What Counts as Sexual Harassment at Work in Alberta? A Worker's Guide

In Alberta, sexual harassment at work is covered by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Unwanted sexual advances, comments or conduct count, even if it happened once. Here is what it looks like, how to report it, what your employer has to do next, and where else you can turn.

Short answer: in Alberta, sexual harassment at work is any unwelcome sexual comment, conduct, advance or request that the person knows, or should reasonably know, will offend or humiliate you, or that affects your health and safety. It does not have to happen more than once. The Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act names a sexual solicitation or advance as harassment, and your employer has a legal duty to prevent it and deal with it.

This guide is written for workers. It explains what counts, gives everyday examples, walks through reporting and what happens after, and lists the places you can go if things are not handled at work. If you are an employer building your plan, our guide to the Alberta violence and harassment prevention plan is the better starting point.

Key facts about sexual harassment at work in Alberta

• The OHS Act defines harassment as a single incident or repeated incidents of objectionable or unwelcome conduct, comment, bullying or action that the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, will cause offence or humiliation, or that adversely affects a worker's health and safety.
• The definition specifically includes a sexual solicitation or advance.
• One serious incident is enough. It does not need to be a pattern.
• Employers must ensure, as far as reasonably practicable, that workers are not subjected to harassment and do not take part in it.
• Every Alberta employer must have a violence and harassment prevention plan under section 390 of the OHS Code, with a way to report and a process to investigate.
• Your employer must keep reports confidential, except where disclosure is required by law or needed to investigate, take corrective action or inform the people involved.
• It is against the OHS Act to discipline a worker for acting in line with the Act, and a worker can complain to an OHS officer within 180 days.
• The Alberta OHS Contact Centre is at 1-866-415-8690 (780-415-8690 in Edmonton).

What counts as sexual harassment at work?

Sexual harassment is unwelcome behaviour of a sexual nature, or behaviour aimed at you because of your sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation. What matters is how the behaviour lands and whether a reasonable person would know it was unwelcome. "I was only joking" is not a defence.

It can come from anyone you deal with through work: a co-worker, a supervisor, a manager, a contractor on the same site, a client or a member of the public. It can happen at the shop, in a camp, in a work truck, at a staff event or online, through texts, group chats and social media.

Normal management is not harassment. A supervisor who assigns work, corrects your performance or enforces a safety rule in a reasonable way is doing their job. The OHS Act says so directly.

What are some examples of sexual harassment?

Sexual harassment covers a wide range of behaviour, from comments to physical contact. Common examples include:

• Repeated requests for dates or sexual favours after you have said no, or made it clear you are not interested.
• Sexual jokes, comments about your body, clothing or sex life, or sexual "compliments" that make you uncomfortable.
• Unwanted touching, brushing against you, standing too close or blocking your way.
• Showing or sending sexual images, videos, memes or messages, including in a work group chat.
• Staring or gestures of a sexual nature.
• Suggesting that shifts, overtime, a promotion or a good reference depend on going along with sexual behaviour.
• Spreading sexual rumours about someone, or mocking someone because of their gender identity or sexual orientation.

What if I'm not sure it counts?

If something at work made you feel uncomfortable, humiliated or unsafe, it is worth writing down and talking about, even if you are not sure it is harassment. You do not need to decide the legal answer. That is what your employer's investigation process is for.

Some people worry about "accidentally" harassing someone. A simple test helps: would you say or do it in front of your manager, or if the person's family were standing there? If someone asks you to stop, stop, and don't make them explain why. Our online Preventing Sexual Harassment for Employees course covers these grey areas in about 30 minutes.

How do I report sexual harassment at work?

Report it using the process in your employer's violence and harassment prevention plan. Every Alberta employer must have one, and it must tell workers how to report and who to report to. Ask your supervisor, HR or health and safety committee for a copy if you have not seen it.

