Quebec Hair Salon Ordered to Pay $500 to Non-Binary Person Over Website’s Gender Options

The Longueuil, Que., provincial courthouse is seen on April 22, 2024. The Canadian Press/Sidhartha Banerjee

Quebec’s Human Rights Tribunal has ordered a hair salon to pay $500 to a non-binary person, who said they were harmed after the salon’s website offered only male and female options.

The tribunal ordered Station10 hair salon in Longueuil, Que., to pay damages to Alexe Frédéric Migneault after ruling Migneault was the victim of discrimination.

Migneault went online in 2023 to book an appointment for a haircut at the Station10 hair salon, according to tribunal documents. The online form asked Migneault to specify whether the service would be for a man or a woman.

Migneault, who goes by “they” pronouns, was upset by this and contacted the salon to find a solution, but was told the only way to book an appointment online was to choose one of the two gender options, the order said.

Station10 said in an email attached to the tribunal ruling that the choice would have had no impact on the haircut itself, and that the business had never previously experienced problems with the LGBT community. Migneault voiced discomfort in an email reply to Station10. The email said Migneault was not comfortable entering false information into the website.

Migneault subsequently filed a complaint with the Commission on Human Rights and Youth Rights. The business offered Migneault a free haircut and modified its website to add a “gender neutral” appointment option, but Migneault maintained the complaint.

The commission ruled on June 13, 2024, that Migneault was a victim of discrimination based on gender identity and ordered Station10 to pay $500 in damages. The hair salon refused to pay, prompting Migneault to take the case to the Human Rights Tribunal.

Migneault asked the court for $12,500 in damages, while Station10 sought $5,000 in damages for abuse of the courts. The court rejected both requests on Feb. 5, 2026, but ordered Station10 to pay Migneault $500.

The tribunal said in its ruling that the salon could have avoided the dispute by allowing Migneault to book the appointment without having to choose between the two genders. The tribunal also said Station10 had no evidence its brand imagine had been damaged by the incident.

“Happy and relieved” was how Migneault described their response to the ruling. “Non-binary people shouldn’t be forced to pick man or woman,” Migneault told CBC News.

Station10 has said it is considering an appeal of the Tribunal’s decision. The business has until March 5 to decide.

Salon co-owner Alexis Labrecque has said the business initially felt “extorted” by Migneault, who has made complaints about other businesses in the past. Migneault went on a hunger strike in November 2023 to pressure the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec to add a non-binary gender option to the province’s health insurance cards.

A January 2024 Facebook post by Migneault said they had made more than 45 complaints against banks, airlines, charities, health-care providers, and stores. Many of the complaints have been brought before the Quebec Human Rights Tribunal.

The Epoch Times contacted Migneault and Station10 for a comment, but didn’t hear back before publication time.