hostile work environment

Employers: A shining example of how not to treat your employees

August 19, 2016 Devry Smith Frank LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Penalties and Fines

Unfortunately, reasonable accommodation for employees in the workplace continues to be the source of significant litigation and even today we continue to see outrageous examples of employers behaving badly. A prime example of employer misconduct for failing to accommodate and providing reasonable notice is the case of Strudwick v Applied Consumer & Clinical Evaluations Inc. This case highlights a number of important lessons for employers.

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“Virtual slave” awarded $50,000 for injury to dignity

July 13, 2015 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Corporate Immigration, Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Penalties and Fines, Pensions and Benefits, Privacy and Security, Recruiting and Hiring, Training and Development, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

Human Rights Tribunal found nanny was sexually assaulted, isolated and underfed by employer.

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Quitting because of intolerable working conditions

March 10, 2015 Doug MacLeod, MacLeod Law Firm Employee Relations, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Training and Development, Union Relations

An employee has the right to quit and claim damages for constructive dismissal if an employer’s treatment of the employee was so bad that it makes continued employment intolerable.

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Employer’s unreasonable increase in duties and poor response to employee concerns constitutes constructive dismissal

March 10, 2014 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

Often constructive dismissal cases involving a change in duties arise from an employer’s unilateral reduction in an employee’s duties. However, Damaso v PSI Peripheral Solutions Inc, is just the opposite. An employee alleged that an employer’s unilateral increase in his duties resulted in his constructive dismissal.

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Number of arrests in the NFL: one too many bad apples?

July 29, 2013 Clear Path Employer Services Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, International HR Law, International Payroll, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation

If you’ve been following sports at all this month, you’ve likely heard about the number of high profile arrests involving members of the National Football League. This string of charges leads us to the question of how much responsibility, if any, an employer has for an employee’s behaviour outside of the workplace.

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Action for constructive dismissal unsuccessful where employee created hostile workplace

October 15, 2012 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources

The British Columbia Supreme Court recently expressed disapproval of a claim for constructive dismissal on the basis of negative treatment where the plaintiff was an active participant in the creation of the toxic work environment.

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‘Sexting’ becoming a problem in the workplace

August 5, 2011 Christina Catenacci Employee Relations, Human Resources, Human Rights

What prompts a supervisor or worker to send a co-worker inappropriate text messages? In British Columbia, sexually charged messages in the workplace have led to trouble for employers. What do employers need to know so they can avoid being on the hook for sexual harassment?

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When aggression and the workplace collide

July 13, 2011 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Human Rights

Aggression sometimes occurs in the workplace. That is a fact! And when conflicts are left unresolved, employers have employees resigning or taking tremendous amounts of sick leave to deal with these issues, or the aggression crosses the line into assault or battery, or you receive a human rights or occupational health and safety complaint.

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Introducing guest bloggers John Proctor and Nicole Legault

May 2, 2011 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Announcements and Administration

It’s a pleasure to welcome John Proctor and Nicole Legault as regular guest bloggers for First Reference Talks. They will be blogging on several topics, including how to protect the health and safety of employees in dangerous situations and working overseas, how to assess hostile situations and workplace environments…

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