Entries by BirdRichard

Supreme Court of Canada denies Leave; Affirming E-consent as Valid and Binding

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) recently denied leave to appeal in Battiston v. Microsoft Canada Inc., 2021 ONCA 727. The SCC decision reinforces an Ontario Court of Appeal decision which concluded that an employee’s consent through an internal e-consent process was a valid means of bringing an agreement, and in particular, termination provisions to the employee’s […]

BC Supreme Court Finds Placing an Employee on Unpaid Leave for failing to Comply with Mandatory Vaccination Policy is not a Constructive Dismissal

In Parmar v. Tribe Management Inc., the British Columbia Supreme Court recently became the first court in Canada to confirm that an employer is entitled to place an employee on an unpaid leave of absence for failing to comply with its mandatory vaccination policy. The Court confirmed that placing the non-unionized employee on unpaid leave […]

Bill C-27: Modernizing Canada’s Privacy Laws and its Impact on Employers

On June 16, 2022, the federal government tabled Bill C-27, Digital Charter Implementation Act, 2022. If passed, Bill C-27 would provide stronger legal frameworks in the areas of privacy and data protection throughout the country. Bill C-27 aims to accomplish this through the introduction of three acts: The Consumer Privacy Protection Act (the “CPPA”), The Personal Information […]

Federal Government suspends Mandatory Vaccine Policy

As of June 20, 2022, the federal government suspended its Policy on COVID-19 Vaccination for Core Public Administration employees (the “Policy”). The Policy initially came into force on October 6, 2021. The Government of Canada release states that vaccines continue to provide strong protection against serious illness, and provide a level of protection against infection […]

Ontario Extends COVID-19 Sick Leave until March 2023

On July 21, 2022, the Ontario Government announced that the Worker Income Protection Benefit program will be extended to March 31, 2023. Eligible workers are entitled three (3) paid sick days up to $200/day. The program was set to expire on July 31, 2022. Employers may seek reimbursement of the paid leave through the Workplace […]

Non-Compete Agreement Declared Invalid by Ontario Court of Appeal

In M & P Drug Mart Inc. v. Norton, 2022 ONCA 398, the Ontario Court of Appeal reviewed a non-competition agreement involving a pharmacy and its employee. This case occurred prior to the coming into force of the Working for Workers Act, 2021, S.O. 20221, c. 35 (the “WWA”), and thus, the decision considered the […]

Further Guidance on Policy Requirements – Revisiting the Working for Workers Act, 2021

On December 2, 2021, Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, 2021, became law in Ontario, introducing numerous legislative changes to the Employment Standards Act (“ESA”) rules governing workplace conduct. A key change made by this legislation was the requirement for certain workplaces to have a disconnecting from work policy in place for all employees.   […]

Secretly Recording Your Coworkers and/or Supervisors Constitutes Cause for Dismissal

In Shalagin v. Mercer Celgar Limited Partnership, 2022 BCSC11, the BC Court ruled that a surreptitious recording of an employee’s colleagues constituted just cause for dismissal based upon the breach of trust that is required in any employment relationship. The plaintiff commenced employment with Mercer as a financial analyst in 2010. He signed a Code […]