PRIVACY POLICY
Bird Richard recognizes the importance of privacy and the sensitivity of personal information it collects about its employees and clients. READ MORE >>>
BIRD RICHARD
508-130 Albert St,
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5G4
T: 613-238-3772
F: 613-238-5955
DISCLAIMER
Before you send an e-mail to Bird Richard, please be aware that your communications with us through this message will not create a lawyer-client relationship with us. Do not send us any information that you or anyone else considers to be confidential or secret unless we have first agreed to be your lawyers in that matter. Any information you send us before we agree to be your lawyers cannot be protected from disclosure.
Legislative Update
/in Summer 2009 /by BirdRichardIn the last issue, we reported on changes to the Employment Standards Act affecting temporary help employees. Bill 139, which was introduced in December of 2008 to create additional protections for temporary workers, is now scheduled to come into force on November 6, 2009.
Update on Drug Testing for Employees Working in Safety Sensitive Areas
/in Summer 2009 /by BirdRichardDrug and alcohol testing for employees in safety sensitive positions continues to be a hot topic for courts in Ontario. A recent decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal has provided the latest word on the ability of employers to conduct random drug testing of their employees. In Imperial Oil Ltd v. Communications, Energy and […]
Ontario Court of Appeal takes Restrictive Approach to Wallace Damages
/in Summer 2009 /by BirdRichardIn McNevan v. AmeriCredit Corp. (December 15, 2008), the Ontario Court of Appeal clarified that only conduct that is truly high-handed and in bad faith will warrant an award of Wallace damages. McNevan was employed as an Assistant Vice President at one of AmeriCredit’s call centres. After 13 months of service, AmeriCredit became concerned about […]
Ontario Tribunal Rules Duty to Accommodate Alcoholic Employee Not Unlimited
/in Summer 2009 /by BirdRichardIn Cudmore v. Inter Cap Industries (February 20, 2009), the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario clarified that there are limits on an employer’s duty to accommodate alcoholic or drug-addicted employees. Cudmore violated a workplace rule by coming to work under the influence of alcohol on two occasions. On the first occasion, he was given a […]
Ontario Introduces Workplace Violence Legislation
/in Summer 2009 /by BirdRichardOn April 20th, 2009, the Ontario Government introduced Bill 168, the Occupational Health and Safety Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the Workplace), 2009. The Bill was carried after its first reading. If passed, it will place new and onerous obligations on employers in Ontario. Application The new workplace violence and harassment legislation will apply […]
Supreme Court Issues Precedent-Setting Pension Decision
/in Fall 2009 /by BirdRichardIn Nolan v. Kerry (Canada) Inc., the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that employers may charge the administrative expenses of a pension plan to the pension fund itself, and that a surplus in one component of the plan may be used to fund a “contribution holiday” for the employer in respect of another component of […]
Legislative Update
/in Fall 2009 /by BirdRichardIn the Spring issue, we reported on changes to the Employment Standards Act affecting organ donor leave. Bill 154, which was introduced in March of 2009 to provide employees who donate organs with up to 13 weeks of unpaid leave, came into force on June 5th, 2009.
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act: What it Means for Employers
/in Fall 2009 /by BirdRichardBackground: The Act The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) was enacted with the intention of making Ontario completely accessible to people with disabilities by the year 2025. The legislation seeks to attain this goal by establishing standards to regulate accessibility in the following areas: employment, the provision of goods and services, transportation, […]
CIRB Rules Employer Required to Provide Union with Employee Contact Information
/in Winter 2009 /by BirdRichardIn the recent decision of Telecommunications Workers Union v. Telus Advanced Communications, (July 17, 2008) the Canada Industrial Relations Board ruled that, if an employer has employees’ basic personal contact information in its possession, it is statutorily obligated to provide that information to the union. The collective agreement required Telus to provide TWU with a […]
Employees’ “Right to Silence” is Not Absolute
/in Winter 2009 /by BirdRichardIn British Columbia Ferry and Marine Workers’ Union v. British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. (November 3, 2008), the B.C. Supreme Court upheld an arbitrator’s finding that, in exceptional circumstances, an employer’s interest in ascertaining and disclosing the cause of an incident can outweigh an employee’s interest in remaining silent. On March 21, 2006, a ferry […]