Martin v. Yellow Pages Digital & Media Solutions Limited, 2018 BCSC 2557 The employee brought a summary trial application for wrongful dismissal. There was no question that the employee was terminated without cause. The parties disagreed on the length of reasonable notice, the quantum of reasonable notice, and whether or not aggravated damages were warranted. Despite the ...
The employee brought a summary trial application for wrongful dismissal. The employer’s position was that the employee quit, and in the alternative, that it had just cause to terminate employment. The court determined that the employer had just cause to terminate the employee due to a derogatory email sent by the employee regarding his HR manager ...
A recent BC Supreme Court decision demonstrates that acts of dishonesty by employees may give their employer grounds to dismiss them with cause. Facts In Movassaghi v. Harbourfront Wealth Management Inc., 2020 BCSC 579, the defendant employer, Harbourfront, was an investment consulting firm and member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (“IIROC”). The ...
A recent decision of the BC Supreme Court (Coutlee v Apex Granite & Tile Inc., 2020 BCSC 315) provides a useful example of where an employee’s words and actions will be interpreted as a voluntary resignation rather than a dismissal. Summary of Facts The defendant company, Apex, provided tile and granite installation services. Apex hired ...
A recent BC Small Claims Court decision [Shehata v Ashton College Ltd., 2020 BCPC 37] reminds employers that it is best practice to clearly address termination entitlements in employment agreements or offer letters rather than attempting to rely on provisions in an employee handbook. Facts The claimant, Mr. Shehata, was hired by the defendant, Ashton ...
The BC government is moving ahead with their planned 75 cent/hour increase to the minimum wage, which comes into effect on June 1, 2020. This increase brings the minimum wage to $14.60/hour and is the third increase in a series of four scheduled increases as part of the government’s plan to bring the minimum wage ...
A recent BC Supreme Court decision shows that employers should exercise caution when making unilateral changes to employee bonus programs. In Wiltse v. Seastar Chemicals ULC, 2020 BCSC 658, the plaintiff was a chemist who had been employed at a chemical productions company for 17 years. The plaintiff participated in the company’s bonus program, which ...
On May 20, 2020 Bill Morneau and Navdeep Bains announced the opening of the application process for the Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility program. More information can be found about this program in our previous blog post found here. The same day, Justin Trudeau announced that applications for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance will ...
On May 19, 2020, Justin Trudeau announced an expansion to the Canada Emergency Business Account (“CEBA”), previously discussed in Rose Keith’s blog post dated April 16, 2020, found here. CEBA is administered by Export Development Canada and provides a partially forgivable, zero interest loan of up to $40,000 for qualifying small businesses. Up to $10,000 ...
Further to our May 7, 2020 blog post, on May 15 WorkSafeBC released industry-specific guidelines and resources on its website for the following sectors: Restaurants, cafes, pubs Salons and personal services Real estate Arts and cultural facilities (Museums, art galleries, and libraries) Retail Education K-12 Parks and outdoor spaces Health services In-person counselling Office space WorksafeBC ...
