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Unfortunately, many employees have negative experiences while at work. These can come in the form of not getting along with a co-worker, unfair performance reviews, getting yelled at by the boss, or any number of other situations that may come up in the workplace. However, it is not always easy to tell whether what one has been subjected to at his or her place of employment constitutes harassment. Further, many people do not know how they can address it or what their protections are. This post will provide an overview of the law of workplace harassment in Ontario, but will…

As courts have become more flexible in deciding whether termination clauses in employment agreements are enforceable, the arguments that specific clauses are not have gotten more creative. In Amberber v. IBM Canada Ltd., 2018 ONCA 571, the Ontario Court of Appeal reversed the trial judge’s holding that a termination clause was void because a sentence that attempted to ensure compliance with the Employment Standards Act (ESA) was actually a severability clause that was inoperative and could not save the rest of the provision. In North v. Metaswitch Networks Corporation, 2017 ONCA 790, the Court of Appeal affirmed the following rule: …

One of the fundamental doctrines of litigation is full documentary disclosure. Courts have vigilantly upheld the rule that all relevant documents should be disclosed so that the opposing party knows the case to be met. The principle is so deeply embedded in our justice system that before an affidavit of documents (a brief of relevant evidence) is sent to an opposing party, a lawyer must sign a certificate stating that he or she has explained to the client that they are required to make full disclosure. A court can sanction a party for failing to disclose relevant documents that are…

Being classified as a dependent contractor versus an independent contractor is important for several reasons. For one, dependent contractors are entitled to reasonable notice or pay in lieu of notice. However, independent contractors enjoy no such entitlement. Despite this difference, classifying workplace relationships can be a tricky endeavor. Canadian courts rely heavily on the context of the working arrangement. The terms of a contract, though persuasive, are not the only deciding factors. They are not determinative.      Accordingly, Canadian courts have established five tests to consider when attempting to determine whether a dependent contractor relationship exists between an agent and…

We spend long hours at our workplaces. That, coupled with plenty of social time at happy-hours, retirement parties and team-building social activities, makes workplaces optimal environments for relationships to flourish, be they platonic or romantic. Office romances are inevitable. The legal implications of engaging in an office romance, however, are complicated. There are important consequences that employees and employers should understand when faced with an office romance, depending on the nature of the relationship and the employer’s policy.  Nature of the Relationship  Recently, Mcdonald’s fired its CEO over a relationship he was having with an employee. The board of directors…

In Nemeth v Hatch Ltd, 2018 ONCA 7, the Ontario Court of Appeal added a lot of uncertainty to the already confusing task of interpreting termination clauses in employment agreements. Employees have both common law and statutory entitlements to notice of termination without cause. Many employers try to limit their employees’ entitlements to the minimum amounts of notice required by the Employment Standards Act (ESA), or to another amount that is less than the reasonable amount of notice at common law. To do so successfully, the employer must clearly specify some other period of notice that meets the minimum entitlements…

Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act received Royal Assent in the Ontario legislature on April 3, 2019, putting into effect several changes to Ontario’s employment laws. These added to the amendments that the Ontario government had made to the Employment Standards Act (the “ESA”) only months earlier through the passing of Bill 47, Making Ontario Open for Business Act. Both bills have resulted in changes to Ontario’s employment legislation that reflect the current government’s employer-friendly inclination. Although the Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act impacted various pieces of legislation, the changes most relevant to the average non-unionized employee will likely be those…

When someone is terminated, they are generally entitled to reasonable notice at common law or pay in lieu thereof. In Canada, courts determine what the reasonable notice period is in any given case based on the Bardal factors, which include character of employment, length of service, age, and availability of similar employment having regard to the experience, training and qualifications of the employee. However, other considerations may also come into play.  In Fraser v Canerector Inc, 2015 ONSC 2138, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice included an additional factor in its decision – the time of year. Mr. Fraser had…

On November 29, 2019, Bill Peters resigned as head coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames. This came four days after Nigerian-born Akim Aliu alleged that Peters used racial slurs towards him 10 years ago when Peters coached him on the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. Subsequently, allegations of physical abuse were made by other players formerly coached by Peters. Given that NHL head coaches are often terminated suddenly when their teams underperform, many wondered why it took four days for his tenure with the Flames to come to an end. The likely answers to many peoples’ questions offer a good review of…

Most employment contracts contain a termination clause that defines an employee’s rights to notice, severance, or termination pay in lieu of notice. Termination clauses are almost always drafted in favor of the employer by limiting notice periods to statutory minimums contained in the Employment Standards Act (“ESA”). In the absence of such a clause, or where the clause is present yet unenforceable, the employee is owed more generous common law notice, which is approximately one month for every year of service. Accordingly, the validity of a termination clause can have significant financial ramifications on both the employer and the employee.  Enforceability of termination clauses can…