pay in lieu of notice

Wrongful dismissal in Ontario: how do we calculate the value of lost benefits?

December 14, 2018 Vey Willetts LLP Employee Relations, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Wages and Compensation, 0

When an employee is fired and not given sufficient notice, a common point of dispute becomes how to properly calculate the lost value of non-monetary benefits.

employment law, lost benefits, non-monetary benefits, pay in lieu of notice, Pensions and Benefits, severance

Employee induced to leave his employment and terminated six months later awarded six months’ pay

November 9, 2018 De Bousquet PC Barristers and Solicitors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation

Greenlees v. Starline Windows Ltd. demonstrates the willingness of courts to award longer notice periods to short-term employees, particularly when the conduct of the employer induces the employee to leave his previous employment.

employment contract, employment law, pay in lieu of notice, recruiting, severance, termination, termination notice

Court awards six months’ pay in lieu of notice to employee terminated after six months

November 2, 2018 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation

In this case, the BC Supreme Court awarded an employee six months’ pay in lieu of notice after he was induced to leave his job for a new position, only to be dismissed six months later.

employment contract, employment law, pay in lieu of notice, recruiting, severance, termination

Ontario Court of Appeal finds clarity in termination clause

July 25, 2018 Stringer LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

The Court’s reversal in this case, while favourable to employers, emphasizes the occasional unpredictability of the law in this area. It is prudent to periodically review your contractual termination provisions for new hires.

common-law entitlements, employment law, pay in lieu of notice, statutory entitlements, Termination clause, termination notice

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.

contractual termination provisions, damage award, dependent contractor, employment law, independent contractor, pay in lieu of notice, reasonable notice, reasonable notice period, termination

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

Ontario court: “Total payroll” must be considered when assessing employer severance pay obligation

June 16, 2017 Vey Willetts LLP Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation

The Wissing case is an important decision for Ontario employees and employers alike. It confirms that in assessing an employee’s entitlement to statutory severance pay, the Courts will look at the employer’s total payroll, not just that of its Ontario operations.

Dismissal, employment law, employment standards act, ESA, Notice, pay in lieu of notice, Severance pay, termination, total payroll, Wissing et al. v. Adtran Networks Canada Inc.

Why bother with employment contracts?

October 14, 2016 Lisa Stam, Spring Law Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Union Relations

I had a client recently ask why he would bother going through the cost and efforts of doing up an employment contract, if he was going to have to fight with ex–employees’ lawyers and pay out a package in a without cause situation anyway. Good question.

employment contracts, employment law, Employment Standards legislation, entitlements upon termination, Just cause termination, pay in lieu of notice, terminate an employee, termination damages, Termination provisions, Without cause termination

An employer’s right when it comes to imposing changes to the employment relationship

August 5, 2016 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, Wages and Compensation

At its very core, the employment contract is a very simple one: an individual agrees to work, and the employer agrees to pay them for their effort. Of course, if everything were that simple, then employment lawyers, like myself, would not have very much to do. In addition to the plethora of other issues that can arise, we are often consulted by employers and employees in relation to proposed changes to the contract of employment. The question then becomes: what is an employer’s right to impose changes to the employment relationship/agreement?

change to employment agreement, change to employment relationship, claim for constructive dismissal, constructive dismissal, demonstrating constructive dismissal, employment contract, employment law, Notice of termination, pay in lieu of notice, providing appropriate notice or pay in lieu, substantial change of employment contract, unilateral change of employment contract

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

June 23, 2016 Cristina Lavecchia Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Penalties and Fines

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with: A case that applies a three-part test to determine just cause; a case that provides a reminder that both employers and employees are required to give reasonable notice of termination at the conclusion of an employment relationship; and a case where an employee failed to provide sufficient medical evidence supporting her absences, therefore her termination was deemed justified.

employee absences, employee termination, employment law, employment relationship, employment standards act, just cause, lack of sufficient medical evidence, medical evidence, pay in lieu of notice, reasonable notice, Severance pay, three-part test to determine just cause, two weeks notice

Beware of the one month per year of service “rule”, part 5

May 9, 2016 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

I have written several times about cases which significantly depart from the so-called one month per year of service rule. There continues to be a seemingly never-ending stream of cases which confirm the perils of assuming that an employer’s liability for reasonable notice of termination will be capped at one month per year of employment.

employment law, notice period, one month per year of employment, one month per year of service rule, pay in lieu of notice, reasonable notice of termination, termination, wrongful dismissal

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.

Administrative tribunals, CRA, dependent contractor, Employee or contractor, employer’s notice obligations, employment contract, employment law, employment relationship, independent contractor, Notice of termination, pay in lieu of notice

Beware of the one month per year of service “rule”, part 4

February 8, 2016 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

'rule of thumb, employer’s liability for reasonable notice of termination, employment law, employment standards, notice period, one month per year of service rule, pay in lieu of notice, wrongful dismissal action

Harsh or “draconian” terms in employment contract not enough for unenforceability

December 11, 2015 Devry Smith Frank LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation

In Kielb v. National Money Mart Company, a dismissed employee sought to have the termination and limitation clauses in his employment agreement found unenforceable. His goal was to recover his bonus for the year during which he was terminated, as well as his contractual pay in lieu of notice, which he waived, in accordance with his employment contract, when he refused to provide Money Mart with a full and final release after his termination.

employment contract, employment law, full and final release, pay in lieu of notice, recover his bonus for the year, resignation, termination and limitation clauses, termination provision

Employers must “trust” employees to account for mitigation earnings during notice period

November 3, 2015 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

A typical wrongful dismissal case (where cause is not an issue) generally involves two legal issues. First, how much reasonable notice of termination (or pay in lieu) should the employee have received based on the employee’s age, length of service, position, compensation and the availability of comparable employment. Second, did the employee mitigate his/her damages by finding alternative employment or failing to make reasonable efforts to do so during the notice period? Notably, a judge can decrease the notice period based on the employee’s unreasonable mitigation efforts.

contingency approach, duty to mitigate, employee’s mitigation efforts, employment law, mitigation earnings, notice period, pay in lieu of notice, re-employment, reasonable notice, summary judgment, termination, terminations, trust approach, wrongful dismissal