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Published on: 8 Jul 2015 By

New SCC Decision Finds Paid Administrative Suspensions Can Trigger Constructive Dismissals

Most employers are familiar with the most common changes to employment contracts that can trigger a constructive dismissal: changing pay, hours, demotions, duties, work location, etc. However, in the March 2015 decision of Potter v. New Brunswick Legal Aid Services Commission, the Supreme Co…

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Published on: 14 Apr 2015 By

Terminating an Employee without Checking Their HR File First Can Have Serious Consequences for Employers

Sometimes the need arises to end an employment relationship quickly. However, it’s vitally important to ensure that you check the employee’s human resources file for potential human rights considerations before making any decisions, as confirmed by a recent decision by the Human Rights Tribu…

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Published on: 2 Apr 2015 By

How well do you understand the recent changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000?

Applying the latest changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) to real-life situations can be complex, even for Employment Standards Officers! A recent blog post by Chris Sinal (New Amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 May Require Employers to Find Themselves Guilty of…

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Published on: 5 Mar 2015 By

Litigation Perils: Winning the battle, but losing the war!

Litigation is expensive, time-consuming, unpleasant and risky for everyone involved. Outcomes are hard to predict, as too are the fees and time that parties will spend either pursuing or defending a claim. Let’s not even talk about the potential reputational damage if litigation becomes publ…

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Published on: 7 Jan 2015 By

New Amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 May Require Employers to Find Themselves Guilty of Violating the Act

The majority of employers in Ontario are required to abide by the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”), legislation that includes standards for, among other things, the provision of a minimum wage, statutory holiday pay, overtime and limitations on hours of work. Where employees believ…

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Published on: 7 Jan 2015 By

Ontario Court Confirms Workplace Violence Not Automatically Cause for Termination in All Cases

Since amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act introduced by Bill 168 imposed new obligations to proactively address workplace harassment and violence issues, employers have sometimes been tempted to approach all instances of workplace harassing or violent conduct by an employee …

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Published on: 3 Nov 2014 By

Jian Ghomeshi Case Involves a Complicated Interaction of Labour and Employment Law Principles

The recent termination of Jian Ghomeshi’s employment by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (the “CBC”) from popular radio program “Q” has raised a number of important moral questions about the allegations against the former host. However, the situation also raises fundamental legal questi…

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Published on: 30 Sep 2014 By

Employer’s Obligation to Accommodate Employee Does Not Extend to Requiring Other Employees to Suffer a Significant Reduction in Pay

For many employers, particularly those in unionized settings, finding appropriate work for employees requiring medical accommodation can be challenging. This is particularly the case where a position that may address an employee’s accommodation needs is occupied by another employee. However,…

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Published on: 11 Sep 2014 By

New Human Rights Commission Policy on Mental Health and Addiction

I recently sat in on a presentation by a large benefits administrator, which focused on the top 5 categories of medical conditions resulting in disability claims. For both short and long term absences, at or near the top of that list are mental health issues. Mental health issues are often t…

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