Protecting Workers' Reproductive Health: Lessons from Quebec and Other Statutory Regimes

JANIS SARRA

ABSTRACT

Employees are exposed to numerous reproductive health risks in their employment. Possible statutory remedies for these risks in human rights, health and safety, and workers' compensation legislation are analyszed. Outside of Québec, the legislative regimes do not appear to be effective in either reducing the level of risk, or allowing employees to protect their incomes if they decide to have a child while working for an employer whose workplace contains risks. In fact, these regimes are hardly ever utilized to address reproductive health issues. Québec, however, has a unique regime for the protection of pregnant and nursing employees. An employee who produces a medical certificate is entitled to reassignment or paid leave while pregnant or nursing. The Québec legislation is widely utilized by employees. The contrasting levels of utilization indicate that the problem in the rest of Canada is not there there no reproductive hazards, but rather, an effective statutory scheme is lacking. One of the foundation blocks of such a scheme should be income protection for workers during times when they are most vulnerable to reproductive hazards.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Citation: (1995) 53(2) U.T. Fac. L. Rev. 272.
Copyright © 1995. University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review.
All rights reserved.