This issue is still undecided, and the main consideration is safety. Since the 1990’s, WSO has worked with individual employers across the country, such as sawmills, to grant exemptions to their employees from the wearing of hard hats. Presently, employers from diverse regions across the country are willing to accommodate the dastar. In Bhinder v. Canadian National Railway Co., the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that a policy making hard hats mandatory could be upheld. Subsequent Supreme Court of Canada judges have commented that they might have decided the Bhinder case very differently had it been commenced after the coming into force of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. As yet, no case has gone back before the Supreme Court of Canada dealing with the hard hat and dastar issue. If you or someone you know is having difficulty, with your employment due to hard hat requirements, you should contact the WSO.
Can my employer stop me from wearing my dastaar?
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