Divisional Court upholds Superior Court decision that a pregnancy impacts the notice period of a terminated employee

A recent decision by the Divisional Court, called Nahum v Honeycomb Hospitality Inc., the Court was required to decide the question of whether a pregnancy should increase the length of a notice period of an employee who had their employment terminated whilst pregnant. The employer was not aware that she was pregnant at the time […]

Can a unionized employer terminate an employee’s employment for refusing to be tested for COVID-19?

In the recent decision between Ontario Power Generation and The Power Workers Union, the Arbitrator determined three issues, two that are important for unionized employers are as follows: Who bears the cost of testing for unvaccinated employees when it is a requirement of the employer in order to attend the workplace; and Is the termination […]

Vaccination Policies in the Unionized Environment – What Do the Cases Say?

Since the introduction of Covid-19 vaccinations in early 2021, some employees have refused to get vaccinated for a variety of reasons including privacy, personal belief, medical or religious reasons. In response to the pandemic, many employers have implemented mandatory vaccine policies in an effort to provide safe workplaces. Some policies are being challenged by unions […]

How have Ontario Courts determined reasonable notice requirements when an employee is terminated from a successor employer?

In a decision called Manthadi v ASCO Manufacturing, the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal by ASCO from a summary judgment award from the Superior Court. The facts of the case are as follows: the employee had been employed by a company (637) which was sold to ASCO. At the time that 637 had been […]

Should the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) be deducted from damages for wrongful dismissal?

Recent cases from the Ontario Superior Court, and Tribunal’s have determined that the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) is not deductible against damage awards, but is that the end of the matter? Recall that the entire purpose of damages for reasonable notice is supposed to put the employee in the same position had an employer […]

Temporary Layoff During COVID-19 Results in Constructive Dismissal

The recently released decision of Coutinho v. Ocular Health Centre Ltd. 2021 ONSC 3076, may cause headaches for many employers within Ontario who have been required to layoff their employees due to COVID-19 restrictions. As a starting point, a constructive dismissal for common law purposes occurs in the circumstance where an employer unilaterally imposes a […]

Ontario Has Introduced a New COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Program

The new program will be called the COVID-19 Worker Income Protection Benefit. The program will be retroactive to April 19, 2021 and effective until September 25, 2021. Section 50.1 of the ESA has been amended on April 29, 2021 to include the program, under the COVID-19 Putting Workers First Act, 2021. The program will require […]

Tribunal awards employee $2,000 in damages for sexually explicit text message

In the decision Young v O-I Canada Corp 2020 HRTO 879, an employee brought an application to the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal alleging discrimination with respect to sex, including sexual harassment. The employee, David Young, was a Millwright Maintenance Mechanic, who had a relationship at the plant with another employee (“L.C.”). The relationship ended, and […]

Superior Court of Ontario strikes down Canada Labour Code Termination Clause

Ontario employers are well aware of the issues relating to poorly written termination clauses. Specifically, in Ontario employers who have termination clauses which are contrary to the Employment Standards Act, 2000, will be liable for common law notice if the employee is terminated without cause. There is little case law with respect to termination clauses […]

Ontario Court of Appeal Changes the law on Termination Clauses Again!

As an employment lawyer for employers, whenever a client asks whether they should have a contract in place for their employees, my answer is always “yes, absolutely!”.  While employment contracts are good for the parties to understand their rights and obligations in the relationship, they also contain important clauses which protect parties’ interests. One of […]