Labour Relations and Employment Law
Bill 168 - The Occupational Health and Safety Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the Workplace), 2010
January 21, 2010
On December 15, 2009 Bill 168, the Occupational Health and Safety Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the Workplace) received Royal Assent. Bill 168 will be in effect on June 15, 2010.
Bill 168 amends the Occupational Health and Safety Act to address workplace harassment and workplace violence (including a threat to exercise physical force). This is accomplished by creating new terms for workplace harassment and workplace violence, imposing new duties with respect to workplace harassment, workplace violence and domestic violence and extending the right to refuse work due to workplace violence.
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Bullying And Harassment In The Workplace
July 06, 2007
Employers are required to create and maintain a safe workplace where employees are treated fairly with civility, decency and respect. Do you have the right policies in place? Courts are awarding significant damage awards to employees who have been bullied and harassed in the workplace. Employers must take effective steps to address unacceptable behaviour or face exposure to significant legal liability.
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Accommodating Disabled Employees : How Much Hardship Is “Undue” Hardship?
July 05, 2007
How much hardship is “undue” hardship? The Supreme Court said that Employers continue to have an obligation to accommodate a disabled employee to the point of undue hardship. For employers trying to accommodate disabled employees, trying to define “undue” hardship is like trying to solve a rubik’s cube – the landscape just keeps changing. The Supreme Court of Canada has recently released a decision which will be of some assistance to unionized employers trying to solve this puzzle.
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Employment Insurance: Should the Employer Participate or Not
January 27, 2006
In a recent judgement, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has applied the doctrine of issue estoppel to preclude an employer from defending a wrongful dismissal claim on the basis of just cause, where the employer raised the same defence in an Employment Insurance appeal, and lost. As a result of Korenberg v. Global Wood Concepts Ltd., employers should think twice before participating in the employee’s Employment Insurance proceedings...
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Disabled Employees Are Entitled To Severance Payments
November 29, 2005
Until recently it has been standard practice in Ontario for employers not to pay Severance Pay when a disabled employee was terminated because his or her disability made it impossible to do the job. In a decision dated May 4, 2005 the Ontario Court of Appeal concluded that employers are now required to pay Severance Pay to employees whose employment has been frustrated due to illness or injury.
The Employment Standards Act (the ESA) requires certain employers to pay Severance Pay when terminating employees and certain conditions are met.The ESA does however,provided certain exemptions from this requirement.
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Employees Entitled To Family Medical Leave
October 13, 2005
Recent amendments to the Canada Labour Code, the Ontario Employment Standards Act and the Employment Insurance Act provide employees with up to eight (8) weeks of leave from their employment and up to six (6) weeks of employment insurance benefits. The leave allows workers to be temporarily absent from work to provide care or support to a member of his or her family, who is gravely ill with a significant risk of death.
All employees in Ontario are now entitled to eight (8) weeks of leave from their employment to provide care for sick relatives without fear of losing their job. If these employees are eligible to receive Employment Insurance, they may receive Employment Insurance benefits for up to six weeks; subject to a two week waiting period.
Wallace Damages
September 29, 2003
It is well known that when an employer dismisses an employee without cause they are required to provide that employee with a notice period or pay in lieu of notice. More recently however, in addition to the standard requirements of notice, Courts have been emphasizing the obligation of employers to deal with such employees in good faith. This obligation was addressed by the Supreme Court of Canada in the 1997 case of Wallace v. United Grain Growers . The doctrine arising out of that case holds that employers have an obligation of good faith and fair dealings regarding the manner in which they dismiss employees and in their conduct prior, and subsequent to, the dismissal. This Doctrine has come to be known as The Wallace Doctrine.
While the Courts have not provided a precise definition of the obligation of good faith and fair dealings the Supreme Court did state...
