Friday, January 27th, 2012
Here’s an interesting case from the British Columbia Court of Appeal. When an employer left a termination letter on a bus driver’s seat for him to find, The Court found there was inadequate notice of termination. The fact that the bus driver left work immediately instead of working the notice period did not negate his right to sue for damages in lieu of notice.
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, January 11th, 2012
Employers should never accept resignations from employees that are upset. It simply casts a “wider net of possible financial exposure” if things turn nasty. In other words, judges or juries probably won’t sympathize with the issue of resignation acceptance if the employee is genuinely and legitimately upset (not because someone misplaced their red stapler).
Read the rest of this post »Thursday, October 6th, 2011
As I and others have frequently commented, there is widespread confusion and misunderstanding regarding how our courts determine the amount of notice of dismissal (sometimes referred to as “severance”) an employee is entitled to. The recent decision of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench in Coppola v. Capital Pontiac Buick Cadillac GMC Ltd. provides a fairly thorough analysis.
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
A recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision dealt with a number of issues arising from the dismissal without cause or notice of a Senior Vice President of an investment company. One of the more difficult issues addressed at trial, and considered by the Court of Appeal, was the trigger date for the right of the employer to re-purchase the employee’s two percent interest in the company.
Read the rest of this post »Wednesday, February 9th, 2011
Dealing with disabled employees can be a vexing issue for most employers. A number of questions arise when an employee takes time off either temporarily or permanently due to a disability, whether physical or mental. These issues include:
Read the rest of this post »Thursday, December 2nd, 2010
A topic that I address often in presentations and with clients is the failure, on the part of the vast majority of employers in Canada, to use employment agreements properly (if at all). As I have said many times, policies and agreements are the easiest ways for employers to establish the rights and obligations of the parties and avoid having them imposed by common law or other principles.
Read the rest of this post »Tuesday, September 21st, 2010
Most employers understand a claim for damages for wrongful dismissal as arising from the termination of an employee’s employment without adequate cause or notice. It can be argued that this in fact reflects a misconception of the nature of the employment contract. Except in certain limited cases of federally regulated companies,…
Read the rest of this post »Thursday, August 5th, 2010
One crucial piece of advice that I offer to employers is to have every single employee sign an employment agreement that, if nothing else, sets out what will happen in the event of dismissal without cause. The reason for this suggestion is simple: without a contractual dismissal provision, an employer’s obligations in the event of dismissal without cause are unpredictable and often extensive.
Read the rest of this post »Friday, January 22nd, 2010
I recently read an Alberta case where a financial consultant, a top performer, was terminated without notice. The court found he was wrongfully dismissed and terminated in an insensitive manner; this error in judgment cost the employer $2.2 million in damages.
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Leslie D Foreman:Andrew Taillon:
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