Alberta’s government has tabled legislation that would stop public institutions from using diversity, equity and inclusion programs when they hire or promote staff. Those institutions include universities, school boards and municipalities. The bill would also end mandatory DEI training for their employees.

The changes are in Bill 33, the Justice Statutes Amendment Act, 2026 (No. 2), tabled in the legislature Tuesday afternoon. The bill amends the Alberta Human Rights Act.

According to a government fact sheet, provincial bodies could no longer rely on programs, policies or activities under section 10.1 of the act when making hiring or promotion decisions. Limited exceptions would be set out in regulation. The news release says a characteristic could still be considered where it is “genuinely required to perform the work.”

Mandatory workplace training would have to be “ideologically neutral” and focused on job duties. Required training on diversity, equity and inclusion “among others” would be prohibited. Training that employees reasonably need to do their jobs competently could continue.

The rules would cover employers under the Public Service Act, public agencies, Crown-controlled organizations, public post-secondary institutions, school boards and municipalities.

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“Hiring decisions should be about who is best qualified for the job,” Premier Danielle Smith said in the release.

Justice Minister Mickey Amery said Albertans “deserve to know that public-sector jobs are awarded to the best person for the job.” He said the amendments would support neutral hiring and training practices.

The release also quoted Geoffrey Sigalet, an assistant professor of political science at the University of British Columbia. He said public trust in universities and their research falls as Canadians learn more about demographic-based hiring.

The same bill makes several other changes:

• It removes the justice minister’s authority over Alberta Law Foundation bylaws, directives and approval of large grants.
• It stops parental and other leave from counting against lawyers seeking King’s Counsel appointments.
• It clarifies which matters applications judges at the Court of King’s Bench can hear.

Much of the detail is left to cabinet. Regulations would define key terms, decide which entities count as provincial bodies and set exemptions. The full reach of the ban won’t be known until those regulations are written. The government says hiring would remain subject to existing human rights protections, including the duty to accommodate and bona fide occupational requirements.