A departmental plan describes a department's priorities, plans, and associated costs for the upcoming three fiscal years.
Read the full Departmental results report
Key priorities
The Canadian Human Rights Commission's top priorities for 2025–2026 are as follows:
- engaging in promotion, monitoring, and advocacy efforts to achieve meaningful change, and advance human rights in Canada;
- providing meaningful access to human rights justice through timely and fair dispute resolution processes;
- overseeing and enforcing compliance with statutory human rights obligations in accessibility, pay equity, and employment equity;
- modernizing the Commission to meet emerging challenges and opportunities in delivering our mandate; and
- fostering a diverse and thriving workforce and workplace that embodies the values of the Commission, and that is dedicated to excellence in advancing human rights.
Highlights
In 2025–2026, total planned spending (including internal services) for the Canadian Human Rights Commission (the Commission) is $39,491,498 and total planned full-time equivalent staff (including internal services) is 283.
For complete information on the Commission's total planned spending and human resources, read the Planned spending and human resources section of the full plan.
The following provides a summary of the department's planned achievements for 2025–2026 according to its approved Departmental Results Framework. A Departmental Results Framework consists of a department's core responsibilities, the results it plans to achieve, and the performance indicators that measure progress toward these results.
Core responsibility 1: Engagement & Advocacy
Planned spending: $5,976,730
Planned human resources: 37
Departmental results:
- Full compliance with the Paris Principles.
- People in Canada are informed of their rights and responsibilities.
- CHRC interventions influence law and support the advancement of human rights, employment equity, pay equity and accessibility.
In 2025–2026, the Commission will prioritize advocacy and engagement efforts to address and combat systemic racism and discrimination, promote human rights, and represent the public interest. We will continue to adhere to the Paris Principles and maintain our “A”-Status designation. Through strategic participation in hearings, collaboration, and meaningful engagement with stakeholders, rights holders and equity-deserving groups, we will address systemic human rights challenges, foster dialogue to enhance understanding of rights and obligations, and drive meaningful, long-term change. We will focus our efforts on reducing barriers, improving access to human rights justice, and strengthening equity across initiatives to promote, uphold, and advance federal human rights protections in Canada.
More information about Engagement & Advocacy can be found in the full plan.
Core responsibility 2: Complaints
Planned spending: $13,734,341
Planned human resources: 95
Departmental results:
- People in Canada have access to a complaint system for human rights, pay equity and accessibility.
- Complaints are resolved consistent with private and public interests.
In 2025–2026, the Commission will provide people in Canada with accessible complaint systems for human rights, pay equity, and accessibility by enhancing procedures, tools, and support services.
For complaints under the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA), efforts will include refining the Accountability Framework to dismantle barriers for equity-deserving groups (including for Indigenous, Black, and other racialized people in Canada), using a trauma-informed approach, updating templates and systems to improve accessibility and efficiency, and strengthening partnerships with legal clinics and community organizations to support rights holders.
CHRA complaints will be resolved in ways that balance private and public interests through expanded use of mediation, conciliation, and case conferencing to encourage collaboration and early resolution. Public awareness will also be increased through resources like mediation guides and videos, while procedural updates will improve efficiency and accessibility for users.
For complaints under the Pay Equity Act (PEA), the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner (OPEC) will improve the PEA dispute resolution process by providing services online, expanding mediation and case conferencing, building a body of jurisprudence through timely decisions, and improving data management with a new Case Management System.
For complaints under the Accessible Canada Act (ACA), the Office of the Accessibility Commissioner (OAC) will streamline the ACA complaints process by ensuring it is accessible and efficient, while exploring digital solutions and developing tools to enhance the management and processing of complaints with a user-centred approach.
More information about Complaints can be found in the full plan.
Core responsibility 3: Proactive Compliance
Planned spending: $8,421,165
Planned human resources: 59
Departmental results:
- Employers are fostering a work environment that promotes equality of opportunities.
- Workplace parties have the tools and support to implement the pay equity plan process.
- Regulated entities have published accessibility plans, feedback mechanism and progress reports.
In 2025–2026, under our Employment Equity mandate, the Commission will support employers in fostering equality of opportunity by publishing a sector-wide employment equity horizontal audit report on racialized people in management and executive positions in the public service, launching compliance audits from each of its three audit processes, and issuing up to 20 individual audit reports.
The Pay Equity Commissioner will continue to develop guidance and tools to help employees, bargaining agents, and employers understand their rights and obligations under the PEA. The Commissioner will also finalize and implement an online service for managing employer data, develop an Administrative Monetary Penalties policy, and launch a pay equity audit program.
Finally, the Accessibility Commissioner will enhance information management technology to communicate with regulated entities, promote, monitor and enforce compliance with the ACA, and handle ACA complaints. The Commissioner will continue to develop and implement programming in support of new regulations.
More information about Proactive Compliance can be found in the full plan.