On October 29, 2021, in Blake v. University Health Network, 2021 ONSC 7139 (Blake), the Ontario Superior Court of Justice discontinued an interim injunction that it had issued on October 22, 2021, staying the terminations of...more
11/10/2021
/ Canada ,
Collective Agreements ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Injunctions ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Stays ,
Unions ,
Wrongful Termination
On October 22, 2021, Ontario announced the release of its phased plan to gradually lift all remaining public health and workplace safety measures by March 2022, as set out in A Plan to Safely Reopen Ontario and Manage...more
In Goruk v. Greater Barrie Chamber of Commerce, 2021 ONSC 5005, the Ontario Superior Court found that the Chamber of Commerce (COC) was justified in dismissing with cause a 75-year-old, long-term employee with no prior...more
10/7/2021
/ Books & Records ,
Breach of Duty ,
Canada ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fiduciary ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Termination for Cause ,
Wrongful Termination
On July 30, 21, Ontario filed O. Reg. 541/21 (Regulation), which adds a new “Roadmap Exit Step” to the Rules for Areas at Step 3 of its Roadmap to Reopen (Roadmap). ...more
8/6/2021
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Ontario ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Workplace Safety
In O’Reilly v. ClearMRI Solutions Ltd., 2021 ONCA 385 (ClearMRI Solutions), the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) decided that the motion judge erred in concluding that a majority shareholder of an employee’s contractual employer...more
7/8/2021
/ Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Responsible Party ,
Shareholders ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
The recent Ontario decision, Hawkes v. Max Aicher (North America) Limited, 2021 ONSC 4290 (Max Aicher), establishes that global employment is factored into the calculation of an employer’s payroll under s. 64 of the...more
6/28/2021
/ Canada ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Ontario Labour Relations Board ,
Payroll Expenses ,
Severance Pay ,
Wage and Hour
In Perretta v. Rand A Technology Corporation, 2021 ONSC 2111, Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice ordered an employer to pay an employee damages for reasonable notice at common law when it decided the employer repudiated its...more
In Anderson v Total Instant Lawns Ltd, 2021 ONSC 2933 (Total Instant Lawns), an employee claimed her job was terminated and sought damages for wrongful dismissal. The employer denied the employee was dismissed and argued...more
5/13/2021
/ Breach of Contract ,
Canada ,
Contract Terms ,
Counterclaims ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Ontario ,
Repudiation ,
Wrongful Termination
On April 23, 2021, Ontario filed Regulations 313/21, 314/21 and 315/21 under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020. The Regulations create new requirements relating to the temporary removal of...more
On April 13, 2021, Ontario announced that in Phase 2 of its COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan it will provide vaccines to those 18 and over via mass immunization clinics, mobile teams, and pop-up clinics in highly impacted...more
In Currie v. Nylene Canada Inc., 2021 ONSC 1922, Ontario’s Superior Court held that “exceptional circumstances” existed to justify making an award that exceeded the 24-month “high end” amount of reasonable notice for...more
In Sharma v. Toronto (City), 2020 HRTO 949, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) provides a roadmap for how employers should determine whether they are required to accommodate employees and customers who seek...more
4/8/2021
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Exemptions ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Rights Code ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Masks ,
Ontario ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Workplace Safety
In De Facendis v. Toronto Parking Authority, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice held that when a claim for workplace sexual harassment and workplace sexual assault “arises under the collective agreement,” a labour...more
In Nahum v. Honeycomb Hospitality Inc., 2021 ONSC 1455, the Ontario Superior Court determined that an employee’s pregnancy should impact the calculation of her reasonable notice period for dismissal. The court awarded the...more
On October 2, 2020, the government of Ontario filed Ontario Regulation 546/20 (Regulation) made under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020. The Regulation came into force on October 3, 2020....more
10/9/2020
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Rights Code ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Masks ,
Ontario ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Workplace Safety
Because the COVID-19 pandemic has made travel impossible or risky to one’s health, employers may face employee requests to delay vacation time. In this Insight, we help employers in Ontario understand their rights and...more
On July 24, 2020, Ontario’s new Bill 195, Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020, became law. In accordance with Bill 195, Ontario’s Emergency Declaration has ended (subject to the provincial...more
8/18/2020
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Orders ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Layoffs ,
Leave of Absence ,
Ontario ,
Subsidies ,
Wage and Hour
On May 29, 2020, the government of Ontario filed Ontario Regulation 228/20 (Regulation) under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The Regulation amends layoff and constructive dismissal rules exclusively under the ESA,...more
On March 23, 2020, the Government of Ontario ordered the mandatory closure of all non-essential workplaces effective March 24, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. On April 3, 2020, in response to the advice of Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer...more
4/6/2020
/ Business Closures ,
Business Interruption ,
Canada ,
Construction Project ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Dispensaries ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Ontario ,
Operators of Essential Services ,
State and Local Government
Yenovkian v. Gulian, 2019 ONSC 7279 is a recent family law decision that is significant beyond the family law context, including in the employment law context. In this decision, Justice Kristjanson of the Ontario Superior...more
2/14/2020
/ Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Damages ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Evidence ,
False Light ,
International Labor Laws ,
Intrusion Upon Seclusion ,
Invasion of Privacy ,
Material Dissemination ,
Name and Likeness ,
Ontario ,
Privacy Torts ,
Public Disclosure ,
Reputational Injury ,
Restatement of Torts
In a recent appeal to the Divisional Court of Ontario’s Superior Court in Shete, Lada, and Chung v. Bombardier Inc., 2019 ONSC 4083, the court applied the most basic principle that serves as the foundation of common law...more
12/20/2019
/ Canada ,
Common Law Claims ,
Contract Terms ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Legal Fees ,
Ontario ,
Reimbursements ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Settlement Negotiations ,
Statement of Claim ,
Termination ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wrongful Termination
It appears there is a movement afoot in Ontario to change behavior around the classification of employees as independent contractors. ...more
3/5/2019
/ Canada ,
Class Action ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Ontario ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Wage and Hour
You witness a group of your employees exit the workplace on their break, gather on a public sidewalk and begin to smoke what appears to be cannabis. How do you respond?...more
In a new Ontario Court of Appeal case, the appellate court upheld the trial court’s judgment in favor of the plaintiff in the amount of $60,000 for moral damages, $55,849 for wrongful dismissal, $25,000 in human rights...more