Resources: Employment

Modern Family (Status): Court of Appeal Clarifies Test for Family Status Discrimination in B.C.

A five-justice division of the B.C. Court of Appeal has just issued an important, unanimous decision on the applicable test to address claims of discrimination in employment with respect to family status (caregiving obligations).

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Just Cause “Cancellation”?

Ever since the #MeToo movement, “cancel culture” has gained momentum, seeking to hold individuals accountable for abuses of power as well as sexual harassment and assault – in both the past and present. The decision in Ottawa Jewish Community School Teachers’ Assn. v. Ottawa Jewish Community School (Cianni Grievance), 2022 O.L.A.A. No 113 (Tremayne) examines the trend of “cancelling” individuals for past misconduct in the context of a just cause termination.

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Arbitrator Allows Religious-Based Exemption From Covid-19 Mandatory Vaccination Policy

In the recent case of B.C. Rapid Transit Co. v. Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 7000 (Morzhakov Grievance), [2022] B.C.C.A.A.A. No. 114 (Noonan), Arbitrator Randall Noonan held that an employer violated an employee’s rights under the B.C. Human Rights Code when it refused to grant a religious accommodation in relation to its COVID-19 mandatory vaccination policy.

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British Columbia Passes Legislation Recognizing National Day for Truth and Reconciliation as a Statutory Holiday

On March 9, 2023, Bill 2, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Act, received royal assent. Bill 2 recognizes National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (“NDTR”) on September 30 of each year as a statutory holiday.

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Failure to Launch: A Cautionary Tale for Employers Arising from Chu v. China Southern Airlines Co. (c.o.b. China Southern Airlines), 2023 BCSC 21

The British Columbia Supreme Court recently issued a scathing decision that serves as a warning to all employers about what not to do when purporting to terminate an employee for just cause.

Overall, the employer’s actions attracted $150,000 in aggravated, punitive and bad faith damages, approximately three times the value of the wrongful dismissal damages (i.e. severance) awarded.

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Spotlight on Section 64 – Group Terminations

On January 6 and 9 2023, two unrelated decisions were released dealing with s. 64 (Group Terminations) of the BC Employment Standards Act (“ESA”).

The first was a decision from the BC Supreme Court, which addressed an argument that a termination clause in the employment agreement of a non-union employee was unenforceable because it did not refer to the group notice requirements of s. 64.

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Employer Must Take Meaningful Steps to Confirm Voluntary Resignation or Risk Paying Damages for Wrongful Dismissal

In the recent decision of Burd v. Tahtsa Timber Ltd., 2022 BCSC 1372, the BC Supreme Court confirmed that an employer cannot simply assume that an employee has voluntarily resigned from his or her employment. Rather, the employer must take meaningful steps to confirm that the employee has in fact resigned.

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Significant Changes Coming in 2023 for BC’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act

The Provincial government has recently confirmed the latest in a series of long-anticipated and significant changes to BC’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (“FIPPA”). As of February 1, 2023, two new sections of FIPPA and associated regulations will come into force.

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Lessons from Selling Sunset, Part Three: Workplace Relationships

What better way to end our three-part series on employment law lessons learned from watching Netflix’s Selling Sunset than to talk about romantic relationships in the workplace. As always, there are spoilers ahead.

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Expiry of Maximum Layoff Period Without Cause Termination: CERB Deducted from Damages

Angelo Luna Nicolas was a long­-service employee at the Pan Pacific Hotel Vancouver, working as a house-person for 32 years with the hotel. He had a half-page letter confirming his employment, and it did not contain any language limiting or restricting severance or the notice period upon termination.

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