Resources: Employment
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The B.C. ESA has Changed: What’s New and What’s Coming
October 2018
B.C.’s NDP government recently moved forward with some significant changes to the province’s Employment Standards Act (“ESA”). The minimum wage and some statutory leaves of absence have been increased, and these changes are merely the start: further and far reaching amendments to the ESA are expected in the near future.
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The B.C. ESA has Changed: What’s New and What’s Coming -
Have I Constructively Dismissed an Employee by Putting Them on Unpaid Administrative Suspension?
October 2018
A recent decision from the Ontario Court of Appeal confirmed that suspending an employee without pay (i.e. an “administrative suspension”), including while the employer conducts an investigation, can constitute constructive dismissal. The Court provided guidance on when and how employees can be placed on suspension during an employer’s investigation.
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Have I Constructively Dismissed an Employee by Putting Them on Unpaid Administrative Suspension? -
Consider This: A Fresh Look at the Legal Need for Consideration
September 2018
The B.C. Court of Appeal may recently have offered an answer to a question that has always vexed employers: why must employers provide their employees with something in exchange for a minor contract modification? The short answer is that they may no longer have to.
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Consider This: A Fresh Look at the Legal Need for Consideration -
Back To School — Does Retraining Count As Reasonable Mitigation Of Damages?
August 2018
In Benjamin v. Cascades Canada ULC, 2017 ONSC 2583, the plaintiff had worked as an unskilled labourer with the defendant company for 28 years. The company had eliminated all of its production functions at one of its plant locations, resulting in the dismissal of 41 employees, including the plaintiff.
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Back To School — Does Retraining Count As Reasonable Mitigation Of Damages? -
Will Income From A Second Job Be Considered Earnings In Mitigation?
July 2018
In Pakozdi v. B & B Heavy Civil Construction Ltd., 2018 BCCA 23, the B.C. Court of Appeal clarified how to treat replacement income in the calculation of damages for a wrongfully dismissed employee.
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Will Income From A Second Job Be Considered Earnings In Mitigation? -
“Investigation is the New Arbitration”: Thoughts on Our Changing Workplaces
July 2018
Every seasoned human resources professional is aware that “investigation is the new arbitration”. When addressing issues of all but the most serious and blatant misconduct, employers are now routinely counselled that if they shoot first and ask questions later, they do so at their peril.
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“Investigation is the New Arbitration”: Thoughts on Our Changing Workplaces -
Introducing The Smell Test: Disciplining An Employee For Body Odour
July 2018
Summer is here. And with it comes the awkward but very real workplace issue of employee hygiene. The question is, what can employers do about an employee with body odour and hygiene issues? A recent decision of the BC Human Rights Tribunal, Southwell v. CKF Inc., 2017 BCHRT 83 (“Southwell”) provides guidance.
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Introducing The Smell Test: Disciplining An Employee For Body Odour -
Perception of Retaliation Does Not Breach the Human Rights Code
June 2018
In Gichuru v. Pallai, 2018 BCCA 78, the most recent decision in the long-running saga between an individual and his former landlord, the BC Court of Appeal clarified the test for retaliation under section 43 of the BC Human Rights Code, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 210 (the “Code”).
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Perception of Retaliation Does Not Breach the Human Rights Code -
Termination for Failure to Comply with Attendance Policy Not Discriminatory
June 2018
In Rajuc v. Omega Tool Corp., 2017 HRTO 818, the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal provided employers with valuable guidance regarding how to deal with workplace attendance problems.
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Termination for Failure to Comply with Attendance Policy Not Discriminatory -
Failing a Breathalyzer Test in a Company Vehicle: Just Cause for Dismissal?
June 2018
The B.C. Supreme Court recently determined in Klonteig v. District of West Kelowna, 2018 BCSC 124 that an assistant fire chief was wrongfully dismissed when his employer terminated his employment after he failed two breathalyzer tests while driving his employer’s vehicle.
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Failing a Breathalyzer Test in a Company Vehicle: Just Cause for Dismissal?