Truth or Dare? When Employees Quit … or Maybe Don’t!
Author: Clifford Hart Likely every unionized employer reading this has faced the situation where an employee, in some way or another, “quits” and then some time after claims s/he didn’t mean it. It is fair to say that many employers...
Court of Appeal Downplays Importance of Candour at Arbitration
Yellow Pages Group Company dismissed the grievor, a sales consultant with 20 years of unblemished service, on the basis that he had abandoned his position because medical documentation supporting his work absence was two days late. The Company had clearly...
Canada’s Top Court Rules Teacher’s Privacy Interest in Laptop Diminished Due to School Board Ownership of Computer and Workplace Policies Regarding Computer Use
The Supreme Court of Canada has released its much anticipated decision in R. v. Cole, a criminal law case with potential implications for the privacy rights of employees in the workplace. That being said, it is important to keep in...
Facebook Taunts Reprehensible, But Are They Just Cause For Dismissal?
Man in London, Ont. fired after posting derogatory comments on tribute pagefor bullied British Columbia teen who committed suicide Author: Stuart Rudner We have spent the last few days reading about the horrific tragedy that resulted in Amanda Todd, a...
Safety Misconduct and Just Cause
The case of Barton v. Rona Ontario Inc.1 raises the issue of dismissal for cause based upon employee misconduct relating to a serious safety violation. In this case, the plaintiff was an assistant store manager who had worked for the employer...
Let There Be Wheat: Labour Standards for Farm Employees
“The Lord said ‘let there be wheat’ and Saskatchewan was born” – Stephen Leacock Saskatchewan has long been synonymous with farming. The 2011 census suggests that while there are currently fewer farms in this province than in years past, they...
Refresher on Bill 55 Amendments to the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010
In light of the Government of Ontario’s intention of imposing a broader compensation freeze in the public sector through the proposed Protecting Public Services Act, 2012 (“PPSA, 2012”) (see our Communiqué dated September 27, 2012), we thought it would be...
Focusing on the Next Generation: Age Discrimination?
Discrimination in the workplace is unfortunately more common than one might expect and may be based on the age of a senior employee and the desire to promote younger employees. Can one clearly label the attitude of certain managers towards...
Key Employees Liable to Former Employer for Unfair Competition
On March 1, 2012 the Ontario Court of Appeal (the “Court”) released its decision in GasTOPS Ltd. v. Forsyth, 2012 ONCA 134. The Court upheld the findings of the trial judge that the personal defendants were liable to their former...
More Freezes Coming in the Public Sector: Province Issues Draft Protecting Public Services Act, 2012
The wage freeze that has swept over part of the broader public sector may now be spreading even further if the provincial government has its way. The Ontario government yesterday announced plans to introduce legislation that will freeze compensation for...
