Ariane Siegel

The applicant Ontario Construction Secretariat brought complaints against the responding unions for failing to remit payments required under O. Reg. 187/93.

The responding unions raised a preliminary constitutional challenge, arguing the regulation imposed an unconstitutional indirect tax and violated their freedom of association under section 2(d) of the Charter.

The Board dismissed the constitutional challenges, finding that the regulation of labour relations is within provincial jurisdiction and the required payments are valid administrative fees ancillary to a provincial regulatory scheme, not a tax.

Relying on Supreme Court of Canada jurisprudence, the Board also held that compelled payments do not infringe the freedom of association.

The complainants, two gay men in long-term same-sex relationships, alleged that the Ministry of Transportation discriminated against them on the basis of sexual orientation by requiring them to obtain and pay for a safety standards certificate when transferring vehicle ownership to or from their partners.

Opposite-sex spouses were exempt from this requirement.

The Board of Inquiry found that the Ministry's actions constituted discrimination in the provision of services based on sexual orientation, contrary to the Human Rights Code.

The Board ordered the Ministry to compensate the complainants and to cease its practice of automatically excluding same-sex couples from the spousal exemption.