Some people think the only reform necessary to Canada's human rights commissions is to remove the "thought crime" provisions that have ensnared the likes of Mark Steyn and me. Some people think that the rest of the work of these commissions is important for the truly downtrodden in our society.
They have no idea what they're talking about.
I've already written about two absurd cases in Alberta that have nothing to do with "hate messages" -- the restaurant that was convicted and fined $4,900 for daring to fire a kitchen manager who contracted Hepatitis...
The lads from Law is Cool have discussed this case in relation to Ezra's earlier column:
...the medical evidence, known to Alberta Family Restaurant at the time, was that the manager did not present a risk so long as standard kitchen hygiene was followed.
And point out that:
It is fortunate for the Restaurant (and the other employers mentioned in that paragraph) that human rights tribunals have exclusive jurisdiction to deal with employment matters involving discrimination. Had the cases been treated as standard wrongful dismissal cases before a court the awards would likely be greater and they would have been on the hook for costs. $4,900 would have been $ 49,000 or more. It is much cheaper for a defendant to defeat a frivolous claim and cheaper for a losing defendant to have the matter come before a tribunal than a court.
I would also note that for years I worked alongside a women with Hep C and while, when this was first revealed, some of her fellow employees (myself included) felt a bit icky, we were assured by medical staff that she was no danger to us in a white-collar, office environment. People gradually forgot about the matter.
Furthermore, Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman was also afflicted with Hep C. Nobody argued that he "could not do his job" because of it. Maybe Ezra was out in Calgary at the time
