds under the Code, the Commission has developed policies to give direction to address these issues directly or by linking them to enumerated grounds of the Code. For example, the Commission has published policies on Sexual Harassment and Inappropriate Gender-Related Comment and Conduct, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), Discrimination and Language, and Discrimination Because of Pregnancy. The Commission has also revised existing policies to reflect international standards, where applicable. For example, the Policy on Discrimination Because of Pregnancy makes specific reference to the fact that Canada is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Policy cites language in the Convention which provides for special protection of mothers during a reasonable period before and after childbirth.

  2. The Commission, through the provisions of the Guidelines for Assessing Accommodation Requirements for Persons with Disabilities, has made employers and service providers aware of their duty to accommodate women with disabilities.

  3. The Government of Ontario has implemented programs to foster the equality of women who face multiple forms of discrimination. Outlined below are some of the specific policies and programs aimed at assisting these women.

(i) Women with disabilities and senior women

  1. In 1996, the Ontario Government introduced a community-based approach to promoting the dignity and interests of vulnerable adults (those who have difficulty expressing or acting upon their wishes because of a disability, medical condition, communication problem or advanced age). In addition, InfoAbility, a province-wide information and referral service with a resource database was launched to support vulnerable people, their families and caregivers.

  2. The former Ministry of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation helped support a number of community programs to aid women with disabilities and senior women, including:

(ii) Immigrant and visible minority women

  1. The former Ministry of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation provided support for the community-based delivery of cultural interpreter services to help women who do not speak English or French, and who have been victims of violence, to access necessary shelter, social, legal and medical support services. In addition, the Ministry promoted violence prevention education in immigrant and refugee communities by funding community initiatives.

  2. The Ontario Government continues to fund the Riverdale Immigrant Women's Centre to provide settlement and integration services, as well as English as a Second Language programs, to South Asian and Chinese speaking women and their families. It also funds the New Experiences for Refugee Women in Toronto to provide similar services to refugee women from Latin American countries.

  3. Although not specifically tailored to racial minority women, the Ontario Human Rights Commission's Policy on Racial Slurs and Harassment and Racial Jokes applies to racial minority women.

  4. Following the release of its Policy on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in 1996, the Commission released a plain language document in Arabic, Swahili, Amharic and Somali to sensitize women from affected communities to their rights and responsibilities. Community organizations aided the government in distributing these documents.

(iii) Aboriginal Women

  1. Between April 1994 and March 1998, the Ontario Native Affairs Secretariat provided funding to the Ontario Native Women's Association to support its work on behalf of Aboriginal Women. The Aboriginal Healing and Wellness Strategy (see paragraph 443 of the Fourth Report) continues to receive funding. In addition to the services provided through the Strategy, there are four shelters located on reserves co-funded by the province and the First Nations.

Article 2 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 3 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 4: Temporary Special Measures

  1. In December 1995, the Ontario Legislature passed Bill 8 -- A Bill to Repeal Job Quotas and to Restore Merit-Based Employment Practices in Ontario. Bill 8 repealed the Employment Equity Act 1993, the Act referred to in paragraph 451 of Canada's Fourth Report on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Section 14 of the Ontario Human Rights Code continues to allow special programs to assist historically disadvantaged groups, such as women.

  2. The Commission revised and updated its interpretive Guidelines on Special Programs in 1996 in order to reflect the new legislative environment.

Article 4 - Links to Conventionand other sections
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Article 5: Elimination of Stereotypes

  1. Healthy Babies, Healthy Children is a new joint Ministry of Health and Ministry of Community and Social Services program. It is a prevention/early intervention initiative designed to ensure that all Ontario families with children who are at risk of physical, cognitive, communicative or psychosocial problems have access to effective and consistent supports and services. This community-based program is creating a network of local service providers whose collaboration focuses on identifying and supporting the needs of vulnerable children and parents as early as possible. Such services include post-partum screening in hospitals, assessments by public health nurses, and the designation of a service coordinator for each high risk family that requires it.

  2. The government funds services related to violence against women. The Ministry of Community and Social Services funds 98 shelters for abused women and their children and more than 100 counselling agencies. The Ministry is in the process of developing a curriculum to jointly train child protection and violence against women workers to better understand the role each sector plays in supporting abused women and children, and to better coordinate their activities.

  3. The Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, in cooperation with the Ontario Women's Directorate, provides grants to sponsoring organizations to assist survivors of sexual assault and wife assault by improving accessibility of outreach and self-help programs. Increased accessibility to prevention services across the North is intended to reduce the incidence of violence against women in Northern Ontario communities.

