• First Reference
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Blog Signup 📨
  • 22nd Annual Ontario Employment Law Conference 📢

First Reference Talks

Discussions on Human Resources, Employment Law, Payroll and Internal Controls

  • Home
  • About
  • Archives
  • Resources
You are here: Home / Employment Standards / Mitigating damages in a time of uncertainty

By Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, Ph.D. | 2 Minutes Read February 18, 2011

Mitigating damages in a time of uncertainty

The mitigation of damages has become a hot employment law issue. In this recent British Columbia case, the employee was entitled to damages for wrongful dismissal after the employer terminated her during the economic downturn. Although the employer argued that the employee failed to mitigate her damages when she did not accept the employer’s subsequent offer of re-employment, the Court found that the uncertainty of the offered work and payment was such that the employee did not act unreasonably when she declined the job offer. Thus, the employee was entitled to 12 months’ termination notice.

To be successful with its argument, the employer had to show that a reasonable person in the employee’s position would have accepted the employer’s offer.

When defending her reasons for not returning to the employer, the employee’s main argument was that the re-employment was too uncertain. Even though it appeared that the employer was offering the employee the same job with the same client at the same wages and working conditions, it was not really the same.

That is, the employee was not sure of the company’s long-term prospects of survival. The months prior to the termination were difficult and stressful, and half the staff had been laid off. Also, the employer was unable to meet payroll during the difficult period before the employee’s termination, it had left its office space mid-lease, and was locked out of shared space due to the landlord’s bankruptcy. The financial status of the company was not stable.

Though the employer had just secured a new contract that called for 15 to 18 months of work when the employee was re-offered the job, that client was known for not paying on time, and in the past had ended a contract before the completion date.

Therefore, the employee felt as though she was being offered a job where she may not get paid in a timely manner.

The Court found that there was a basis for the employee’s fear about the uncertainty of the flow of work and the ability of the employer to pay her for her work in the short term. The Court also considered the fact that the employee was in poor health due to post-surgical complications at the time.

Ultimately, the Court concluded that the employer could not prove that the employee acted unreasonably and failed to mitigate her losses when she refused the offer of re-employment.

What’s more, the employee did make serious attempts to find another position but was unsuccessful. One of our bloggers, Stuart Rudner, has written an in-depth commentary regarding the issue of mitigation of damages as it relates to employees’ efforts to search for alternative employment.

Therefore, the employee was entitled to notice for wrongful dismissal in the amount of 12 months’ notice.

Christina Catenacci
First Reference Human Resources and Compliance Editor

  • About
  • Latest Posts
Follow me

Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, Ph.D.

Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, PhD, was called to the Ontario Bar in 2002 and has since been a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Christina worked as an editor with First Reference between 2005 and 2015 working on publications including The Human Resources Advisor (Ontario, Western and Atlantic editions), HRinfodesk, and First Reference Talks blog discussing topics in Canadian Labour and Employment Law. Christina obtained her Professional LLM Specializing in Labour Relations and Employment Law from Osgoode Hall Law School of York University in 2013, and recently earned her PhD in Law at the University of Western Ontario on October 23, 2020 in the area of privacy in the workplace.
Follow me

Latest posts by Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, Ph.D. (see all)

  • Working from home report: productivity - April 6, 2021
  • Joint investigation of Clearview AI - March 3, 2021
  • Lessons learned: largest data breach - February 2, 2021

Article by Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, Ph.D. / Employment Standards / alternative employment, attempts to find alternate employment, British Columbia, duty to mitigate, economic downturn, employment contract, employment law, Job offer, Mitigating damages, offer of re-employment, termination, termination notice, wrongful dismissal

Share with a friend or colleague

Learn the 10 essential HR policies in the time of COVID-19

Get the Latest Posts in your Inbox for Free!

About Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, Ph.D.

Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, PhD, was called to the Ontario Bar in 2002 and has since been a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Christina worked as an editor with First Reference between 2005 and 2015 working on publications including The Human Resources Advisor (Ontario, Western and Atlantic editions), HRinfodesk, and First Reference Talks blog discussing topics in Canadian Labour and Employment Law. Christina obtained her Professional LLM Specializing in Labour Relations and Employment Law from Osgoode Hall Law School of York University in 2013, and recently earned her PhD in Law at the University of Western Ontario on October 23, 2020 in the area of privacy in the workplace.

Footer

About us

Established in 1995, First Reference Inc. (known as La Référence in Quebec) provides Canadian organizations of any size with practical and authoritative resources to help ensure compliance.

First Reference Talks

  • Home
  • About
  • Archives
  • Resources

Main Menu

  • About First Reference
  • Resources
  • Contact us
  • 1 800 750 8175

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

We welcome your comments on our blog articles. However, we do not respond to specific legal questions in this space.
We do not provide any form of legal advice or legal opinion. Please consult a lawyer in your jurisdiction or try one of our products.


Copyright © 2009 - 2021 · First Reference Inc. · All Rights Reserved
Legal and Copyright Notices · Publisher's Disclaimer · Privacy Policy · Accessibility Policy