employment agreement

Ontario Court of Appeal: Upon termination, employee’s shareholder rights distinct from common law entitlements

November 4, 2019 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Uncategorized, 0

In Mikelsteins v Morrison Hershfield Limited, the Ontario Court of Appeal held that an employee was not entitled to compensation over his common law notice period in connection with shares he had purchased under a shareholders agreement.

dismissal without cause, employment agreement, employment law, Notice of termination, shareholder agreement, statutory notice period

Fixed-term contract costs employer $1.2 million in severance

August 16, 2019 Vey Willetts LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, 0

Beware the fixed-term employment contract. That should be every employer’s mantra following the recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court in McGuinty v. 1845035 Ontario Inc. (McGuinty Funeral Home), 2019 ONSC 4108 (“McGuinty”).

constructive dismissal, employment agreement, employment law, fixed-term contract, Terminating a fixed-term contract early

Do all arbitration clauses in employment agreements violate the ESA?

July 29, 2019 Barry B. Fisher LL.B. Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

In Rhinehart v Legend 3D Canada (2019 ONSC 3296) Justice Sanfilippo was faced with a motion by the defendants to stay the action as the employment contract had an arbitration clause that said as follows:

arbitration agreement, arbitration clause, Dismissal, employment agreement, employment contract

Slate not wiped clean by release in context of share sale

January 3, 2019 Sean Bawden Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

Can an employee extinguish his statutory right to severance pay by way of a full and final release signed in the context of a share sale?

common law notice, employment agreement, employment law, fixed-term contract, fixed-term employment contract, pay in lieu of notice of termination, Severance pay, share sale, termination, wrongful dismissal claim

Choice of law provisions: Application of the Ontario Employment Standards Act to international employees

October 30, 2018 Sean Bawden Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

Can an employer and employee agree by contract that the laws of Ontario, Canada will apply to terms of their employment relationship, even if: (a) the employee works and is physically situated in in Los Angeles, California; and (b) the company is a New Jersey company with its head office in the State of Connecticut?

employment agreement, employment contract, employment law, ontario employment standards act

Alberta Court of Appeal rules on termination clause

July 9, 2018 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

The case of Holm in this article is a good reminder of the importance of drafting clear and unambiguous termination clauses and the consequences of failing to do so.

employment agreement, employment law, Notice of termination, Termination clause

What happens to employment contracts when an employer sells the assets of its business?

April 6, 2018 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

The Court of Appeal for Ontario has confirmed that in an asset sale, a purchaser’s offer of employment to a seller’s employee can constitute consideration for changes in an employment contract — including a new termination clause.

consideration, contractual termination provisions, employment agreement, employment contract, employment law, lack of consideration, reasonable notice, Termination provisions, wrongful dismissal

British Columbia Supreme Court rules on reasonable notice when an employee is terminated before their first day of work

December 5, 2017 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring

In Buchanan v. Introjunction Ltd., 2017 BCSC 1002, the Court considered a case where the employer terminated the plaintiff’s employment before he commenced work. The Court rejected employer’s argument that the probation period clause applied to limit its liability to provide notice of termination of employment.

employment agreement, employment law, Notice, Notice of termination, offer of employment, Probation period, reasonable notice, termination, wrongful dismissal

Update on probationary clauses from Ontario Court of Appeal

September 1, 2017 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

Recently, the Ontario Court of Appeal affirmed that the probationary clause, which provided, simply, “Probation…six months”, was enforceable, and that the employee was not entitled to anything more than the one week of pay in lieu of notice of dismissal pursuant to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”).

common law entitlement, common law reasonable notice, employment agreement, employment law, employment relationship, employment standards act, entitlements on termination, Ontario Court of Appeal, pay in lieu of notice, probationary clause, probationary clauses, probationary employee, probationary period, reasonable notice

Don’t take a chance on it: The uncertainty of ESA-only termination clauses

July 11, 2017 Occasional Contributors Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

In January 2017, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice released its decision in Cook v. Hatch upholding a less than perfect termination clause that failed to reference statutory severance pay or provide for continued health benefits during the statutory notice period. A month later, the Court of Appeal responded with its decision in Wood v. Fred Deeley Imports Ltd. where it overturned a motion judge’s ruling upholding a similar termination provision. And so, the age old debate about the enforceability of ESA-only termination provisions rages on.

contract, employment agreement, employment law, ESA entitlements, ESA requirements, Pensions and Benefits, recruiting and hiring, Severance pay, statutory notice period, termination, termination clauses, terms of employment

Can an employment agreement executed after the employee starts work be enforced? The Ontario Court of Appeal says yes.

June 21, 2017 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Human Resources, Recruiting and Hiring

In Wood v. Fred Deeley Imports Ltd., the Ontario Court of Appeal confirmed that a “written employment agreement is not unenforceable merely because the employee signs it after starting to work”. The Court found the trial judge’s inference to be reasonable, noting that Deeley did not claim she reviewed the terms of her employment for the first time on April 24, 2007, or that the contract contained any new material terms. The Court acknowledged that the contract was likely signed the day after Deeley started work as “a matter of administrative convenience.” In these circumstances, fresh consideration was not necessary.

contract, employment agreement, employment law, hiring, recruiting, recruiting and hiring, terms of employment

Departing employees gone rogue

June 19, 2017 Rubin Thomlinson LLP Employee Relations, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Privacy and Security

The business consequences of departing employees gone rogue were recently highlighted in Prim8 Group Inc. v Tisi. In that case, an officer and director of Prim8 Group Inc. (Tisi) resigned from his employment to set up a competing business. Two days before his resignation, Tisi removed electronic equipment from Prim8’s premises, some of which contained proprietary information, and refused to return it. Shortly thereafter, another employee resigned from Prim8 without notice to join Tisi’s competing business.

damages, departing employees, Employee resignation, employment agreement, employment law, exit strategy, general duty of good faith and fidelity, reasonable notice

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

April 6, 2017 Cristina Lavecchia Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: an employment agreement not signed before the first day of work; a volunteer in a coma who willingly assumed risks of the task that caused his injury; and the electronic distribution of T4 information slips.

Duty of care, employment agreement, employment contract, employment law, employment standards act, fresh consideration, occupational health and safety act, occupiers' liability, Occupiers’ Liability Act, OHSA, signing employment agreement before start date, T4, T4 information slips, Termination clause, volunteer, volunteer falls, volunteer injured, volunteer liability

Home renos and employment agreements: How employers can avoid the money pit

March 24, 2017 Rubin Thomlinson LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

With home repairs, there is risk in DIY. Similarly, employment agreements require the input of an expert. If you’re not an employment lawyer, don’t try this (i.e. drafting or revising an employment agreement) at home.

bonus entitlements, consideration, employment agreement, employment agreements, employment law, fresh consideration, severance packages

Wood vs. Oudin: Clarity in termination provisions

March 3, 2017 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

In Wood v Fred Deeley Imports Ltd., the Ontario Court of Appeal seemed to make a definitive statement about the interpretation of termination provisions in employment agreements: a court will invalidate them when they contain actual or technical deficiencies. However, the same Court’s decision last year in Oudin v Centre Francophone de Toronto seemed to reach a different conclusion: the court will apply contractual certainty to give effect to the parties’ intentions. Can the two be reconciled? Closer inspection reveals that each decision is specific to the employment agreements in each.

employment agreement, employment law, employment standards act, ESA, Oudin v Centre Francophone de Toronto, saving clause, termination, Termination provisions, Wood v Fred Deeley Imports Ltd.