Q: What duties do employers have when it comes to accommodating an employee, and can we ask for medical information?
A: Ontario’s Human Rights Code explicitly states that employers and unions have a legal duty to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities or medical conditions.
In the context of employment, the goal of accommodation is to support all employees in completing their work-related duties and to ensure that no one is unfairly excluded or discriminated against due to their disabilities or medical conditions.
Instead, an employer is obligated to adjust working conditions for the employee if accommodation does not cause the employer undue hardship.
The Ontario Human Rights Commission’s (OHRC) policy on “ableism and discrimination based on disability” sets out guidance on the type of medical information that is to be provided by the employee when they are requesting accommodation, such as changes to the work schedule, the work environment, or duties.
This includes the following information:
• the employee has a disability;
• a description of the limitations or needs associated with the employee’s disability;
• clarity regarding whether the employee can perform the essential duties or requirements of the job with or without accommodation;
• an outline of the type of accommodation(s) the employee may need to help them fulfil their job-related duties;
• regular updates about when the employee expects to come back to work (if they are on leave).
Recent legal jurisprudence
With respect to requests for medical information, a January 2026 decision sheds light on limitations for employers.
Association of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of Ontario (AMAPCEO) v. Ontario (Finance) dealt with a request for more medical information from an employee.
For context, AMAPCEO filed a dispute on behalf of a member referred to as “N” in January 2024.
In the dispute, AMAPCEO stated that N was cleared to return to work as of October 2023 by her doctor, but the employer did not allow her to return or attempt to accommodate her.
N was said to have dealt with a chronic medical condition which at times could impact her ability to perform the full duties of her position and/or may require accommodation from September 2022 through May 2025.
The employer took the position that if N was allowed to continue in her position, it would result in undue hardship for the employer as well as N’s colleagues.
Her employer requested a pre-hearing disclosure of N’s complete medical file.
Opposing counsel stated that the employer received all medical documents from N upon request and that she was not withholding any information.
Nimal Dissanayake, the arbitrator for the board, stated: “I do not agree that any time an employee seeks health-related accommodation the employer is entitled to full medical disclosure. The arbitral jurisprudence is well established that medical disclosure depends on a balancing of the need to keep medical information confidential, and the need for employers to defend when faced with accommodation grievances.”
He dismissed the employer’s request for further medical information.
Key takeaways
The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) states that employees are to request accommodation and explain their needs to the best of their ability, ideally in writing.
They are to answer questions from their employer and provide information from medical professionals where needed and as appropriate.
The OHRC states that an employer should accept the accommodation request in good faith, unless there are legitimate reasons for acting otherwise.
The OHRC also states that “overbroad” requests for private details such as diagnostic information “undermine the dignity and privacy of people with disabilities.”
The decision from the hearing outlined above supports this point.
