In a trio of cases, the Ontario Court of Appeal recently held that a claim for the tort of intrusion upon seclusion does not apply to companies who store personal information for commercial use (the “Database Defendants”) when those databases are hacked by third parties. Background In June 2022, the Court of Appeal heard three…
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Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits Increase to 26 Weeks
The amendments contained in Bill C-30, Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1, which permanently extend the maximum number of weeks available under employment insurance (EI) sickness benefits, have been proclaimed into force effective December 18, 2022. In this FTR Now we consider this development and its implications for employers. Extension from 15 to 26 Weeks…
COVID-19 Year-End Edition
As we near the end of 2022, we reflect back on a year filled with virtual environments, increased connections and a renewed focus on wellness as we made it through another year since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020. The pandemic has had a broad-ranging impact on employment law since March 2020. To wrap up…
British Columbia Court of Appeal Finds Canada Emergency Response Benefit Not Deductible from Wrongful Dismissal Damages
On November 29, 2022, the British Columbia Court of Appeal released Yates v. Langley Motor Sport Centre Ltd., in which the Court of Appeal ruled that payments received by an employee under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) should not be deducted from wrongful dismissal damages. The Court of Appeal held that broader policy considerations,…
Ontario Court Rules Bill 124 is Unconstitutional – What Now?
In a decision dated November 29, 2022, Justice Koehnen of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice found that Bill 124, Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act, 2019 (the Act or Bill 124) substantially interfered with the applicant unions’ section 2(d) freedom of association rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms…
Court Finds Bill 124 to Be Unconstitutional
On November 29, 2022, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice rendered its decision in Ontario English Catholic Teachers Assoc. v. His Majesty. The Court found that the Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act, 2019 (commonly referred to as Bill 124) is contrary to section 2(d) (freedom of association) of the Canadian Charter…
Court of Appeal Denies Injunction Relating to Mandatory Vaccination Policy
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently released its reasons in National Organized Workers Union v. Sinai Health System. The Court dismissed the appeal brought by the National Organized Workers Union (Union) of an Ontario Superior Court decision which refused to stay the implementation of the workplace COVID-19 vaccination policy (Policy) of Sinai Health System (Sinai…
Companion Decisions Regarding Related Employers Released by the Ontario Court of Appeal; Confirm that the Ontario Labour Relations Board Is Owed Deference
On November 16, 2022, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its reasons in Turkiewicz (Tomasz Turkiewicz Custom Masonry Homes) v. Bricklayers, Masons Independent Union of Canada, Local 1 (Turkiewicz) and Enercare Home & Commercial Services Limited Partnership v. UNIFOR Local 975 (Enercare). These companion decisions consider the Ontario Divisional Court’s application of the reasonableness standard…
Municipalities Take Note: Ontario Introduces Better Municipal Governance Act and Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act Regulations
In this Human Resources Legislative Update, we provide a brief summary of two recent legislative developments–the introduction of Bill 39, Better Municipal Governance Act, 2022, as well as Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 regulations–that build on the Ontario government’s stated initiative to extend strong mayor powers and deliver on shared provincial-municipal priorities. Bill 39,…
Consultation on Licensing Framework for Temporary Help Agencies and Recruiters
The Ontario government has taken the next step in the development of a licensing framework for temporary help agencies (THAs) and recruiters operating in the province. On November 21, 2022, Ontario’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (Ministry) announced a public consultation process with respect to the development of supporting regulations for the…