US EditionMontreal salon must pay $500 to non-binary customer who said booking system was discriminatory
Quebec Human Rights Tribunal ruled Station10 salon discriminated by limiting online booking to binary gender options, ordering $500 damages to a non-binary client representing 0.15% of population.
- On a ruling issued earlier this month, the Quebec Human Rights Tribunal ordered Station10 hair salon in Longueuil to pay $500 to Alexe Frédéric Migneault after finding discrimination.
- The online booking form forced clients to choose male or female, blocking complainant Alexe Frédéric Migneault from booking, prompting a complaint to the CDPDJ.
- The tribunal found discrimination after emails showed staff said gender choice would not affect pricing and that they had previously accommodated 2SLGBTQ+ clients, despite the online form requiring a binary selection.
- Facing the deadline, the salon has weighed a counterclaim seeking $5,000, while patrons are donating to support an appeal, and it has until March 5 to contest the ruling.
- Advocates say the ruling could expose many businesses to legal risk, and Celeste Trianon warned this is not an isolated incident affecting transgender and non-binary people.
9 Articles
9 Articles
Quebec Hair Salon Ordered to Pay $500 to Non-Binary Person Over Website’s Gender Options
Quebec’s Human Rights Tribunal has ordered a hair salon to pay $500 to a non-binary person, who said they were harmed after the salon’s website offered only male and female options. The tribunal ordered Station10 hair salon in Longueuil, Que., to pay damages to Alexe Frédéric Migneault after ruling Migneault was the victim of discrimination. Migneault went online in 2023 to book an appointment for a haircut at the Station10 hair salon, according…
Non-binary client wins discrimination case against Montreal-area hair salon
Quebec's Human Rights Tribunal has ordered a Montreal-area hair salon to pay $500 in damages to a non-binary person. The individual filed a complaint because they were forced to choose between booking either a men's or a women's haircut.
The Human Rights Tribunal has ordered a hairdresser to pay $500 in compensation to a non-binary person, a first that could make a case in Quebec and that could lead businesses to better access to these people's requests, according to one expert. But this decision could also exacerbate the division of the debates around their rights, he is concerned.
The decision generated strong reactions and a wave of transphobic comments on social networks.
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