1. If you feel safe doing so, you can tell the person clearly that the behaviour is unwelcome and must stop. You do not have to do this first. Many people go straight to reporting.
2. Write down what happened: the date, time, place, what was said or done, and who else was there. Keep texts, emails or screenshots.
3. Report it to the person named in the plan. If the person harassing you is your supervisor, most plans name someone else to report to, such as a more senior manager or HR.
4. Keep a copy of your report and note who you gave it to and when.
5. Look after yourself. Ask your employer about the support services or employee assistance program available to you.

What happens after I report?

Your employer must investigate the report and take corrective action where it is needed. The OHS Code requires the prevention plan to set out how incidents and complaints are investigated and how the people involved are told about the results.

In practice, that usually means someone who is not involved talks to you, to the person you reported and to any witnesses, looks at messages or other records, and decides what happened. Corrective action can range from training and a formal warning to moving someone, removing a contractor from site or ending their employment. You may not be told every detail of the discipline, but you should be told that the investigation is complete and what is being done to stop the behaviour.

Your employer must keep the details confidential. They can only share information where the law requires it, or where it is needed to investigate, take corrective action or tell the people involved what they need to know.

Can I report anonymously, and am I protected from retaliation?

Some employers offer an anonymous tip line, but a fully anonymous report is hard to investigate, because the investigator usually needs to ask you questions. A confidential report is the more common route: your name is shared only with the people who need it to deal with the complaint.

You are protected from reprisal. Under the OHS Act, no one may take disciplinary action against a worker for acting in compliance with the Act, which includes using your employer's harassment reporting process. That covers being fired, demoted, cut back on shifts or treated worse because you reported.

If you believe you have been punished for reporting, you can file a complaint with an Alberta OHS officer within 180 days. Workers covered by a collective agreement take this through their union grievance process instead. Retaliation is also something your employer must investigate as a new complaint.

What does my employer have to do?

Your employer must take reasonable steps so that no worker is harassed at the work site, and so that no worker harasses others. Since March 31, 2025, the OHS Code has required one combined violence and harassment prevention plan. Workers have a right to be consulted on it.

• Have a written plan that covers how to report, how reports are investigated and how confidentiality is protected.
• Train workers so they can recognize harassment and know how to report it.
• Investigate every report and take corrective action.
• Tell workers about the support services available after an incident.
• Review the plan and keep it working.

The details of what the plan must contain, and what happens when employers get it wrong, are in our guide to the Alberta violence and harassment prevention plan.

Where else can I go for help?

If reporting at work does not work, or you are not comfortable reporting there, you have other options. You can use more than one.

• Alberta OHS Contact Centre: 1-866-415-8690, or 780-415-8690 in Edmonton. OHS can look at whether your employer is meeting its harassment duties, and handles disciplinary action complaints.
• Alberta Human Rights Commission: sexual harassment can also be discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity or sexual orientation. The Commission accepts complaints about discrimination at work. Time limits apply, so contact them early.
• Police: call 911 in an emergency, or your local police non-emergency line to report a sexual assault or threats.
• Your union, if you have one.
• Your employer's employee assistance program, or a local sexual assault support centre, for confidential support.

Other provinces and federally regulated workplaces, such as banks, airlines and interprovincial trucking, have their own rules. The basic rights are similar, but the process and contacts differ.

What should I do if I see it happen to someone else?

Bystanders make a real difference. You do not have to confront anyone to help. Safe options include:

• Interrupt or distract: start a work conversation, or ask the person to come help you with something.
• Check in afterwards: ask the person privately if they are okay and whether they want support.
• Back them up: offer to be a witness, and write down what you saw.
• Report it yourself: most prevention plans let any worker report harassment they see.
• Don't join in: laughing along or forwarding a message makes it worse.

Related training and guides

• Preventing Sexual Harassment for Employees (online course)
• Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention (supervisor package)
• Violence and Harassment in the Workplace (online course)
• The Respectful Workplace (online course)
• Alberta violence and harassment prevention plan: employer guide
• Online safety training for your team