Ontario Court of Appeal: Exceptional Notice Awards will ONLY be Awarded in Cases with Exceptional Circumstances (Dawe Update)
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently provided some much-needed clarity into whether the Courts will impose a “cap” on the wrongful dismissal notice awards. As we wrote about in our April 2019 article, Exceptional Notice Awards Will Be Awarded In Cases With Exceptional Circumstances, in Dawe v The Equitable Life Insurance Company of Canada, the […]
The Court Provides Further Clarity on the Employee’s Duty to Mitigate Damages When Offered Re-Employment
In Gent v Strone, the Court found that the Defendant employer had constructively dismissed the Plaintiff employee upon the commencement of a temporary lay off – due to the absence of an enforceable Employment Agreement permitting them to do so. However, the Court indicated that the employee had, in turn, acted unreasonably and consequently, failed […]
The Court Emphasizes the Importance of Responding Diligently When Served with a Statement of Claim
In Saikaly v Aikman Construction, the employee had been employed by the Defendant employer for approximately 12 years before receiving a “just cause” termination. The employee denied wrongdoing and filed a formal Statement of Claim against the employer for wrongful dismissal. Despite several follow-ups with the organization, the employer failed to file a Statement of […]
The Devil is in the Details When it Comes to “Fixed-Term” Employment Agreements
The Court recently provided further clarity to the area of “fixed-term” employment agreements with their recent decision in Lee v Choice Bank Limited. In this case, the employee had entered into a three-year fixed term employment agreement (“EA”) with the Defendant employer Bank to act as its President. The EA stipulated that her employment would […]
Ontario Superior Court: Exceptional Notice Awards Will Be Awarded in Cases with Exceptional Circumstances
It is time to say goodbye to the 24-month upper limit on common law notice periods. The writing has been on the wall since 2015, as we have seen notice awards slowly creeping up from this high-water mark, with the courts providing notice awards of 26 and 27 months in a number of recent cases.[1][2][3] […]
Cannabis in Ontario: An Update
With cannabis legally available for purchase from approved Ontario retailers as of today (April 1, 2019) it will now be even more accessible for those looking to purchase it for recreational use. While many municipalities decided to prohibit retail locations within their jurisdiction, most voted to allow them. You can see the full list here […]
Top 10 Employment Law Cases and Developments of 2018
1. Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act (“Bill 148”) Came into Effect 2018 started off with a bang as the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act (“Bill 148”) came into effect on January 1, 2018. Bill 148 resulted in the most significant amendments to Ontario’s employment legislation, the Employment Standards Act (the “ESA”), that the province had seen […]
The “Bill 148” Rollercoaster Comes to a Crashing Halt
Revised: November 26, 2018 That loud crash you heard? Don’t worry – that was just Ontario Premier Doug Ford derailing the province’s least favorite rollercoaster the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, colloquially known as “Bill 148”. Background For those of you just tuning in, Bill 148 was originally introduced by the Ontario government in May […]
Overview of Bill 3 – Pay Transparency Act, 2018
Emerging from recent trends surrounding gender-based wage disparity, Ontario’s new Pay Transparency Act, 2018 (the “Act”) is set to come into force on January 1, 2019. This Act aims to provide transparency within workplaces as it relates to compensation by: prohibiting inquiries within the recruitment process regarding compensation history; requiring full transparency of salary ranges […]
An Employment Law Perspective on the 2018 Provincial Election
Tomorrow is Election Day in Ontario and given the great ideological disparity between the two frontrunners, Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives and Andrea Horwath’s New Democratic Party, we here at Rodney Employment Law are eagerly awaiting the results, to gain a better understanding of the direction the new party will be taking the province. While all […]