  4. The Ministry of the Solicitor General, along with other ministries, implemented Ontario's Domestic Violence Justice Strategy (DVJS) with respect to the expansion of services directed to victims of domestic violence, local justice community coordination, specialized investigations of incidents by trained police, a coordinated prosecution led by trained Crown Attorneys, and the fast-tracking of these cases.

  5. To complement its funded programs and services, and to support the implementation of the DVJS, the Ministry of the Solicitor General has mandated a police response to victims which is formally articulated in the Adequacy Standards Regulations of the Police Services Act. One of the requirements specified in the Regulations is the development of an integrated service delivery framework for assisting victims of domestic violence. This requires that every police service in Ontario have in place, by January 1, 2001, policies on investigations into domestic violence occurrences, as well as procedures and processes for undertaking and managing these investigations. The Ministry has undertaken several initiatives to assist police services in meeting this requirement.

  6. The Ministry of the Solicitor General and the Ministry of the Attorney General jointly announced the Victims' Bill of Rights in June 1996 to legislate a set of principles to support victims of crime with timely, respectful and courteous treatment throughout the criminal justice system. Many victims, especially victims of sexual assault and domestic violence, are women. An amendment in November 1997 to the Police Services Act included victim assistance as one of the legislated duties of police services across Ontario.

  7. Through its Victim Services Unit, the Ministry of the Solicitor General funds and administers a range of programs which are directed, either wholly or in part, toward addressing violence against women. These programs include: 33 Sexual Assault/Rape Crisis Centres, 21 Victim Crisis Assistance and Referral Service Programs, the SupportLink Wireless Phone Program, the Victim Support Line, and Partner Assault Response Programs. In addition, the Victim Services Unit coordinates victim awareness training workshops for police officers. These workshops are designed to enhance the ability of police officers to respond to victims in a professional and compassionate manner, and to foster positive relations with victim service providers.

  8. The Ministry of the Solicitor General also funds and participates in educational initiatives and public awareness campaigns.

  9. The Ministry of Education funds a number of projects and initiatives related to reducing the incidence of all forms of violence against women and girls. Public education materials are published in 28 different languages, including many Aboriginal languages.

  10. The Ontario Human Rights Commission has developed a policy statement on the rights of transgendered persons. The Policy on Discrimination and Harassment Because of Gender Identity is set out in a discussion paper released to the public. The discrimination, harassment and social stigma suffered by transgendered persons, due largely to sex-role stereotyping, warrants human rights protection. The Commission now accepts complaints related to gender identity under the ground of sex.

  11. While CEDAW does not expressly provide for a woman's right to be free from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and same-sex partner status, these are rights expressly protected both by statute and by the Constitution in Ontario and Canada. The Ontario Human Rights Commission has developed a public policy statement on sexual orientation.

Article 5 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 10: Education

  1. The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities has published and distributed background documents on the status of women in post-secondary institutions. For example, the Status of Women in Ontario Universities (two volumes) is a series of statistical reports which tracks women's participation at all levels within the Ontario university system. These reports have been an important resource for monitoring changes in the participation of women students, faculty and administrative staff in Ontario universities.

  2. The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities provides support to a number of women in apprenticeship programs. The Workplace Support Services Branch, which oversees broad training and re-employment strategies, emphasizes the full and effective participation of disadvantaged and under-represented groups, including women, in labour force development programs and services.

  3. The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities also provides child care bursaries under the Ontario Student Assistance Plan to assist students with child care costs while they attend college or university. In addition, assistance is available for students with dependent children and for women in doctoral programs with financial need.

  4. In May 1995, the Ontario Human Rights Commission launched a package of pedagogical materials for secondary students entitled Teaching Human Rights In Ontario. The package contains materials and handouts designed to introduce students to the protection of human rights in the Code and to help them understand the role of the Commission. The package, in both English and French, was sent to every secondary school and every school board in Ontario as well as hundreds of other individuals and groups at their request. In addition, the material is being used to teach human rights in community colleges and universities, in Adult Basic Education and in English as a Second Language classes. The Commission was also a contributing member to the Ministry of Education's Equity in Learning Materials Committee.

  5. Information about the Code and the Commission is available to thousands of students across Canada via the Internet on the "SchoolNet" service by way of the Commission's own website (www.ohrc.on.ca), launched in December 1996.

  6. In 1997, the Commission introduced a strategy to revitalize its education and information activities. Commissioners and Commission staff personally delivered education and training to 3,497 people in 1997-98, 1,715 in 1996-97, 1,384 in 1995-96 and 311 in 1994-95.

  7. The Ontario Women's Directorate implements and administers the Partners for Change program. The program is designed to encourage innovative partnership projects with educators, business and community organizations to support educational opportunities for girls that will lead to career and life success; promote the participation of women in math, science and technology-based training; encourage the recruitment, retention and promotion of women; and support women's entrepreneurial success.

