Risks of Fixed-Term Contracts and Independent Contractor Agreements

In Covenoho v Pendylum Ltd., the Court of Appeal for Ontario quashed a lower court decision upholding the without cause termination of an employee under a fixed-term contract, and awarded her damages for the remainder of the term. The employer, Pendylum Ltd., entered into a contract with the employee which stated that she was to […]

Legislative Updates

Further to last May’s final report of the Changing Workplaces Review, the provincial government has announced its intent to implement measures to modify employment standards, including: • Raising Ontario’s general minimum wage to $14 per hour on January 1, 2018, and to $15 on January 1, 2019, followed by annual increases at the rate of […]

Duty to Mitigate Not Triggered by Employer’s Offer to Return to Work

In Fillmore v Hercules SLR Inc., the Court of Appeal for Ontario determined that a terminated employee does not have to mitigate his damages upon termination by returning to work for the same employer in a new full time position at less compensation. In this case, the employee, Roy Fillmore, was terminated by his employer, […]

McDonald’s Franchisee Loses on Appeal

In our summer 2016 issue, we discussed an appeal underway in Brake v PJ-M2R Restaurant Inc. The central issues were whether the Employer, a McDonald’s franchise, had cause to dismiss the Plaintiff, Ms. Brake, and whether her mitigation income ought to have been offset against her damages award. On May 23, 2017, the Court of […]

Court Kicks Employee’s Dismissal Suit for Failure to Reasonably Mitigate Damages

In a wrongful dismissal action, employers will not be held liable for damages during the notice period if they can establish that an employee failed to reasonably mitigate her damages. To succeed, the employer must prove i) that the employee did not take any steps (or at least reasonable steps) to search for comparable employment […]