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

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Not-for-profits and internal controls

Not-for-profits and internal controls often have an uneasy relationship. On the one hand, many not-for-profits, especially the smaller ones, lack the resources to implement robust internal controls. Yet internal controls are as critical in not-for-profits as in for-profit entities. In some respects, internal control failures can be more catastrophic for not-for-profits because the public, regulators, and others often hold them to a higher standard.

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Maple Leaf Foods saves your bacon: Alberta Court of Appeal refuses to certify claim for pure economic loss

The Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that there is no general right in tort protecting against the negligent or intentional infliction of pure economic loss in Canadian law, and that the circumstances where pure economic loss will be recoverable are limited.

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The right to disconnect and IT departments

right to disconnect

The right to disconnect refers to an employee’s right to disengage from work-related communications and other work outside of their normal working hours. Ontario enacted changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) to enforce this right in organizations with 25 or more employees. The changes received royal assent on December 2, 2021, and require compliance by June 2, 2022.

At first blush, the right to disconnect may appear to be a labour and employment issue. However, IT departments will have significant roles to play in enabling compliance with the letter and spirit of the new requirements.

Organizations will be looking to their IT departments to implement technological or automated solutions. Employers around the globe have implemented solutions including the following, to comply with legislated or voluntary right to disconnect policies:

  1. Taking mail servers offline after business hours. Anyone emailing the organization receives an automated message that the server is
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Established in 1995, First Reference is the leading publisher of up to date, practical and authoritative HR compliance and policy databases that are essential to ensure organizations meet their due diligence and duty of care requirements.

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