termination notice

Exclusive or near-exclusive economic dependence determinative of dependent contractor status: Ontario Court of Appeal

December 9, 2019 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

Between employees and independent contractors exists a third, lesser known category of employment relationship: the dependent contractor. Unlike independent contractors, and subject to specific contractual termination provisions, dependent contractor relationships cannot generally be terminated without notice, or pay in lieu thereof.

common law entitlement, dependent contractor, employment law, independent contractor, Notice of termination, termination notice

Form and substance: Mass termination and working notice requirements clarified by Ontario Court of Appeal

August 12, 2019 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

Employment standards statutes in each Canadian jurisdiction contain special provisions for minimum termination notice or pay in lieu thereof, which apply when a prescribed number of employees will be terminated within a particular timeframe.

employment law, group termination notice requirement, Mass termination, pay in lieu, statutory termination notice, termination notice, Wood v CTS of Canada Co, working notice

Failure to repeat termination clause after multiple promotions voids clause

June 28, 2019 Barry B. Fisher LL.B. Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

In McKercher v Stantec Architecture (2019 SKQB 100), Justice Elson had a situation where at the time of his hiring as a staff architect, the plaintiff signed an enforceable contract limiting his notice to a maximum of 3 months.

Dismissal, employment contract, reasonable notice of termination, Termination clause, termination notice

Calculating severance: What do the courts say?

May 24, 2019 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

In the past I have written about the different factors that are considered in assessing severance for a termination. Being a lawyer, I also provided the standard cop-out that “there is no formula for determining reasonable notice or severance amounts”.

employment law, notice period, pay in lieu of notice of termination, severance, termination and severance pay, termination notice, termination pay, wrongful dismissal, wrongful termination

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

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

Short service employee gets four months’ pay in lieu of reasonable notice

November 16, 2017 Stringer LLP Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

Some employers erroneously believe that there is a “rule of thumb” in the common law that employees are entitled to a month of notice per year of service. The Ontario Court of Appeal has held that there is no such rule, and that determinations of reasonable notice must be based on an assessment of all relevant factors.

common law reasonable notice, employment law, enforceability of termination clauses, reasonable notice, short service employee, termination, Termination clause, termination notice

Clock on limitation period for wrongful dismissal claim starts on day of notice – not last day worked

September 20, 2017 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice confirms that the limitation period in respect of a wrongful dismissal claim commences on the day that the employee is provided notice of the termination, not on the last day the employee works.

claim for severance, employment law, limitation period, notice of the termination, termination, termination notice, wrongful dismissal, wrongful dismissal claim

Employers: Be careful of what you say about former employees to their new employers

July 25, 2017 Jeff Dutton, Dutton Employment Law Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring

Be careful of what you say about former employees to their new employers, warns Toronto employment lawyer, Jeff Dutton. As evidenced in Drouillard v. Cogeco Cable Inc., if a former employer suggests to another employer to terminate a certain employee, the former employer could be liable for damages to that employee by way of the tort of inducing breach of contract.

blackballing, breach of contract, damages for termination, employment contract, employment law, employment relationship, former employees, termination notice

Can’t afford to keep them, can’t afford to fire them: Poor finances do not reduce termination obligations

January 11, 2016 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Wages and Compensation

Employee salaries and benefits can be some of the greatest costs borne by a business. As a result, when a company faces financial hardship, they will often terminate positions to reduce their costs. However, many employers may not realize that the obligation to provide reasonable notice of termination could negate any short-term cost savings they hoped to realize.

12 months’ notice of terminatio, Bardal Factors, Employee salaries and benefits, employment contract, employment law, enforceable termination clause, financial hardship, reasonable notice of termination, rule of thumb of one month of notice per year of service, termination notice

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

June 25, 2015 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with paid bereavement leave; voiding employment contract; and, terminating long-term employees.

Bridging to retirement, constructive dismissal, demotion, employment contract, employment law, full unreduced pension, HRinfodesk, long-term employees, paid bereavement leave, termination, termination notice, terminations

Releases may not protect employers from the tenured employee rule

November 10, 2014 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources

In Nova Scotia, employees with ten years of service are provided with special protections under the Labour Standards Code. Section 71 of the Code provides that, subject to certain exceptions, an employer can only dismiss an employee with ten years of service or more for just cause. This is called the tenured employee rule.

Director of Labour Standards, dismissing an employee, employment law, Employment release, just cause, Labour Standards complaint, Nova Scotia Labour Standards Code, pay in lieu of notice, reinstatement, release, tenured employee rule, termination, termination notice

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

October 16, 2014 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, HRMS, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Training and Development, Wages and Compensation

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with termination notice; return-to-work plan; and, Johnstone family status case.

employment law, family status, HRinfodesk, Newsletter, notice period, Productive work, return-to-work plan, suitable work, Temporary worker, termination notice, terminations, workers compensation, Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal, wrongful dismissal, WSIB benefits

Failure to mitigate damages leads to a reduction in termination notice

August 22, 2014 Christina Catenacci Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

The Supreme Court of British Columbia confirmed that following the termination of a senior employee who had over 20 years of service with the employer, the employee was entitled to a reasonable notice period of 17 months considering the Bardal factors. However, due to the employee’s extremely passive attitude towards finding new employment, the notice period was reduced to 14 months. In a nutshell, the employee just did not do enough to seek alternate employment.

Bardal Factors, common law reasonable notice, duty to mitigate, employment law, faiure to mitigate, letter of reference, notice period, obtain comparable alternative employment, reduction in notice period, reduction in termination notice, termination notice

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

August 21, 2014 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Privacy and Security, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with STD/LTD payments and termination notice; the impact of employees playing volleyball during lunch hours; and, how to destroy personal information.

data—from customers and employees, employment law, how to destroy personal information, HRinfodesk, personal information, playing volleyball on employer’s premises during lunch, STD and LTD benefits, STD/LTD payments, termination notice, workers compensation, WSIB benefits