# How does the law in Canada determine if I’ve been harassed? > URL: https://workandgender.com/article/how-does-the-law-in-canada-determine-if-ive-been-harassed/ > Language: en > Description: Judges ask whether the conduct was based on your sex or gender, whether it was unwelcome, unreasonable, and repeated. One severe act can count. --- Important This is just general information, not legal advice. If you need legal advice about your specific situation, we urge you to [find a lawyer](https://workandgender.com/article/how-to-find-and-work-with-a-lawyer/) who can help you. If you’re being sexually harassed at work, there are two main types of law in Canada that apply to you. 1. employment and labour laws, designed to protect people at work 2. human rights laws, designed to protect everybody Those laws are intended to protect you against harassment on the basis of your sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. And as they interpret the laws, judges generally ask the same types of questions. ## Did the harassment happen on the basis of your **sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression**? Sexual harassment laws in Canada prohibit harassment on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. ### Example of sexual harassment on the basis of sex: A group of men in a bar harass their server by commenting on her looks and repeatedly propositioning her. ### Example of sexual harassment on the basis of sexual orientation: A man harasses another man by making fun of him for being gay. ### Example of sexual harassment on the basis of gender identity: A group of men harass a trans woman by asking her questions about her gender and using anti-trans slurs. ### Example of sexual harassment on the basis of gender expression: A supervisor harasses a female employee by telling her to wear skirts and heels. If the harassment was based on your sex, your sexual orientation, your gender identity, or your gender expression, that means it qualifies as “sexual.” ## Was the behaviour **unwelcome**? Here’s a simple test: - Did the behaviour make you unhappy? - Did you dislike it and wish it would stop? - Did it make you feel offended or demeaned? - Did you find it shocking or vulgar? - Did you feel like you were being abused? If you answered yes to any of those questions, that would suggest to a judge that what you experienced was harassment. ## Would a “**reasonable person**” find this behaviour unacceptable? Even if *you* answered yes to the questions above, a judge wants to know whether a so-called reasonable or average person would feel the same way. For example, a typical reasonable person might think that a co-worker asking someone out on a date is okay, but a co-worker texting someone pornographic images is not. A judge might then rule that “texting pornographic images” is harassment, but asking someone out once is not. Even if both those things felt like harassment to you, the “reasonable person” standard would suggest to a judge that they’re not the same. Sometimes this question is what a “reasonable person,” a “reasonable woman,” a “reasonable gay man,” or some other kind of person might think. Its purpose is always the same: to ask whether somebody reasonable, experiencing a particular kind of behaviour, would consider it to be harassment. ## Did the bad behaviour happen **only once or more often**? Normally, to count as sexual harassment, the behaviour has to happen more than once. But if it was really bad—like if your boss literally told you he would fire you if you didn’t have sex with him—once might be enough for it to count under the law. --- That’s how the laws work in general. To know which laws apply to you, you need to know whether you work in an industry that’s provincially regulated or federally regulated. Read [Am I a federally regulated worker? (And why it matters)](https://workandgender.com/article/am-i-a-federally-regulated-worker-and-why-it-matters/) --- ## Article reviewers Articles by the Centre for Work and Gender are reviewed by members of the following panel of people and organizations. Not every member reviewed every article; regional articles were reviewed by lawyers in that jurisdiction. - Kathleen Avery, LLB, lawyer, Yukon Workers’ Safety and Compensation Board - Barbara Bergmann, JD, lawyer, Workplace Sexual Harassment Clinic/Yukon Legal Services Society - Meredith Brown, JD, lawyer, Calibrate - Stephen Carpenter, LLB, lawyer, Workers Compensation Board of PEI - Amber Chisholm, JD, associate director, Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick (PLEIS-NB) - Callandra Cochrane, JD, lawyer, Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic - Alexander Dezan, JD, legal counsel, Yukon Human Rights Commission - Sandra Guarascio, JD, lawyer, investigator, facilitator, Roper Greyell LLP Employment + Labour Lawyers - Andrea Gunraj, vice-president, public engagement, Canadian Women’s Foundation - Sara Hanson, JD, senior associate, Moore Edgar Lyster LLP - Noah Jacobs, BA, Public Legal Information Association of NL - Khurram Khurshid, LLB, research officer, New Brunswick Human Rights Commission - Raphaëlle Laframboise-Carignan, JD, lawyer, RavenLaw LLP - Kevin Love, JD, lawyer, Community Legal Assistance Society, BC - Sarah McCoubrey, BFA, JD, MEd, lawyer, Calibrate - Lesley McCullough, JD, founder and director, Workplace Sexual Harassment Legal Clinic, Yukon - Alison McEwen, JD, RavenLaw LLP - Garreth McGrath, JD, legal support navigator, Public Legal Information Association of NL - Sarah McHugh-Wade, BA, legal support navigator, the Journey Project - Sandra MacKenzie, JD, lawyer, Lawson Lundell LLP - Anna-Marie Manley, LLB, lawyer, Patterson Law - Deepa Mattoo, LLB, lawyer and executive director, Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic - Loretta Merritt, LLB, LLM, lawyer, Torkin Manes Barristers & Solicitors - Chetan Muram, JD, counsel, Toronto Workers’ Health and Safety Legal Clinic - Gobhina Nagarajah, JD, staff solicitor, Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission - Alex Norris, JD, associate, Carbert Waite LLP - Anita Nowinka, BSc, JD, associate, Carbert Waite LLP - Kim Nutz, JD, Sunstone Legal in association with West Legal - Kevin O’Shea, JD, executive director, Public Legal Information Association of NL - Coral Rajchgot, LLB, JD, former intern, Aftermetoo - Carley Reynolds, BA, criminology; JD, counsel, Donich Law - Lucie Roubin, avocate, Juripop - Ginette Savoie, director, Workers’ Advocate, Government of New Brunswick - Paméla Schiavoni, JD, lawyer, New Brunswick Human Rights Commission - Mary Shortall, president, Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour - Morgan Sim, JD, MA, international relations, lawyer, Parker Sim LLP - Cécile Simon, JD, avocate-conseillère, Juripop, Bureau du respect de la personne - Michelle Squires, JD, project manager, Canadian Mental Health Association, York Region - Dayna Steinfeld, LLB, JD, Winnipeg lead lawyer, RavenLaw LLP - Keir Vallance, JD, lawyer, Bainbridge Jodouin Cheecham Barristers & Solicitors - Sherri Walsh, JD, managing partner, Hill Sokalski Walsh LLP - Madeleine Werker, JD, associate, Grosman Gale Fletcher Hopkins LLP - Canadian Labour Congress - The Help and Information Center on Workplace Harassment (GAIHST) - Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission