The appellant, a retail employee, converted to the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, which required her to strictly observe the Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday.
Her employer required full-time sales clerks to work on Saturdays.
When the appellant refused to work Saturdays, she was demoted to part-time status.
The Supreme Court of Canada held that an intent to discriminate is not a necessary element of discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code.
The Court recognized the concept of adverse effect discrimination and established that employers have a duty to take reasonable steps to accommodate an employee's religious beliefs, short of undue hardship.
As the employer provided no evidence of undue hardship, the appeal was allowed.
