The Federal Court of Appeal recently affirmed that an employee who signs a final release is not barred from bringing an unjust dismissal complaint under the Canada Labour Code (the “Code”). The provincial employment standards legislation does not apply to employees in certain federally regulated industries. Those working in a federally regulated sector, such as ...
The World Health Organization recently declared novel coronavirus (“coronavirus”) a global health emergency. Countries across the world are taking precautions to prevent the spread of the infectious virus. In light of the current situation and potential for escalation, employers should be cognizant of their workplace duties relating to these types of health scares. Prevention Employers ...
While Uber made its highly anticipated arrival in British Columbia last week, the leading ridesharing company is awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court of Canada on the validity of an arbitration clause in their contracts with drivers. Uber is a Netherland based company but operates worldwide treating their drivers as Independent Contractors. When an ...
Many employers arrange employment relationships under a “fixed term” contract. Fixed term contracts run for a set period of time and specify the date on which the employment ends. These types of contracts can be beneficial as they provide greater certainty that an employee will fulfill the full term of the engagement. They are often ...
The season for holiday parties is upon us and with all the fun festivities, comes the potential for employer liability. Employers are exposed to potential legal liability when they host company parties and are legally obligated to ensure they protect against foreseeable harm. When hosted employer events include alcohol, it raises the requirement to consider ...
Many organizations (including charities, non-profits, and religious organizations) rely on a mixture of employees and volunteers to help them in their day to day functions. The volunteers can play a very important role in an organization, but volunteers can also be a source of potential liability. A volunteer could later claim to be an employee ...
Employers may be surprised to learn that not only do they have to manage actions of employees in the workplace, they also have to manage their actions outside of the workplace when it comes to sex between co-workers, particularly in situations where there is a power imbalance. Employers have a duty to provide workers with ...
McDonald’s has fired its CEO for having a relationship with an employee. Easterbrook is widely considered to be one of the best CEO’s in the restaurant industry. He has brought about significant changes to McDonald’s since taking the role and was objectively doing a great job. So how did the board of McDonald’s come to ...
Many compensation plans include entitlement to some form of variable pay or bonus, and typically with respect to a bonus the employer will take the position that it is discretionary, that is that they get to decide who gets the bonus, when they get it and how much they get. Some bonus plans are structured ...
A recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision provided clear direction to employers on what NOT to do when terminating employees. The Court of Appeal in Ruston v. Keddco Mfg. (2011) Ltd., 2019 ONCA 125 affirmed the trial decision. At trial the Court awarded $100,000 in punitive damages against the employer for the manner of termination ...
