Blog
CAW and CEP Looking to Merge
The Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union are considering merging. According to the CAW-CEP Discussion Paper: After two decades of fighting mostly defensive battles against the pressures of globalization, employer aggression, hostile government policy, and public cynicism, the trade union movement in Canada faces an enormous and historic moment of truth. The CEP-CAW New [...]
Working Notice, Constructive Dismissal and Employee Obligations
Employers will, on occasion, give an employee advance working notice of termination. The issue sometimes arises about whether the employee is required to actually work through that period of working notice or can refuse to do so, and the implications associated with the employee refusing. The British Columbia Court of Appeal has recently considered this [...]
Layoffs Longer than 35 Weeks and Constructive Dismissal
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently released a decision that touches on the interaction between theEmployment Standards Act, 2000 and constructive dismissal in the context of an indefinite layoff. The case is Elsegood v. Cambridge Spring Service. Section 56(1) of the ESA provides as follows: 56(1) An employer terminates the employment of an employee for purposes of [...]
Moral Damages in Employment Law
The British Columbia Supreme Court considered the circumstances in which moral damages will be awarded in Haftbaradaran v. St. Hubertus Estate Winery Ltd.. The theory that the plaintiff adopted for claiming recovery of moral damages was that the manner of his dismissal caused him to suffer mental distress. According to the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision [...]
Constructive Dismissal, Mitigation and the Risks of Leaving
Is it me or have there been a lot more constructive dismissal cases coming through the courts these days? The most recent case is Rowley v High Strength Plates & Profiles Inc. (October 20, 2011) where an employee, faced with what he believed were circumstances giving rise to a constructive dismissal. In June 2009, the plaintiff was [...]
Including Bonus Payments in Damages Might be a Surprise
Many bonus plans contain a provision to the effect that to receive a bonus the employee must be employed by the Company. They might say that the employee must be employed on the date that the bonus was declared and the date the bonus is paid. The Supreme Court of British Columbia considered such an [...]
Recent Summary Judgment Case
The general principles governing motions for summary judgment under the Ontario Rules of Civil Procedure were reviewed in the recent case of Rutherford v. RBC Dominion Securities Inc. (October 12, 2011, Ont. S.C.J.). The plaintiff’s claims were for wrongful dismissal and “other causes of action” (breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment and aggravated damages). The [...]
Common Employer for Common Law Purposes
This issue doesn’t come up very often, but determining if two or more employers are “common employers” can be very relevant for a number of purposes, including when trying to collect damages. The matter was considered on October 11, 2011 by the Ontario Superior Court in Asselin v. Gazarek et al. The plaintiff brought an [...]
Building Services Provider Case to Watch
If you’re a “business services provider” within the meaning of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and Regulations then you will want to keep an eye out for developments in the Mensur v Vinci Parc (Canada) Inc case. The case deals with the issue of if, when and from whom is termination and severance pay payable when changes in [...]