Glossary of Terms and Definitions

the harmful treatment of an individual or group, based on certain personal characteristics. The Saskatchewan Human Rights Code establishes which characteristics (referred to as "prohibited grounds") are covered. They are: mental or physical disability, age (18 and over), religion or religious creed, family status (being in a parent-child relationship), marital status, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), sexual orientation, ancestry, colour, race or perceived race, nationality, place of origin, and receipt of public assistance (provincial).

Discrimination does not need to be intentional to be illegal. For example, a rule or policy may be developed for good business reasons but have an unintended, significant negative effect on a certain group of employees.