COVID-19 AND HUMAN RIGHTS

Visit the COVID-19 and human rights page for information about general principles on maintaining best practices in human rights in Alberta.
 
The Commission has information about mask-wearing on our COVID-19 and human rights page. The Commission has not published or posted any online graphics or posters about mask-wearing.

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COMMISSION OFFICES
 
The Commission remains open. In order to comply with social distancing recommendations, there are no in-person services for conciliations, walk-in inquiry service, or appointments. Commission offices are open during regular hours for drop-off only. Tribunal offices are available by phone, email, fax, and mail.
 
We encourage people to communicate with us by phone, email, fax, and mail. Please contact the area of the Commission that relates to your issue:
 
  • Confidential Inquiry Line
    In-person services are not available. Please use our website to find the information you need or contact the confidential inquiry line if you require further assistance.
  • Complaint Resolution
    Conciliation meetings take place by telephone or videoconference, rather than in-person.
  • Tribunal Office
    Tribunal Dispute Resolution (TDR) meetings take place by videoconference or teleconference, rather than in-person. Tribunal hearings take place by videoconference. See the schedule of upcoming hearings for details. If you have questions about TDR meetings or tribunal hearings, contact the Tribunal Office.

  • Education and Engagement
    E-learning and other education resources are available online. Community engagements continue by videoconference or in-person when safe to do so.
The Commission will continue to monitor the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) situation closely.
By Ministerial Order (M.O. 27/2020), limitation periods pertaining to the Alberta Human Rights Act were suspended starting March 17, 2020 and resumed June 1, 2020. This continues to impact the set period of time some people have to make a complaint to the Commission.

COMMISSION NEWSLETTER
You can read the September 30, 2020 regular issue of the Commission newsletter.
CHIEF'S MESSAGE ON RAISING OUR VOICES AGAINST ANTI-BLACK RACISM
You can read a message from the Chief of the Commission and Tribunals.
REVISIONS TO THE TRIBUNAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION (TDR) PROCESS
To help further the Commission's efforts to continually improve our service provision and find efficiencies, the Tribunal Office is making changes to the scheduling process for Tribunal Dispute Resolution (TDR).
For any TDR scheduled after May 19, 2020, the Tribunal Office will schedule a date for the full-day TDR and provide that date to the parties six weeks in advance. If a party has a scheduling conflict, they have five business days to make a request to reschedule the TDR. In their request, the party must provide alternate dates that fall within 45 days of the scheduled TDR date. Any request to reschedule made more than five business after receiving the date will not be granted, unless there are exceptional circumstances (for example, an illness).
You can read more about TDRs here.
CHIEF'S MESSAGE ON COUNTERING RACISM DURING COVID-19
You can read a message from the Chief of the Commission and Tribunals.
REVISIONS TO THE COMPLAINT RESOLUTION PROCESS
In December 2019 the Commission launched revisions to its complaint resolution process to ensure that the large volume of complaints the Commission receives are resolved in a timely, effective, and fair manner. All human rights complaints received after January 1, 2019 will be assessed by a human rights officer to determine if the complaint will be resolved through an early resolution process, the Investigation Process, or the Conciliation Process. You can read more about the revisions to the complaint resolution process.

Please note: For complaints received before January 1, 2019, refer to the Complaint Inventory Resolution Project webpage.

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ABOUT THE COMMISSION
The Alberta Human Rights Commission is an independent commission of the Government of Alberta. Our mandate is to foster equality and reduce discrimination. We provide public information and education programs, and help Albertans resolve human rights complaints.

The Human Rights Education and Multiculturalism Fund has provided funding for this website.

Revised: November 24, 2020


Our vision is a vibrant and inclusive Alberta where the rich diversity of people is celebrated and respected, and where everyone has the opportunity to fully participate in society, free from discrimination.