HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO
B E T W E E N:
Jasmine Javid
Applicant
-and-
Geos Language School and Mark Farugh
Respondents
DECISION
Adjudicator: Bruce Best
Indexed as: Javid v. Geos Language School
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS
Jasmine Javid, Applicant
Self-represented
1This Application was filed under s.34 of the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c.H.19, as amended (the “Code”) on June 22, 2017, alleging reprisal and discrimination on the basis of race in employment.
2The applicant applied for a job with the organizational respondent as an English as a Second Language (“ESL”) teacher, and was interviewed by the individual respondent. She was not hired. When she followed up with the individual respondent to find out why, he responded as follows:
Ok, you want the truth. You made racist comments about Chinese people and abortion. And you clearly stated you hate grammar. Kindly leave us alone. Message the Director for further enquiries as to why you would be the worse fit for our team.
My assumptions are that you will never get. Job again in this field as I just sent your message to the accreditors of Canada. [sic]
3The applicant vehemently denies that she made any racist comments, and considers the threat to discredit her as defamation of character.
4The applicant claims that the respondents’ actions constitute discrimination on the basis of race. The protection for a prospective employee such as the applicant are under s.5(1) of the Code, which provides:
Every person has a right to equal treatment with respect to employment without discrimination because of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability.
5The protection is based on the personal characteristics of the applicant or of a person with whom the applicant is associated under s.12. There is no indication that that the respondent’s comments had anything whatsoever to do with the applicant’s race.
6With respect to the claim of reprisal, Section 8 of the Code provides:
Every person has a right to claim and enforce his or her rights under this Act, to institute and participate in proceedings under this Act and to refuse to infringe a right of another person under this Act, without reprisal or threat of reprisal for so doing.
7There is no indication that the respondents took any action or threatened any action as reprisal for the applicant claiming her rights under the Code. She is not claiming that she had raised any Code issues prior to the respondent’s threat to report her.
Decision
8An 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 Tribunal does not have jurisdiction over general allegations of unfairness, unless the unfairness is connected, at least in part, to a prohibited ground of discrimination. See Forde v. Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, 2011 HRTO 1389.
9In my view, none of the facts raised in this Application can establish any connection to a prohibited ground of discrimination. Alleging that an individual made racially or culturally disrespectful comments does not raise any human rights discrimination issues. See Froman v. TJX Canada, 2013 HRTO 1191 (“Froman”), at para. 19. Calling someone a racist is not a discriminatory act.
10An employer misunderstanding or taking comments out of context, and then impugning an individual’s character or threatening to report the individual to an accreditation organization, even if defamatory, is not reprisal under the Code. See Froman at paras. 14-15.
11It is plain and obvious that the Application does not raise issues within the Tribunal’s power to decide, and as such must be dismissed. This decision is without prejudice to the applicant to pursue the issues elsewhere if she so chooses.
Order
12The Application is dismissed as the issues raised are outside the jurisdiction of the Tribunal.
Dated at Toronto, this 5th day of December, 2017.
“Signed by”
Bruce Best
Vice-chair