Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
By Frederic Parisien Workplace harassment, at the onset, involves two players — the harasser and the harassee. A third party is added once a complaint is filed — the employer. And a fourth player, the union, is added if that complaint is a grievance. To what extent does the alleged harasser continue to be a […]
By Marisa Victor and Yael Wexler Noncompetition clauses in employment contracts are difficult to enforce in Canada. Courts tend to regard them as unreasonable restraints on trade. Any ambiguity usually will be fatal. Nor will the courts generally use a “blue pencil” to remove ambiguous words. This was made clear in the recent appellate decision […]
By Ralph N. Nero and Fida Hindi Canadian employees are entitled to all sorts of leaves – maternity leaves, parental leaves, sick leaves, emergency leaves, leave for the disappearance of a minor child, and the list goes on. Now Ontario may be joining Quebec by creating yet another new category of leave of absence for […]
By Gilda Villaran On February 24, 2012, a new simplified process for certain foreign workers seeking entry to the Province of Quebec was announced. Instead of applying to only seven information technology occupations, as before, the simplified process will apply to 44 occupations in a variety of fields. This is an important development not only […]
By Thora Sigurdson We all know that, where applicable, it’s important to take care in drafting confidentiality, noncompetition, and nonsolicitation terms in employment, contractor, and other agreements. A recent case in British Columbia, Cruise Connections Canada v. Cancellieri, reminds us of the value of having a “duty of good faith” clause. It also illustrates how […]
By Kyla Stott-Jess and Gulu Punia A difficult employee states that he is quitting and walks out the door. Problem solved? Or just beginning? Recent cases illustrate that it’s hard to know when an employee has quit in the eyes of the courts in Canada. And it can be expensive when you get it wrong. […]
By Hadiya Roderique Working notice — the default under many pieces of employment standards in Canada — can be a way to reduce an organization’s cost of termination of employment. But what happens when an employee quits in response to getting fired before the end of the notice period? And what happens when the working […]
By Chris Semerjian When Canadian employers are buying other businesses, the question of noncompetes often arises. But a noncompetition provision in an employment contract may not be the answer. According to the Quebec Court of Appeal in Guay Inc. c. Payette, 2011 QCCA 2282, you may be better protected by only having a noncompetition covenant […]
By Donna Gallant Employers are regularly called upon to modify the workplace or job duties in order to accommodate disabilities. But personal assistive bodily devices haven’t traditionally been part of the accommodation discussion in Canada. This may now be changing, according to a recent arbitration decision. Teacher requires hearing aids A teacher struggled with a […]
by Rosalind H. Cooper It is commonplace for companies and supervisors across Canada to be charged and convicted with respect to health and safety offenses. But the same doesn’t necessarily hold true for health and safety managers. In R. v. Della Valle, the Provincial Court of Nova Scotia recently convicted and fined a health and […]