Resources: Labour
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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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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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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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What does the Cambridge Analytica Scandal Mean for Canadian Employers?
April 2018
Cambridge Analytica has been all over the news for the past couple of weeks. The consulting firm allegedly used the personal information of 50 million Facebook users, without their permission, for political purposes. What does this issue mean to Canadian employers?
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What does the Cambridge Analytica Scandal Mean for Canadian Employers?
April 2018
Cambridge Analytica has been all over the news for the past couple of weeks. The consulting firm allegedly used the personal information of 50 million Facebook users, without their permission, for political purposes. What does this issue mean to Canadian employers?
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Basic “Work for Pay” Bargain at the Core of the Employment Relationship
March 2018
Corporation of the Township of Langley -and- Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 403, BCLRB No. B117/2017 (leave for reconsideration denied in No. B151/2017) is part of a series of decisions addressing alleged discrimination against a number of employees who were dismissed from employment due to non-culpable absenteeism.
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Dealing With Employees Who Deny Unfitness To Work
March 2018
A roadmap for dealing with disabled employees who are unfit for active employment, but who deny being unfit, is detailed in Kelfor Industries Ltd. v. United Steelworkers, Local 2009 ([Grievor] Medical Leave and Termination Grievances) (November 21, 2017 – unreported at time of writing) (Lanyon).
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Careful About Aiming Too High And Asking For Too Much
February 2018
After reorganizing a business, employers must take care that the terms of settlement and new employment they offer to their employees do not provide a basis for a dismissed employee to reasonably refuse to take the position in order to mitigate damages for wrongful dismissal.
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Alberta Court Of Appeal Confirms And Clarifies Requirements For Random Drug Testing
January 2018
This article focuses on the Alberta Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Suncor Energy Inc. v. Unifor, Local 707A, 2017 ABCA 313. The Court unanimously upheld a judicial review decision rejecting the majority decision of an arbitration panel which had found Suncor Energy Inc.’s random drug and alcohol testing policy to be unenforceable.
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