Tag: Canada

Ghost of Christmas Past: Firing Union Supporters Can Come Back to Haunt You

By David McDonald Most Canadian employers are familiar with what they can and can’t do when they’re the target of a union-organizing campaign. Labor legislation across Canada prohibits management from terminating or disciplining employees because of trade union affiliation while a union is attempting to gain representational rights. A recent decision from British Columbia, Playtime […]

Hiring Decisions and Older Workers — Avoiding Liability

By Alix Herber and Hadiya Roderique Across Canada, human rights legislation prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of age. This applies to all aspects of the employment relationship — job advertisements, application forms, job interviews, hiring decisions, denial of promotional opportunities, and termination decisions. Data from the Ontario Human Rights Commission for 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 […]

Permanent Immigration from United States to Canada

By Gilda Villaran How can an American resident become a Canadian citizen? Only permanent residents of Canada can apply. Therefore, one must start with applying for permanent resident status. There are various ways to become a permanent resident of Canada. This article will focus on those who apply in the “economic class.” For those applying […]

Workplace Harassment: Preventive Measures May Limit Liability

By Dominique Launay No doubt, workplace harassment remains a hot topic in Canada. Another Canadian province, Manitoba, has recently announced that it will join Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and the federal sector in requiring employers to provide protection from workplace harassment. Quebec employers have been required to deal with protections from psychological harassment since 2004. Their […]

Competing for Talent with Your Own Clients

By Joel Henderson and Stephen Acker Julie is an IT consultant working for NoProblemo! Tech Solutions (NP), a technology consultancy. Julie has worked at NP for six years, is well-educated, and has important certifications and transportable skills. What can NP do to reduce the risk of her being hired away by a client? The scenario […]

Noncompetes Often a Nonstarter

By Gulu Punia and Kyla Stott-Jess Signing a noncompete agreement can potentially provide some assurance that former employees will not start up or join the competing business across the street. In the absence of a noncompete agreement, employers often try to rely on their former employees’ fiduciary duties to combat competition. Unfortunately, Alberta’s Court of […]

Aspects of Attendance Management Program Ruled Discriminatory

By David Wong Attendance management programs themselves aren’t discriminatory — they just need to be carefully designed and properly applied. Such is the latest conclusion in continuing litigation between Coast Mountain Bus Company Ltd. and the Canadian Auto Workers, a battle over an attendance management program covering transit operators in the Greater Vancouver region in […]

Employees Fired for Facebook Postings

By Maria Giagilitsis It’s becoming more and more clear that an employee’s use of social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace may lead to justifiable discipline by an employer. On October 22, 2010, the British Columbia Labour Relations Board released its decision in West Coast Mazda (d.b.a. West Coast Detail & Accessory Centre) […]

Accommodating Mental Illness

By Alix Herber and Hadiya Roderique In Canada, employers have a duty to accommodate individuals suffering from a disability to the level of undue hardship. In the case of an employee with a physical disability, it often can be relatively straightforward to identify accommodations that can be implemented. In contrast, the accommodation of mental illness […]

Wal-Mart’s Follow-Up: A Consolation Prize for Unions?

By Chris Semerjian The Quebec Superior Court recently upheld an arbitration award against Wal-Mart regarding the  closure of its store in the town of Jonquière in 2005. That closure is now also affecting Wal-Mart elsewhere in Canada. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal recently indicated that Wal-Mart’s actions in Quebec possibly could be perceived as an […]