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 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.

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 the mediation process could be right for you.

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successfully mediated, half were dismissed by the commission director or the commission members, and the remainder were withdrawn, abandoned, or found to be outside the jurisdiction of the commission.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.

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 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?

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: a range of $5,000 to $12,500 is common. There aren’t very many big awards, and they happen when the harassment was particularly bad and went on for a long time. 

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.