Article 10 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 11: Employment

  1. Between April 1994 and March 1998, 73 percent of all complaints to the Commission were in the area of employment. In 1994-95, approximately 32 percent of employment complaints to the Commission primarily involved discrimination on the basis of sex, pregnancy or sexual harassment. This figure was 32 percent for 1995-96, 32 percent for 1996-97 and 31 percent for 1997-98.

Right to Work

  1. The Labour Relations and Employment Statute Law Amendment Act (Bill 7) was passed on November 10, 1995. Bill 7 introduced workplace democracy measures to the Labour Relations Act (LRA) which have strengthened the democratic rights of individual workers. Domestic workers are excluded from the LRA but continue to be free to form voluntary associations.

Employment Opportunities -- Training

  1. The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (formerly the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism) hosted an Ontario Public Service (OPS) seminar on the Changing Role of Women in the OPS in December 1995. Three hundred and fifty people attended the seminar to hear speakers from the public and private sectors.

  2. The Ministry of Transportation supports, on an ongoing basis, a Women in Engineering Conference that provides an opportunity for the Ministry's female engineers to discuss training and development requirements and opportunities.

Child Care

  1. Since 1995, child care spending has increased. There are now approximately 143,500 regulated centre-based child care spaces, an increase of 14,500 spaces since March 1995. Also, in 1998, approximately 180 more centres were established -- a 6 percent increase from 1995.

  2. The 1997 Ontario Budget announced that 90,000 families and 125,000 children will benefit from a new child care tax credit to assist working families who are not benefiting from the current institutional child care system. This new system will provide more choice to parents and help child care providers make care more affordable. More families will receive assistance with priority being given to families who need help to start or stay at work.

  3. Ontario recognizes the need to work toward a better balance between the private and non-profit child care sectors in order to meet the needs of families successfully. The province has taken several steps towards restoring that balance, including ending the conversion initiative under which private sector programs were converted to non-profit programs, lifting the ban on the purchase of spaces in the licensed private sector, and opening access to the licensed private sector for repair/maintenance funds.

  4. All Aboriginal children attending programs run by First Nations receive fee subsidies. Ontario cost shares fee subsidies 80/20 with First Nations. In 1998, there were 53 centres operated by First Nations.

Equal Remuneration

  1. In July 1995, the Government of Ontario publicly affirmed its commitment to assist public sector employers with the cost of achieving pay equity, committing to providing annual funding. A one-time payment for retroactive pay equity adjustments was also made in 1997.

  2. An amendment to the Pay Equity Act was made under the Public Sector Transition Stability Act, 1997, to allow reduced future wage adjustments if a pay equity plan is found to be no longer appropriate following a sale or amalgamation. The Pay Equity Advocacy and Legal Services Clinic, which provided free legal information and advice regarding pay equity, has discontinued taking new cases since August 1, 1995. The government provided wind-down funding to allow the Clinic to complete ongoing cases.

Working Conditions

  1. Since the last report, the minimum hourly wage in Ontario has increased to $6.85 per hour and is among the highest in Canada. The Employment Standards Act was amended to eliminate exclusions from overtime pay and public holidays for homeworkers and employers were required to provide homeworkers with written details concerning their work and pay. The minimum wage for homeworkers was raised to 110 percent of the general hourly minimum wage.

Maternity, Pregnancy and Parental Leave

  1. In 1996, the Employment Standards Act was amended to clarify that seniority, length of employment and service continue to accrue throughout pregnancy and parental leaves.

  2. The Ontario Human Rights Commission has updated its 1996 Policy on Discrimination Because of Pregnancy to include clear rights with respect to pregnant and lactating women, including the right of such women to receive accommodation at work.

Article 11 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 12: Health

  1. The interlocutory injunction referred to in paragraph 529 of the Fourth Report, which prevents harassment and intimidation of abortion patients and providers and their families at certain doctors' homes and offices, and at three abortion clinics in Ontario, remains in place. It continues to be in the public interest to protect the safety and privacy of patients and providers and to ensure continuing access to abortion services. The government continues to provide funding to free-standing abortion clinics in Ontario.

  2. In 1994-95, there were 71 midwives in Ontario. Ontario's commitment to legalized, funded midwifery care continues and funding has been increased.

  3. As a result of the report Caesarean Birth: A Quality Assurance Program to Increase the Appropriate Use of Caesarean Birth referred to in paragraph 533 of the Fourth Report, a Maternity Care Guideline Project was established as a pilot project in the Orillia area. The purpose of this project is to implement evidence-based practice guidelines such as one-to-one labour support and intermittent fetal rate auscultation, to reduce the caesarean section rate. The Ontario Medical Association, the Ministry of Health, the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and local providers are working together on this project.

  4. The Ministry of Health has established a working group to look at regulatory and funding options for new reproductive technologies in Ontario.

  5. The Ontario Government continues to provide funding to 39 counselling services for adult women who are survivors of sexual assault and to Sexual Assault Treatment Centres in 27 hospitals and 12 satellite sites across the province. The Wife Assault and Sexual Assault Grants Program for the Education of Health Care Professionals provides money to help health care professionals treat survivors of partner assault and sexual assault.

  6. The Ministry of Labour continues to provide general health protection to women under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. In particular, the Ministry safeguards the functions of reproduction and pregnancy from the hazards of radiation exposure.

  7. One issue that surfaced during the United Nations' Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing 1995, and that the Ontario Human Rights Commission has taken steps to address, is female genital mutilation (FGM). FGM involves the cutting and/or excision of the sexual organs of girl children. Because of the increase in immigration to Ontario from regions where the practice persists, the Commission has been made aware that girl children from affected communities are at risk in Ontario. There are, as well, important questions surrounding the care and treatment of women who have undergone the procedure. The Commission undertook extensive research and, in 1996, released a policy on the human rights implications of the practice.

Article 12 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 13: Economics and Social Life

  1. The Tenant Protection Act clarifies what information landlords can ask for when assessing prospective tenants. Previously, there was concern that landlords had the ability to screen tenants on the basis of minimum income criteria or rent-to-income ratios, in effect authorizing discrimination against persons on social assistance, seniors, the disabled, new Canadians and, in particular, women heading single-parent households. To address this concern, the Human Rights Code was amended to recognize that many tenants, particularly those on social assistance, pay a substantial portion of their income to rent. The Regulation does not use a rent-to-income ratio, and only in limited situations, where other information is not reasonably available to a landlord, may income information be used as the sole factor in assessing tenants.

  2. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing is committed to providing priority access to subsidized housing for victims of family violence, the great majority of whom are women. In addition, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has worked closely with the Ontario Housing Corporation to increase community economic development projects for its residents. Many of the residents in Ontario Housing Corporation units are single mothers.

  3. Any resident in Ontario, male or female, may apply for social assistance through the Ministry of Community and Social Services. Eligibility is determined on the basis of financial need and other criteria.

  4. The former Ministry of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation continued to implement the provincial policy entitled "Full and Fair Access for Women and Girls in Sport and Physical Activity." This policy is designed to provide women and girls in Ontario a full range of opportunities to participate, compete and lead in the field of sport and physical recreation.

  5. Completed policy initiatives include the development of resources for provincial and community sport and recreation providers. Two guidebooks and a poster are still made available on request. The former Ministry of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation's Strategy for Amateur Sport in Ontario, issued in 1996, further reinforced the government's commitment to safe and welcoming sport environments. Under this Strategy, provincial sport organizations' projects for women and girls are eligible for government funding. For fiscal year 1997-98, grants were provided for anti-harassment and anti-abuse initiatives.

Article 13 - Links to Convention and other sections
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Article 14: Rural Women

  1. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs works with Women and Rural Economic Development (WRED) to provide entrepreneurship training and counselling to rural women. The Ministry funded a research project entitled "Policing Spousal Assault in Rural Communities" through the Sustainable Rural Communities program in 1997 and 1998. The Ministry also provides leadership and organizational development consultation services to the Community Abuse Program of Rural Ontario, which focuses on the unique circumstances and needs of rural communities.

  2. The Ministry produces a weekly television program, Town and Country Ontario, which has featured female role models. Women are featured in every kind of activity in the rural community, including their roles as partners or proprietors in farm businesses and food processing concerns. A Rural Youth Job Strategy provides support to projects preparing young women for the work force.

  3. The Community Food Advisor Program uses trained peer educators to improve knowledge and behaviours related to healthy food choices and safety, and to enhance community leadership abilities of program volunteers. Approximately 90 percent of the volunteers are female. Many of the clients are also women, including at-risk populations, such as teenage mothers and mothers-to-be, seniors and low-income groups.

  4. In partnership with the Ontario Rural Child Care Committee, the Ministry produced and distributed an information package entitled "The Rural Community Development Process to Address Rural Child Care Needs." The Ontario Rural Child Care Committee obtained funding from the Canadian Agricultural Safety Program to produce and distribute the package across Canada.

  5. Twice yearly, Leadership in Action Programs assist 25-35 participants in developing leadership and organizational development skills. Increasing numbers of rural women have participated in these workshops which built the capacity and increased the effectiveness of community organizations.

Article 14 - Links to Convention and other sections
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