Excerpts
A Quebec regulation that excludes refugee claimants from receiving daycare subsidies effectively discriminates against women refugee claimants, the Supreme Court of Canada found in a split decision Friday, ruling that refugee claimants in the province are, in fact, eligible for subsidized childcare.
Writing for the majority, Justice Andromache Karakatsanis said the regulation violates s. 15(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees freedom from discrimination. Karakatsanis also found that the breach is not saved by s. 1 of the Charter, which holds that Charter rights can be subject to reasonable limits.
...
“This is really for all the thousands of refugee claimants who want to work and whose kids need help after the harrowing ordeal that they go through to come here,” Ataogul says.
Kanyinda is originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 2018, she arrived in Quebec with her three children and immediately made a refugee protection claim. Her refugee status was approved in 2021.
While her refugee claim was being processed, Kanyinda received a work permit from the province. She contacted three daycare centres to find subsidized childcare for her children, but was repeatedly rejected because her refugee claim was still pending.
...
Blocking access to subsidized daycare could worsen ‘economic disadvantages’
In Friday’s decision, Karakatsanis outlined the two-pronged test for determining whether a s. 15(1) Charter breach has occurred. First, a claimant must prove the challenged conduct “creates a distinction” based on the nine enumerated grounds of discrimination listed in s. 15(1) or analogous grounds. Second, the claimant must prove that the conduct “imposes burdens or denies a benefit in a manner that has the effect of reinforcing, perpetuating, or exacerbating disadvantage.”
Karakatsanis noted that in cases where a seemingly neutral rule or practice actually produces discriminatory effects, evidence that a specific group is disproportionately impacted will often also be relevant at the second stage of the test.
...
While the Quebec Court of Appeal said daycare subsidies should be available to refugee claimants with work permits, the high court majority reached a broader conclusion, holding that s. 3 of the RCR includes all parents living in Quebec who are refugee claimants, regardless of whether they hold work permits.
...