Health Choice Rights at Work, Travel, EI

Summary#

This bill, called the Medical Freedom Act, changes three federal laws. It adds “conscientious belief” and “medical history” as protected grounds under the Canadian Human Rights Act. It bars reprisals against federally regulated employees for certain health decisions and sets a duty to accommodate. It also ensures Employment Insurance (EI) is not denied when someone loses a job only because of a health decision.

• Adds conscientious belief and medical history to the list of prohibited discrimination grounds (Bill, CHRA s.2; s.3(1)).
• Sets an accommodation test for transportation services when access is denied due to medical history, using an “undue hardship” standard based on health, safety, and cost (Bill, CHRA s.15(2.1)).
• Prohibits reprisals against employees for health-related decisions, including vaccines, and creates a duty to accommodate in federally regulated workplaces (Bill, CLC s.147(1)(b.1); new s.147.01).
• Requires employers to consider medical evidence of protection from prior COVID-19 infection for unvaccinated workers, under future regulations (Bill, CLC s.147.01(2)-(3)).
• Prevents EI disqualification or disentitlement if employment was lost solely due to a health decision (Bill, EI Act amendment after s.35).

What it means for you#

• Households and individuals

  • If a transportation service denies you service due to your medical history, the provider must accommodate you unless doing so causes undue hardship in light of health, safety, and cost (Bill, CHRA s.15(2.1)).
  • You can bring human rights complaints for discrimination based on conscientious belief or medical history in areas under federal authority (Bill, CHRA s.2; s.3(1)).
  • If you lose your job only because of a health decision, you remain eligible for EI; you are not disqualified under misconduct or voluntary-leaving rules in ss.30–33 (Bill, EI Act amendment after s.35).
  • Effective date: Data unavailable.

• Workers (in workplaces covered by the Canada Labour Code)

  • Your employer cannot take reprisals against you because of your health decisions, including decisions about vaccines (Bill, CLC s.147(1)(b.1)).
  • Your employer must accommodate you by allowing work from home or making adjustments if you can still do your job, the request relates to your decision, it does not endanger others, and it does not cause undue hardship (Bill, CLC new s.147.01(1)(a)-(d)).
  • If your job requires COVID-19 vaccination and you choose not to vaccinate, your employer must consider medical evidence that a prior infection protects you, as set by regulation (Bill, CLC s.147.01(2)-(3)).

• Businesses and employers (covered by the Canada Labour Code)

  • You must not take reprisals for employees’ health decisions unless you have accommodated or offered to accommodate as required (Bill, CLC s.147(2)).
  • You must assess accommodation requests and may deny only if accommodation prevents the job from being done, endangers others, or causes undue hardship. You should weigh health, safety, and cost (Bill, CLC s.147.01(1); CHRA s.15(2.1)).
  • Transportation service providers must accommodate individuals affected by their medical history unless undue hardship is shown (Bill, CHRA s.15(2.1)).
  • You may need to update policies on vaccination, remote work, and accommodations to align with the new rules (Bill, CLC s.147; s.147.01).

• Governments and agencies

  • Changes apply to matters under federal authority and to employers covered by the Canada Labour Code (Bill, CHRA s.2; CLC s.147; s.147.01).

Expenses#

• Estimated net cost: Data unavailable.

• Key points:

  • The bill contains no direct appropriations, taxes, or fees (Bill, passim).
  • Employment Insurance: More people could qualify for benefits if they lost jobs solely due to a health decision. No fiscal estimate is provided. Data unavailable (Bill, EI Act amendment after s.35).
  • Compliance: Employers and transportation providers may face accommodation and policy update costs. No estimates provided. Data unavailable.

Proponents' View#

• Expands human rights protections by adding conscientious belief and medical history, giving people clear grounds to file complaints and seek remedies (Bill, CHRA s.3(1)).
• Reduces the risk of unfair job loss or punishment for personal health decisions through anti-reprisal and accommodation rules (Bill, CLC s.147(1)(b.1); s.147.01).
• Balances individual rights with safety and cost by using an undue hardship test for both workplaces and transportation services (Bill, CLC s.147.01(1); CHRA s.15(2.1)).
• Ensures people who lose work solely for a health decision are not denied EI support, keeping a basic safety net in place (Bill, EI Act amendment after s.35).
• Requires employers to consider medical evidence of immunity from prior COVID-19 infection when vaccination is a job condition, aligning decisions with evidence set in regulation (Bill, CLC s.147.01(2)-(3)).

Opponents' View#

• May weaken enforcement of public health and safety rules by making vaccine mandates and related policies harder to apply in federally regulated workplaces and transportation (Bill, CLC s.147.01; CHRA s.15(2.1)).
• Introduces legal uncertainty and potential litigation because key terms—“conscientious belief,” “medical history,” and “certain decisions in relation to their health”—are not defined (Bill, CHRA s.3(1); CLC s.147(1)(b.1)).
• Imposes new administrative and compliance costs on employers and carriers to process accommodation requests and prove undue hardship, without funding (Bill, CLC s.147.01; CHRA s.15(2.1)).
• Could increase EI program costs by expanding eligibility to people dismissed for health decisions; no fiscal analysis is provided (Bill, EI Act amendment after s.35; Data unavailable).
• Leaves gaps until regulations define how prior infection evidence should be assessed, which could cause inconsistent application in the near term (Bill, CLC s.147.01(3)).