As Canada is a member of the British Commonwealth, the monarch of Britain is its head of state and is represented by the Governor General of Canada, who is appointed by the sitting Prime Minister....more
In Bowen v. JC Clark Ltd., 2022 ONCA 614, the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) put employers on notice that their discretion in awarding discretionary bonuses is not unconstrained and must be exercised fairly and reasonably. ...more
In Ferguson v. Yorkwest Plumbing Supply Inc., 2022 ONSC 4792, an employee who commenced a wrongful dismissal action via Ontario’s Simplified Procedure rules was granted an order striking the employer’s statement of defence...more
Two years ago in Waksdale v. Swegon North America Inc., 2020 ONCA 391, the Ontario Court of Appeal established the proper method for determining whether a termination clause in an employment agreement is enforceable. ...more
8/25/2022
/ Canada ,
Contract Terms ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Termination Clauses ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal’s decision in LaFleche v. NLFD Auto, 2022 BCHRT 88, provides employers with insight into how they should conduct themselves while their employees are on a leave of absence. The...more
8/22/2022
/ Canada ,
Demotions ,
Employees ,
Employment Litigation ,
Family Status Discrimination ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Human Rights Code ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Leave of Absence ,
Maternity Leave ,
Sex Discrimination
Kosteckyj v Paramount Resources Ltd, 2022 ABCA 230 is an important Alberta Court of Appeal (ABCA) decision relating to constructive dismissal, as it assesses the timing of an employee’s objection to an employer’s unilateral...more
In Wisser v CEM International Management Consultants Ltd, 2022 ABQB 414 (CEM International), the court used the oppression remedy to hold directors of a corporation personally liable for damages for wrongful dismissal after...more
8/18/2022
/ Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Damages ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
International Labor Laws ,
Severance Pay ,
Wrongful Termination
Deemed IDEL No Longer Available -
In May of 2020, Ontario filed O. Reg. 228/20, which provided that a non-unionized employee who did not perform their job duties during the “COVID-19 period” because their work hours were...more
8/10/2022
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Layoffs ,
Ontario ,
Wage and Hour
In A.B. v. C.D., 2022 HRTO 890, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) found that the applicant was a victim of discrimination on the basis of sex and that her work environment was poisoned by repeated acts of...more
8/9/2022
/ Canada ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hostile Environment ,
Human Rights Code ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Ontario Human Rights Tribunal ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment
Earlier this year, pursuant to Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canada Labour Code (Act) and Bill C-19, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022 and other...more
In Benke v Loblaw Companies Limited, 2022 ABQB 461, the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta (ABQB) dismissed an employee’s claim that he had been constructively dismissed when his employer did not accommodate him with a mask...more
On July 21, 2022, Ontario filed Regulation 464/22, which amends O. Reg. 228/20: Infectious Disease Emergency Leave Regulation to extend the availability of Paid Infectious Disease Leave (Paid IDEL) until March 31, 2023. ...more
7/22/2022
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Public Health ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
In the spring, Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022, received Royal Assent and became law. Among other things, Bill 88 amended Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) to require certain employers to ensure, within a...more
In Ontario (Health) v. Association of Ontario Midwives, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (OCA) was satisfied with the reasonableness of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario’s (HRTO) finding that the Ministry of Health (MOH)...more
7/19/2022
/ Canada ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Ministry of Health ,
Ontario ,
Ontario Human Rights Tribunal ,
Pay Gap ,
Wage and Hour
In Bryant v Parkland School Division, 2022 ABCA 220, the Court of Appeal for Alberta (ABCA) allowed an appeal from a summary dismissal by the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta (ABQB) in Bryant v Parkland School Division, 2021...more
In Public Health Sudbury & Districts v. Ontario Nurses’ Association, 2022 CanLii 48440 (ON LA), Arbitrator Robert J. Herman decided that the grievor was discriminated against on the basis of creed under the Ontario Human...more
6/27/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Human Rights Code ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Vaccinations
On June 14, 2002, Canada announced that, due to the country’s improved public health situation, certain vaccination requirements are suspended as of June 20.
Federally Regulated Travel Sector...more
6/24/2022
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
International Travel ,
Public Health ,
Traveling Employee ,
Vaccinations
The poster is prepared by the Minister of Labour to help ensure employers understand their minimum obligations and employees know their rights.
...more
A recent wrongful dismissal opinion from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice weighed the impact of the pandemic and alleged failure to mitigate when deciding how much reasonable notice damages were owed the plaintiff. In...more
6/21/2022
/ Canada ,
Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Notice Requirements ,
Ontario ,
Wrongful Termination
In Antchipalovskaia v. Guestlogix Inc., 2022 ONCA 454, the employer appealed a decision that the employee was entitled to 12 months’ notice for her dismissal without cause, which was based in part on a finding that she was...more
On May 31, 2022, Alberta’s Bill 17, Labour Statutes Amendment Act, 2022, received Royal Assent, and the following amendments to Reservist Leave and Bereavement Leave in the province’s Employment Standards Code came into...more
In McCoy v. Choi, 2022 ONCA 403, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (OCA) dismissed an appeal of a motion judge’s order, which allowed a Canadian Football League (CFL) player’s action for damages against a physician for...more
6/2/2022
/ Appeals ,
Canada ,
Collective Agreements ,
Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
International Labor Laws ,
Negligence ,
Ontario ,
Tort ,
Workplace Injury
In M & P Drug Mart Inc. v. Norton, 2022 ONCA 398, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (OCA) dismissed an employer’s appeal of an application judge’s decision that a non-competition clause in an employment agreement governed by...more
5/31/2022
/ Ambiguous ,
Appeals ,
Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
International Labor Laws ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Ontario ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
On April 27, 2022, in Canada Post Corporation v. Canadian Union of Postal Workers (Canada Post), Arbitrator Thomas Joliffe, Q.C. dismissed a union grievance disputing that the unilateral imposition of a mandatory vaccination...more
5/19/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Canada ,
Collective Agreements ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Grievance Process ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
In Beach Place Ventures Ltd. v. Employment Standards Tribunal, 2022 BCCA 147, the British Columbia Court of Appeal (BCCA) upheld a determination by the Employment Standards Tribunal (Tribunal) that three taxi drivers...more