When newly-developed vaccines became available to the public amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers required that their employees submit to vaccination in order to return to work. This requirement was particularly common in the health care setting, wherein nurses, doctors and other medical health care professionals were mandated to receive the appropriate number of COVID-19 vaccinations before they would be permitted to return to the workplace. Although these demands were established as a requirement of continued employment, some such employees sought an exemption from vaccination on rel ..read more

Non-competition agreements are unique in employment law as it is an agreement between an employee and employer that states that if the employee voluntarily leaves their employment with the employer, then the employee is legally constrained from working for certain employers, in a particular industry, for a predetermined length of time. Such contracts are generally prohibited in Ontario, although they may apply to executive employees who have access to confidential business information and who could potentially use such information to harm the employer’s competitive position. The purpose of non ..read more

When an employee believes their human rights have been infringed on in the workplace, they may file a human rights claim. Employment is listed in Ontario’s Human Rights Code as one of the areas in respect of which a complaint may be filed, if the complainant has experienced discrimination in their employment on the basis of one of the grounds enumerated under the Human Rights Code. Such grounds include discrimination on the basis of race, age, disability, ethnicity or gender. In respect of claims of discrimination in the workplace, both employers and employees should be aware that an employee ..read more

When a person has been dismissed from their employment, one of the first legal questions that arises is whether the termination was justifiable. In the event that the termination of employment was justified, then the terminated employee will not be unable to recover damages. If the termination was unjustified, however, then damages may be warranted. So, how do courts determine whether a termination is justified? A general starting point involves reviewing the employment contract between the parties, if such a contract exists. Then, there must be a review of the “termination” provisions in orde ..read more

Once a court determines that a person has been wrongfully terminated from their employment, the next step is to assess the damages to which that person is entitled as a result of the wrongful action of the employer. Typically, the court assesses “reasonable notice damages”, which is the number of months of salary that the court orders the employer to pay the wrongfully terminated employee. In some cases, a court may also conclude that aggravated and/or punitive damages are also owed to the employee. The award of such damages in wrongful termination cases is rare and requires that the court imp ..read more

When a person is employed pursuant to a collective agreement, they are a member of union. This means that the terms of employment for all workers who belong to the union, are negotiated between the union and the employer. The terms to which the parties agree are written into a document called the “collective agreement”, because it has been collectively agreed to by all members of both the union and management. The collective agreement governs the relationship between the employer and all union members. As such, whenever a dispute arises between the union and management, recourse may be had to ..read more

When a person has been wrongfully or constructively terminated from their employment, damages for such termination must be assessed. Where there is a valid employment contract in place between the parties, the terms of that contract, with respect to any damages flowing from the termination, will be applied. However, in the event that there is no employment contract, or the contract itself is void for some reason (for example, if the terms of the contract are ambiguous or unclear, or there is a provision of the contract that violates a written law) then the court will have to assess damages on ..read more

One type of employment relationship that often raises questions and sparks debates is the fixed-term contract. As Canada’s economic landscape continues to shift, employers seek flexibility while employees seek stability. However, striking the right balance between these two needs is where the intricacies of fixed-term contracts come into play. In a recent blog post, we wrote about an independent contractor who worked for a company pursuant to a fixed-term contract of 72 months. When the employer ended the contract after only eight months, the court ordered the employer to pay the contractor th ..read more

When a person is employed pursuant to a collective agreement, they have the benefit of being a member of a union. As such, whenever an employment-related issue arises, whether it affects only one employee or it affects all of the employees, the union will take up the cause on behalf of those affected and will attempt to resolve matters with the employer. Generally, this is done through a grievance process, whereby the union files a grievance alleging that the employer has violated the collective agreement or otherwise violated employee rights in some way. The union and employer then both appea ..read more

To be laid-off from your employment means that your employer has approached you and, in accordance with the provisions of the Employment Standards Act and any employment contract, has instructed you not to return to work unless and until your services are again required. Lay-offs, on the other hand, may vary in length, so long as a lay-off is conducted within the confines of the law, it is acceptable for an employer to utilize a lay-off as a means of managing its resources. Many employees have experienced being laid off from their employment only to be called back to work once the employer has ..read more