A pregnant employee may need a temporary reassignment better suited to her physical condition. The 
religious beliefs of an employee may give rise to the need for flexibility around scheduling or dress codes.

In fulfilling its duty to accommodate under the Human Rights Code, an employer must  do whatever it 
can, short of causing undue hardship. In assessing what constitutes undue hardship, the cost, and health 
and safety requirements are factors to be considered.

However, the threshold is high, and the legal test of undue hardship means much more than inconvenience. 
There must be a real question as to whether the measure taken to accommodate would affect the viability 
of some or all of the employer’s business.

If you are pursuing an accommodation, you should speak with your ETFO local to find out more about 
the process in your board.

Human Rights Code

 Complaints

Complaints may be brought under the Ontario Human Rights Code to the Human Rights Tribunal of 
Ontario as “applications” if it falls under one of the grounds in the Code. The Tribunal may decide not to 
hold a hearing if they determine that a grievance has already “appropriately dealt with the substance of 
an application”.

LONG TERM DISABILITY

Long Term Disability (LTD) coverage is available to members through group insurance benefits negotiated 
into your local collective agreement. This benefit is meant as an income replacement plan and protects 
your pension plan contributions in the event of an illness or injury that extends beyond your sick leave 
protection.

Members must meet the terms of the LTD contract to qualify for benefits. If you need to file a claim or are 
having difficulty getting your claim accepted, your local ETFO office or school board personnel will be 
able to assist you. If you are insured with the Ontario Teachers’ Insurance Plan (OTIP), staff at OTIP can 
also assist you with your claim. ETFO staff may become involved when an appeal of a denied claim has 
been turned down.

Please see ETFO’s resource booklet, “A Members Guide to LTD” at www.etfo.ca for additional information. 
Specific guidelines have been established by the ETFO Executive that outlines the type of assistance that 
may be provided by ETFO when an appeal of a denied claim has been unsuccessful.

WORKPLACE SAFETY AND INSURANCE BOARD

All accidents/injuries that occur on the worksite or that arise out of and in the course of employment, no 
matter how trivial, should be reported to the employer.

A WSIB claim should be filed if there is lost time or medical treatment was/is required as a result of a 
workplace accident. If you are injured at work you may qualify for benefits from the Workplace Safety 
and Insurance Board (WSIB).

Please see ETFO’s resource booklet, “A Members Guide to the WSIB” at www.etfo.ca for additional 
information. ETFO staff may become involved when a WSIB claim has been denied. Specific guidelines 
have been established by the ETFO Executive that outlines the type of assistance that may be provided 
by ETFO when a claim has been denied.

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