08 Jan Ontario Employment Law: Overtime Pay
Section 22 of the Ontario Employment Standards Act provides that in most circumstance, an employee who works more than 44 hours in a given week shall be paid at least...
Law Articles
20 Dec Ontario Employment Law: Aggravated Damages in Wrongful Dismissal Cases
Aggravated damages may be awarded in wrongful dismissal actions on rare occasions to compensate an employee whose damages have been worsened or exacerbated by the employer's misconduct or bad faith...
17 Dec Ontario Employment Law: Jurisdiction of the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal
The Ontario Human Rights Tribunal provides us with an important reminder: Its jurisdiction is limited by the Ontario Human Rights Code itself....
13 Dec Ontario Employment Law: “Discrimination” Under The Ontario Human Rights Code
In a very recent case, Syed v. Khetia Pharmacy Inc., the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal decisively rejected an applicant’s claim that he had been discriminated against by his employer on the basis...
01 Dec Ontario Employment Law: Maximum Recovery of $10,000.00 under Ontario Employment Standards Act
Posted at 08:47h
in Employment Law, Employment Standards Act (ESA), Layoffs & Termination, Uncategorized
The Ontario Employment Standards Act (ESA) provides many benefits to the Province's employees. It also lays a few traps for those who do not fully consider the Act's complexities and...
19 Nov Ontario Employment Law: Restrictive Covenants 101
Employers often wish to protect their commercial and business interests by contractually limiting the ability of departing employees to use confidential information, compete with the employer, and solicit the employer's...
15 Nov Facebook, Background Checks and Job Applications
Here is yet another sign of our digital times - the Facebook password request ancillary to a job application. Recruits in more than a third of 728 police agencies surveyed are now required...
10 Nov Ontario Employment Law: Temporary Layoffs – Common Law and the Employment Standards Act
One important area where the Ontario Employment Standards (ESA) and the common law appear to be wholly at odds relates to the consequences of temporary layoffs. The ESA provides that under certain circumstances,...
10 Nov Can You Facebook If You Want To?
The post discusses evolving attitudes toward social media use in the workplace, highlighting two key developments: U.S. NLRB Ruling on Social Media and Worker Rights The National Labor Relations Board found that...
06 Nov Ontario Employment Law: Termination Pay and Severance Pay under the Employment Standards Act
Under Ontario’s Employment Standards Act (ESA), employees dismissed without cause are entitled to two distinct statutory payments: Termination Pay: Calculated based on years of service. Employees with 8 years or more...
01 Nov Ontario Employment Law: Discrimination On The Basis of Disability under the Ontario Human Rights Code
Posted at 12:33h
in Employment Law, Employment Standards Act (ESA), Human Rights & Discrimination, Uncategorized
Discover how the Ontario Human Rights Code protects employees from disability discrimination at work, and how employers must accommodate injuries or disabilities unless it causes undue hardship. Includes case insights....
24 Oct Ontario Employment Law: “Wilful Misconduct” under the Employment Standards
Learn when an Ontario employer can avoid termination notice or pay by demonstrating egregious, deliberate misconduct under ESA Regulation 288/01. Highlights from the Walmart Canada Gray case....
20 Oct Ontario Employment Law: Your Entitlements Under The Employment Standards Act and The Question of Mitigation
When a non-unionized employee in Ontario is terminated without cause, the employer must promptly provide statutory entitlements under the Employment Standards Act (ESA)—namely, termination pay and severance pay. Termination pay...
18 Oct Ontario Employment Law: More on Reasonable Notice
In Slater v. Sandwell Incorporated (1994), Ontario courts confirmed that reasonable notice for terminated employees is assessed using the Bardal factors—job type, service length, age, and re-employment prospects—while also considering...
23 Sep Ontario Employment Law: Notice Periods for Non-Managerial Employees
In Ontario, non-unionized, non-managerial employees terminated without cause are entitled to reasonable notice—a length determined by the Bardal factors: length of employment, seniority, age, likelihood of securing new work, and...
22 Sep Ontario Employment Law: “Just Cause” for Dismissal
When can employment be lawfully terminated "for cause?"...
16 Sep Ontario Employment Law: Reasonable Notice and ‘Character of Employment’
Ontario employers must provide reasonable notice when terminating employment without cause—determined by key Bardal factors: character of employment, length of service, age, and availability of similar work. While longer notice...
15 Mar Ontario Employment Law: Notice Periods and Senior Executive Employees
In Love v. Acuity Investments Management Inc. (2011), the Ontario Court of Appeal increased a senior vice-president’s termination notice from five to nine months, underscoring that high-level roles demand longer...
20 Nov Workplace Harassment and Bill 168 – A New Remedy for an Old Problem
Bill 168 represented hope for employees historically trapped in environments where bullying was tolerated. By legislating clear responsibilities for employers, Ontario set the stage for stronger protections of workplace mental health...
24 Mar Fired for “Friending” – Facebook Update
In a notable UK case, a prison officer was dismissed for gross misconduct after discovering that his Facebook “friend list” included prior prisoners and criminals. Despite claiming ignorance, his failure...