Reprisal Under the Human Rights Code in Ontario: What Happens If You’re Punished for Complaining

Raising a human rights concern at work already takes courage. What happens next can determine whether an employee ever raises one again. A reprisal complaint under the Human Rights Code exists because Ontario law recognizes that punishing someone for trying to enforce their rights is its own, separate wrong — even apart from whatever the original complaint was about.

This guide explains what reprisal means under the Code, how it is treated differently from the underlying discrimination complaint, and what to do if you think it is happening to you.

What "Reprisal" Means Under the Code

Reprisal generally means being punished, threatened, or treated adversely because you:

• Filed, or tried to file, a good-faith human rights complaint
• Supported or gave evidence in someone else’s complaint
• Otherwise tried to exercise or enforce a right under the Code

Importantly, this protection generally does not depend on whether your original complaint ultimately succeeds. As long as it was made in good faith, retaliating against you for raising it is treated as a problem in its own right.

Reprisal Is Its Own Claim

This distinction matters more than it might seem. Even if a tribunal eventually decides your original discrimination complaint does not succeed on the facts, a genuine reprisal claim connected to how you were treated for raising it can still stand on its own. The two are assessed separately.

This means an employer cannot assume that defeating the underlying complaint automatically clears them of how they responded to the person who raised it.

What Reprisal Can Look Like

• Termination or demotion shortly after a complaint is raised
• Reduced hours, shifts, or responsibilities
• A sudden drop in performance reviews with no clear explanation
• Exclusion from meetings, projects, or communications
• Increased scrutiny or discipline that was not applied before
• Threats, whether explicit or implied, about "consequences" for complaining

No single one of these automatically proves reprisal — context and timing matter a great deal.

What You Need to Show

Generally, a reprisal claim involves three elements:

1. You engaged in a protected activity — you filed, attempted to file, or supported a good-faith human rights complaint.
2. You experienced an adverse action — something negative actually happened to you as a result.
3. There is a connection between the two — often shown through timing, a sudden change in treatment, or inconsistency with how you were treated before.

What to Do If You Think You’re Facing Reprisal

• [ ] Write down what happened and when, as close to the time as possible
• [ ] Keep records of your original complaint and any related communications
• [ ] Note the timing between your complaint and any change in how you were treated
• [ ] Avoid assuming things will resolve informally on their own
• [ ] Get legal advice about whether to add a reprisal allegation to an existing application or start a new one

How This Differs From Other Workplace Retaliation Claims

Reprisal under the Human Rights Code is specific to retaliation connected to a human rights complaint. If the retaliation instead follows you asserting a right under a different law — for example, asking about your pay or taking a legally protected leave under the Employment Standards Act — a related but separate protection may apply, with its own process. Which protection fits your situation depends on what right you were exercising when the retaliation occurred.

It is also worth noting that these protections are not mutually exclusive. Some situations genuinely involve more than one kind of protected activity at once — for instance, someone who raised a disability accommodation concern and also mentioned it to a coworker who later corroborated the story. A lawyer can help sort out which protections apply, and whether it makes sense to pursue more than one avenue.

Frequently asked questions