Alberta’s human rights law prohibits discrimination based on specific protected grounds. Knowing which grounds apply to you is the first step in identifying whether your rights have been violated.

What Are Protected Grounds?

Protected grounds are the characteristics that the Alberta Human Rights Act (AHRA) recognizes as off-limits for discrimination. Employers, landlords, service providers, and others cannot make decisions based on these characteristics in areas the law covers.

Protected Grounds in Alberta Workplaces

In the context of employment, the AHRA protects against discrimination on the following grounds:

• Race — including colour and ancestry
• Religious beliefs — including the right to practice your faith and request accommodation
• Physical disability — including chronic illness and injuries
• Mental disability — including depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other conditions
• Age — protection applies to all adults, not just seniors
• Sex — including pregnancy and gender expression
• Gender identity
• Sexual orientation
• Marital status
• Family status — including childcare and caregiving responsibilities
• Source of income — relevant to housing, not employment
• Place of origin — national or ethnic origin

What Counts as Discrimination?

Discrimination does not have to be intentional to be unlawful. It can be direct (treating someone differently because of a protected ground) or systemic (a policy that appears neutral but negatively impacts people with a protected characteristic).

Common examples in the workplace include:

• Being passed over for promotion because of your religion
• Being denied a shift change needed to care for a child with a disability
• Facing harassment or a hostile environment because of your ethnic background
• Having a job offer rescinded after disclosing a mental health condition

The Duty to Accommodate

Employers have a legal obligation to accommodate employees with protected characteristics up to the point of undue hardship. This means they must take reasonable steps to adjust policies, schedules, or working conditions to allow you to participate equally in the workplace.

If your employer refuses to accommodate without justification, that refusal may itself constitute a human rights violation.

What to Do If You’ve Experienced Discrimination

If you believe you have been discriminated against based on a protected ground, document what happened as thoroughly as possible — dates, what was said or done, and any witnesses. You have one year from the last incident to file a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission.

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If you are unsure whether what you experienced qualifies as discrimination, Tell Us Your Truth — we can help you think it through.