termination of employment

Full and final: Human rights application successfully barred by signed release

February 7, 2020 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

In recent years, one of the recurring circumstances where the efficacy of a signed release has been debated is where a former employee files an application with the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.

discrimination in employment, Dismissal, employment law, Employment release, mental health, releases for dismissed employees, termination of employment

Reinstatement and accommodation under Alberta’s Workers’ Compensation

January 13, 2020 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Human Rights, Penalties and Fines, 0

For workplace accidents occurring on or after September 1, 2018, non-exempt employers have an obligation under section 88.1 of the Alberta Workers’ Compensation Act (the “WCBAct”) to accommodate and reinstate most workers injured in a work-related accident to their pre-accident position or a comparable position with the same earnings.

alternative employment, employment law, termination of employment, undue hardship, work-related injury, workers compensation, workplace accommodation

“Failsafe” language fails to save termination provision

December 16, 2019 Sean Bawden Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

If a contractual termination clause provides for “the greater of” ESA entitlements and a set amount, will the guarantee of “the greater of” act as a failsafe if the rest of the provision is contrary to the provisions of the ESA?

contractual termination provisions, employment law, greater benefit, statutory entitlements, Termination clause, termination of employment, termination provision, working notice

Dealing with employee misconceptions regarding LTD

November 20, 2019 Devan Marr Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, 0

Long-term disability (“LTD”) coverage is often a key benefit employees derive from their employment. LTD benefits can provide significant security to employees in the form of income continuation when they are disabled due to an illness or injury. Today we deal with some common misconceptions that employers may face when attempting to manage an employee’s absence due to disability.

absence due to disability, claim for frustration or abandonment, duty to accommodate an employee with a disability, employment law, entitlement to benefits, Injured employee, Long-term disability, LTD benefits, pay in lieu of notice, termination of employment

Court of appeal says no backpedaling allowed on employee resignation

June 18, 2019 Devan Marr Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, 0

Is an employer allowed to “re-hire” a long term employee on new terms if they retract their resignation? According to the Ontario Court of Appeal the answer seems to be yes.

dismissal without cause, Employee resignation, employment contract, employment law, retraction of resignation, termination of employment

When sharing is not caring: The high cost of breaching confidentiality

June 7, 2019 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Privacy and Security, 0

Only a very small percentage of disputes proceed all the way to a hearing or trial. The vast majority settle at some point, for reasons that are fairly well known. One of the key reasons in many cases is confidentiality; often, the parties want to avoid a public hearing and a published judgment that sets out all of the intimate details of the case, as well as the findings of the judge with respect to fault and blameworthiness.

breach of confidentiality, confidentiality, employment law, settlement agreements, termination of employment

Arbitrator reinstates locomotive engineer fired for drinking whiskey on the job

April 15, 2019 Vey Willetts LLP Employee Relations, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, 0

The fact that the Arbitrator in this case ordered reinstatement is an important reminder that employers must, at all times, ensure that they satisfy their procedural and substantive obligation to reasonably accommodate a disability, even where discipline may seem appropriate.

accommodating alcoholism, dismissing an employee for just cause, human rights, reasonably accommodate a disability, termination of employment, violation of the Criminal Code

Ontario superior court confirms that frustration of contract is a two-way street

March 15, 2019 Vey Willetts LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, 0

The legal doctrine of frustration of contract is well known to employment lawyers but its application is not all that intuitive to the average employer or employee.

Dismissal, employment law, frustration of contract, termination of employment

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

February 14, 2019 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Training and Development

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with the length of the notice period, reasonable grounds for dismissal and mandatory JHSC training moving online.

Dismissal, dismissal without notice, employment law, joint health and safety committee, Notice periods, termination of employment

Off-duty drunk driving not just cause for termination – Even for a firefighter

June 27, 2018 Stringer LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll

In Klonteig v West Kelowna (District), the British Columbia Superior Court found that an employer that terminated a firefighter for driving drunk in a fire department vehicle while off duty did not have just cause to terminate his employment.

bad faith damages, BC Superior Court, degree of misconduct, drunk driving, just cause, Longteig v West Kelowna (District), off-duty conduct, principle of proportionality, termination, termination of employment, termination without cause

Termination of employment does not terminate ability to apply for LTD benefits

May 11, 2018 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits

The case discussed in this article is important because it is a common concern of those who become disabled that they will cease to have access to LTD coverage if their employer terminates their employment before LTD benefits commence. What this decision appears to stand for is the proposition that it does not matter when employment ends, it matters when the injury or illness commenced.

benefits coverage entitlement, Benefits group insurance, brain injury, employee group benefits, employment law, human rights, long term disability claims, LTD benefits, termination, termination of employment

Termination clause and the importance of the word “minimum”

February 27, 2017 Jeff Dutton, Dutton Employment Law 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

Employees are entitled to reasonable notice upon termination of their employment. However, a termination clause contained in an employment contract may oust the employer’s obligation to provide reasonable notice, so long as the termination clause actually limits the employee’s entitlement to notice, without violating employment standards.

Clarke v. Insight Components (Canada) Inc., employee termination, employment law, employment standards act, employment standards code, Kosowan v Concept Electric, Miller v. A.B.M. Canada Inc., Nutting v Franklin Templeton Investments Corp, Termination clause, termination of employment

Requesting background checks after employment starts

February 15, 2017 Simon Heath, BA, MIR, LLB, Heath Law 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, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation

In a recent Ontario Superior Court decision it was held that an employer’s decision to request a criminal background check after employment had commenced was lawful under the applicable 12–month fixed term contract and the employee was not entitled to damages when her employment was terminated after she refused to consent to the background check.

background checks, background checks during employment, Covenoho v. Pendylum Inc., employment law, employment standards act, termination of employment, termination pay

Termination provisions in employment contracts

January 20, 2017 De Bousquet PC Barristers and Solicitors 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

As an employee, by law, you are entitled to reasonable notice of termination of your employment. Employers however, often attempt to limit your legal entitlements by explicitly defining your rights upon termination in the employment contract. In the recent case of Singh v Qualified Metal Fabricators Ltd. an Ontario Court adopted an employee–friendly interpretation of these termination provisions, resolving the potential ambiguities in favour of the employee. While employers are allowed to contractually limit employees’ common–law reasonable notice requirements, they are required to do so with complete precision.

common-law entitlements, employee rights, employment contract, employment law, employment standards act, reasonable notice, Singh v Qualified Metal Fabricators Ltd., termination, Termination clause, termination of employment, Termination provisions, wrongful dismissal

Illness or disability during the notice period

December 5, 2016 Occasional Contributors 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

Interestingly, the events following termination of employment do not affect an employee’s entitlement to notice. This includes the situation where an employee is terminated and shortly thereafter becomes ill or disabled. Our courts have dealt with this situation by suggesting a longer notice period may be warranted because the employee may find it more difficult to find alternate employment.

disabled employee, duty to mitigate, employment agreement, employment law, entitlement to notice, ill employee, notice period, reasonable notice, Severance pay, termination, termination of employment, wrongfully terminated