Employers who offer benefits packages must ensure those benefits comply with Canadian and Saskatchewan human rights law. Pregnant employees cannot be treated differently than other employees when it comes to accessing benefits, even during statutory maternity leave. Denying benefits because a health need is pregnancy-related exposes employers and benefits providers to findings of discrimination on the basis of sex.
Both the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and The Saskatchewan Human Rights Code, 2018 prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex. The Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed that since pregnancy is closely connected to sex, pregnancy falls under the protected ground of sex.
In addition, employment standards legislation sets the baseline for leave entitlements. The Saskatchewan Employment Act (SEA) guarantees a minimum of 19 weeks of maternity leave. The SEA must be interpreted in line with human rights requirements.
So how does entitlement to a benefits policy interact with pregnancy, post-partem, and maternity leave?
In Brooks v. Canada Safeway (1989), the Supreme Court of Canada struck down a benefits policy that excluded employees from coverage during a fixed period around pregnancy and childbirth. The Court found this policy to be discriminatory because the purpose of a benefits plan is to protect employees who are unable to work for valid health-related reasons; pregnancy is no exception. Excluding pregnancy from coverage singled out pregnant people for disadvantage and therefore constituted discrimination based on sex.
What does this mean in practice for employers? Brooks sets a baseline that pregnancy-related health conditions must be treated the same way as any other medical condition under a benefits policy. While the SEA sets out the minimum entitlement to maternity leave, this leave does not automatically prevent employees from accessing the benefits included in their plan. It is both reasonable and may be legally required that statutory maternity leave and employment benefits overlap where medically justified. However, eligibility continues to depend on medical evidence showing that the employee meets the plan’s entitlement requirements.
Key takeaway for employers: Human rights law requires employers and benefits providers to ensure that pregnancy-related medical conditions, or conditions arising during childbirth, pregnancy, or the post-partem period, are treated the same as any other illness or disability under benefits policies.
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