Provisions under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

This article discusses the provisions under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and their impact on businesses in Canada. It focuses on the freedom of association and equality rights, highlighting relevant court cases and the advantages of these provisions. The article concludes with the opinion that the Charter has been beneficial for protecting the rights and interests of employees in the country.

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Business Law

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There are a number of provisions issued under the Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms (hereinafter referred as “the Charter”) after it becomes a part of the Constitution
Act 1982. Its features affect the businesses operating in Canada since they are issued in order
to protect various rights of individuals in the country (PARL, 2019). One of such feature is
the “Freedom of association” which is recognised pursuant to section 2(d) of the Charter. As
per this right, workers have the right to join any trade unions or other groupings without any
restrictions. They also have the right to “not” join any unions or grouping if they do not want,
and no one can enforce them. The advantage of this right can be analysed by the judgement
of Black v Law Society of Alberta [1989] 1 SCR 591 in which the Supreme Court of Canada
established that workers have constitutional protection in order to earn a living while joining
an association which is protected through the Charter as well (Lexum, 2019).
Another relevant feature that affects businesses in Canada is the “equality rights”
which are recognised in the Charter. Discrimination is strictly prohibited through this
provision on the basis of individual differences between employees such as age, sex, religion,
caste, race, disability or colour (PARL, 2019). Currently, this provision plays a major role in
recognising the rights of people from the LGBT community in Canada by ensuring that they
are not discriminated by businesses, which shows its advantage. This right was further
recognised by the court in the case of R. v. Andrews [1989] 1 S.C.R. 143. It was held in this
case that section 15 protects the rights of employees to treat equally in the workplace and
receive equal opportunities as well. Due to this provision, many Canadian companies have
changed their policies to remove mandatory retirement at the age of 65.
It is my opinion that Canadian will not be better off before the introduction of the
Charter since it assisted in recognising a number of human rights that protects the interest of
employees in the country. Other advantages of this charter include protection against
unreasonable search and seizure, right to speak with a lawyer and protection against arbitrary
detention (Canada, 2018). Various women rights in the workplace are also recognised
through this Charter, and it ensures that businesses did not exploit the interest of their
employees through their actions which shows the advantages of this Charter; therefore, it is
better than the Charter is introduced in Canada.

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References
Black v Law Society of Alberta [1989] 1 SCR 591
Canada. (2018). Guide to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Retrieved June 2,
2019 from https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/how-rights-
protected/guide-canadian-charter-rights-freedoms.html
Constitution Act 1982
Lexum. (2019). Black v. Law Society of Alberta. Retrieved June 2, 2019 from https://scc-
csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/432/index.do
PARL. (2019). Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Retrieved June 2, 2019 from
https://lop.parl.ca/About/Parliament/Education/ourcountryourparliament/
html_booklet/canadian-charter-rights-and-freedoms-e.html
R. v. Andrews [1989] 1 S.C.R. 143