Toronto faces challenges to license landlords and control AirBnBs

Toronto faces challenges to license landlords and control AirBnBs

December 31, 2007

Many women in the workplace have been on the receiving end of rude or boorish behaviour from male colleagues who talk over or down to them in an effort to silence them, says Toronto labour and employment lawyer Deborah Howden.

The common term used to describe such conduct is "mansplaining," but what it really boils down to is discrimination, she tells AdvocateDaily.com.

“This happens in conversation where a man talks over a woman to either drown out her voice or explain to her something that is often within her own experience, knowledge or expertise,” Howden explains.

Some women have faced this type of situation in the form of an admonishment to be quiet or through outright pejoratives such as, “you’re being naïve or hysterical,” she adds.

“In its truest form, it’s discrimination because the behaviour stems from the sexist notion that the man’s knowledge — and voice — are more valuable than the woman’s,” says Howden, a partner with Shibley Righton LLP.

This article appeared on AdvocateDaily.com.  To read the complete story please click here.