Should discrimination always be bad? Can you make a case for a discriminatory policy that you know of in real life? Does the law do a good job in striking a balance between the interests of the individuals and the broader public interest?

BRITISH COLUMBIA (PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYEE RELATIONS COMMISSION) V. BCGSEU, [1999] 3 SCR 3, 1999 CANLII 652 (SCC)

The British Columbia government established minimum physical fitness standards for its forest firefighters. One of the standards was an aerobic standard. The claimant, a female firefighter who had in the past performed her work satisfactorily, failed to meet the aerobic standard after four attempts and was dismissed. The claimants union brought a grievance on her behalf.

Here, the claimant having established a prima facie case of discrimination, the burden shifts to the Government to demonstrate that the aerobic standard is a BFOR. The Government has satisfied the first two steps of the BFOR analysis. However, the Government failed to demonstrate that this particular aerobic standard is reasonably necessary to identify those persons who are able to perform the tasks of a forest firefighter safely and efficiently. The Government has not established that it would experience undue hardship if a different standard were used.