The Human Rights Code is a statute in the Canadian province of Ontario that guarantees equality before the law and prohibits discrimination in specific social areas such as housing or employment.
The code's goal specifically prohibits discrimination based on race, colour, gender identity or expression, sex, sexual orientation, disability, creed, age and other grounds.
The code replaced the province's existing anti-discrimination legislation, including: At the same time that the Ontario Human Rights Commission was created, the government of the day, led by Premier Leslie Frost introduced an amendment to the Fair Accommodation Practices Act to prohibit discrimination because of race, colour or creed in the renting of apartments in buildings which contain more than six units.
[2] The code prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, the receipt of public assistance (housing only), record of offences (employment only), or by association with a person identified by any of those grounds.
The code does not apply to federally regulated activities, such as banking, intra-provincial transportation, aeronautics and telecommunications, which are subject to the Canadian Human Rights Act.