Donatella Fernandes v. Service Canada – Employment Insurance Commission, 2014 HRTO 545

Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario

B E T W E E N:

Donatella Fernandes

Applicant

-and-

Service Canada – Employment Insurance Commission

Respondent

DECISION

Adjudicator: Douglas Sanderson

Date: April 16, 2014

Citation: 2014 HRTO 545

Indexed as: Fernandes v. Service Canada- Employment Insurance Commission

APPEARANCES

Donatella Fernandes, Applicant

Self-represented

1This is an Application filed under s. 34 of the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, as amended (the "Code"), alleging discrimination with respect to goods, services and facilities because of record of offences in connection with the respondent's decision to deny her employment insurance benefits.

2By letter dated March 14, 2014, the Tribunal notified the applicant that the Application may be outside the Tribunal's jurisdiction because the respondent appears to be a federal government department, agency or a federally regulated business. The Tribunal directed the applicant to make submissions on the issue of jurisdiction no later than April 3, 2014. On April 1, 2014, the Tribunal received a letter from the applicant dated March 23, 2014. The applicant requested that that the Tribunal forward the documents she filed to the Canadian Human Rights Commission if the Tribunal cannot process the application since it may not fall under Ontario jurisdiction.

Analysis and Decision

3An application will only be dismissed at a preliminary stage if it is "plain and obvious" on the face of the application that it does not fall within the Tribunal's jurisdiction. See Masood v. Bruce Power, 2008 HRTO 381. The Code only applies to matters that come within provincial jurisdiction and does not apply to federally-regulated enterprises or undertakings. The Canadian Human Rights Commission has the power to deal with human rights matters that fall under federal jurisdiction. In my view, it is plain and obvious that the respondent is a department or agency of the federal government that is subject to federal jurisdiction. Accordingly, it is plain and obvious that this Application is outside the Tribunal's jurisdiction.

4The Application is dismissed.