independent contractor

Common law reasonable notice of termination for independent contractors?

May 31, 2019 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

In the recent decision in Cormier v 1772887 Ontario Limited, an Ontario Superior Court judge stated that in some circumstances it would be reasonable to consider an employee’s years of service as an independent contractor in calculating his or her common law reasonable notice period.

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Claiming constructive dismissal as an independent contractor

March 20, 2018 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

Can independent contractors claim damages for constructive dismissal? In a decision released March 7, 2018 by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Barresi v Jones Lang LaSalle Real Estate Services, Inc., 2018 ONSC 837, the answer to that question was essentially yes. Facts The case concerned a commercial real estate broker, Barresi, who was retained […]

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Divisional court finds employer demonstrated bad faith and acted as “puppeteer” in wrongful termination case of fixed-term independent contractor

January 18, 2018 De Bousquet PC Barristers and Solicitors Employee Relations, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements

The recent case of Radikov v. Premier Project Consultants Ltd et al. is a cautionary tale of the importance of good faith in consulting contracts after the Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed Premier’s appeal, finding Premier had acted as a “puppeteer” by keeping Mr. Radikov at its “beck and call” before terminating his fixed term contract two days before completion and refusing to pay the outstanding fixed-term contract price.

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Dependent contractor receives 12 months pay in lieu of notice

September 13, 2017 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Penalties and Fines, Pensions and Benefits, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

The recent Supreme Court decision of Glimhagen v. GWR Resources Inc., 2017 BCSC 761, illustrates how an independent contractor can become a dependent contractor – an intermediate category on the spectrum between employee and independent contractor.

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Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

June 22, 2017 Cristina Lavecchia 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

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: Wages by occupation, 2016; The risks of mischaracterizing an employee as an independent contractor; and Employer ordered to pay over $53,000 for unpaid general holiday and vacation pay.

employment law, general holiday pay, independent contractor, vacation pay, wages

Using independent contractor not a “get out of jail free” card

April 12, 2017 Stringer LLP Conferences, Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Training and Development, Wages and Compensation

Learn the Latest at the Ontario Employment Law Conference

A business’ obligations to its workers will depend on whether the workers are employees or independent contractors. However, a recent decision reminds us that, even where a worker is a true independent contractor, this distinction may not preclude a business being liable to third parties, such as customers, when the worker does something wrong.

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Employee awarded $50,000 in punitive damages in wrongful dismissal claim

February 10, 2017 Cristina Lavecchia 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

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently awarded an employee $50,000 in punitive damages in a wrongful dismissal claim because it was “rationally required” to punish the employer for its behaviour toward the employee and to meet “the objectives of retribution, deterrence, and denunciation”.

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Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

January 19, 2017 Cristina Lavecchia Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Source Deductions and Reporting, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: Meal and vehicle rates used to calculate travel expenses for 2016; important changes to form RC59 coming; and case about employee who was awarded punitive damages in dismissal claim.

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Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

October 13, 2016 Cristina Lavecchia Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: The Federal government`s introduction of legislation for a stronger Canada Pension Plan and a more secure retirement for Canadians; a case where the Ontario Labour Relations Board had to decide whether a worker was an employee, and not an independent contractor, as under the Employment Standards Act, 2000; employer compensation budgets for 2017.

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Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

March 24, 2016 Cristina Lavecchia Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Wages and Compensation

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: a case that looks at employment relationships, particularly between dependent and independent contractors; a case that looks at workplace accommodation for an employee who uses medical marijuana; and proposed amendments to Ontario legislation in relation to the public use of e-cigarettes and medical marijuana, that would have a variety of impacts on the public, businesses, and employers.

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Employee or contractor? That is the $64,000 question

March 8, 2016 Doug MacLeod, MacLeod Law Firm Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

For over 25 years, clients have been asking me whether a person is an employee or a contractor in various legal contexts.

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A brave new world? – Probably not but employers sometimes have to deal with 26 months’ notice and “dependant contractors”

March 2, 2016 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

The Ontario Court of Appeal has further shattered the “24 month maximum” myth. In Keenan v. Canac Kitchens Ltd., the Court of Appeal upheld a Trial Judge’s finding that two long service workers were “dependent contractors” and therefore entitled to 26 months’ reasonable notice on termination.

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Employee v. contractor

September 5, 2014 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

The distinction between employees and contractors is an issue that will not go away. As I have written about in the past, there seems to be a trend toward giving workers the option of being treated as an employee or a contractor, though the reality is that this impacts nothing other than how they are paid.

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Executive chef loses attempt to unilaterally change status from independent contractor to employee

February 10, 2014 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Penalties and Fines, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

Many of the cases I have reviewed in recent years on the question of whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee have inevitably determined that the worker is an employee. While there are some notable exceptions to this trend, I find myself surprised whenever I read a decision that concludes that the worker is in fact an independent contractor. Therrien v Minister of National Revenue, 2013 TCC 116 is one such case.

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Most-viewed articles this week on HRinfodesk

July 18, 2013 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Corporate Immigration, Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

The three most viewed articles on HRinfodesk this week deal with a company that was the author of its own misfortune when insisting on treating an employee as independent contractor; claims of working notice and constructive dismissal; and the reform of the temporary foreign worker program.

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