Laicity in Quebec: greater flexibility for private-sector employers regarding religious accommodations

The adoption of an Act respecting the reinforcement of laicity in Québec (the Act) on April 2, 2026, marks a significant change in the framework governing religious accommodations in Quebec. While this reform is primarily associated with reinforcing laicity within certain public institutions, it also introduces a new legal framework applicable to private-sector employers.

Having come into force upon assent, this new regime invites employers to review their policies and practices regarding religious accommodations in order to align them with the new, less onerous legislative requirements and avoid creating a more burdensome contractual regime. Upcoming court decisions will be instrumental in clarifying the scope of this new standard and its practical effects on the management of religious accommodation requests in the workplace.

A New Framework Applicable to Private Employers

One of the principal changes introduced by the Act is the extension of a uniform legislative framework governing religious accommodations to the private sector. As a result, any accommodation request based on religion arising from the right to equality must now be assessed according to the “more than minimal hardship” standard. This new regime also benefits from special protection, as it is accompanied by a double notwithstanding clause with respect to the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and certain provisions of the Constitution Act, 1982.

From “Undue Hardship” to “More Than Minimal Hardship”

A significant change for employers concerns the threshold for refusing a request for religious accommodation. Historically, an employer was required to demonstrate that an accommodation measure would result in undue hardship before it could be denied. The Act now provides that an accommodation is reasonable only if it does not impose “more than minimal hardship” on the employer.

This assessment must take into account, among other things, respect for the rights of others, the health and safety of individuals, the proper operation of the body having received the request, and the related costs. In this regard, explanatory comments made during the parliamentary session of February 17, 2026, indicate that lowering the applicable threshold could, for example, justify the refusal of a religious accommodation request where it results in an increased workload for other employees or imposes moderate costs on the organization.

This reform creates a framework that is more favourable to employers in the handling of religious accommodation requests. By introducing the “more than minimal hardship” standard, the legislature grants employers greater flexibility to assess the operational, organizational, and financial impacts of an accommodation request. This distinction is particularly significant because religious accommodations are now subject to a different threshold than other accommodation requests, which generally continue to be assessed under the undue hardship standard.

In practice, this new approach could have tangible implications for requests involving, notably, modifications to work schedules, leaves of absence for religious reasons, or certain adjustments to working conditions.

Conclusion

The Act redefines the balance between employees’ freedom of religion and the operational needs of private-sector employers. While it does not eliminate the duty to accommodate, it provides employers with greater flexibility by introducing the “more than minimal hardship” standard, which replaces the traditional undue hardship test in the context of religious accommodations. As a best practice, employers should review their workplace policies and accommodation language to ensure they do not inadvertently commit to a higher contractual standard by continuing to state that religious accommodations will be provided up to the point of undue hardship. Instead, such policies should include language that sets out the new legal standard for religious accommodations clearly.

For more information or if you have any questions regarding the obligations of private-sector businesses and employers in Quebec, please contact one of the lawyers in the Employment and Labor Law Group at DLA Piper (Canada) LLP’s Montreal office.