Different industry sectors have different human resources issues. Some industries grapple with the effects of globalization or regulation, others with a shortage of talent and still others with the impact of rapid growth.

Our industry knowledge gives us a clear context in which to provide clients with solutions that work within their competitive environment.

  • Technology

    Technology companies are founded on specialized talent, intellectual property and client relationships. This gives rise to a unique set of human resources needs and priorities, from agreements that ensure the utmost protection of information to the development of sophisticated compensation structures to incent, reward and retain key employees. The technology sector continues to rapidly evolve…

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  • Arts, Entertainment & Sports

    Professional sports leagues, film and television production companies, major theatre and performing arts centres, and other talent-driven businesses deal with a number of challenges including hiring top talent, managing labour disputes, investigating and addressing allegations of sexual harassment and workplace violence, and managing workplace safety and preventing injuries.

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  • Construction

    Employers in the construction industry contend with unique challenges around job site safety, workforce turnover and skilled employee shortages, while meeting quality, productivity and employments standards. Construction companies are also experiencing changes in composition and demographics of their workforce, which can give rise to accommodation and harassment issues and the need for additional supervisory training….

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  • Education

    We have provided services to school boards, colleges, universities and private schools since the formation of our firm in 1972.

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  • Energy & Utilities

    The energy and utilities sector is complex and highly regulated, with some employers governed by provincial workplace laws and others governed federally. The sector has undergone considerable transformation in recent years, with amalgamations within the industry and the push for clean energy creating unique human resources challenges. Wage restraint legislation at the executive level and…

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  • Financial Services

    Hicks Morley understands the financial sector, and we are uniquely placed to work with our clients to solve both their short-term and long-term legal issues. The financial services sector is continually evolving, along with changes in government, regulation, technology and customer expectations. These changes inevitably have an enormous daily impact on the workforce, which makes…

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  • Government Ministries & Agencies (Federal and Provincial)

    Government ministries, agencies, corporations, commissions and associations face a number of unique challenges that private-sector organizations do not. These include additional statutory requirements—from wage restraints to public accountability—operating in an ever-changing political environment and resource constraints that are common to almost all publicly funded institutions. We have a long-standing history of providing advice within the…

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  • Healthcare

    Funding challenges continue to grow in the healthcare sector, with many healthcare facilities facing deficits and corresponding reductions to programs and staff, while at the same time facing increasing demands for healthcare services. In addition, there is an ongoing push to integrate healthcare services—which significantly impacts human resources. With a number of issues at stake,…

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  • Hospitality & Gaming

    The hospitality and gaming industry is labour-intensive with a wide variety of challenging employment and labour issues that directly impact a venue’s operations. We have years of experience and a proven track record of assisting investors, owners and operators with issues that arise in the labour and employment context. Our lawyers understand the variety of…

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  • Manufacturing

    Employers in the manufacturing sector continue to face considerable economic and competitive challenges such that some are looking to reinvent their operations through investing in technology and seeking a more agile and responsive workforce. This includes the use of alternative employment models, with some operations relocating to off-site locations or being outsourced to other service…

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  • Media & Communications

    The Canadian media and communications industry has seen exponential change in the last decade. Developments in technology, the explosion of social media and the ubiquity of mobile devices have significantly impacted the way employers operate their businesses. Media convergence and industry consolidation have also created opportunities—and challenges—for employers, particularly those operating in heavily unionized environments….

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  • Membership Associations

    Membership associations don’t come in one size or shape: they are as varied and dynamic as the types of memberships they are entrusted to represent. They vary from small organizations focused on the delivery of membership services, grappling with traditional employment, human rights and privacy issues, to large operations with substantial workforces to manage, to…

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  • Mining & Natural Resources

    The recent collapse in commodity prices has created an unprecedented economic challenge for the mining and natural resources sector. While revenues have declined significantly, companies face high fixed costs related to extraction, processing and ongoing operations. Many employers in the sector have mature and heavily unionized workforces with traditional collective agreements. Employers are taking actions…

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  • Municipalities & Municipal Agencies

    Municipalities are responsible for delivering a wide variety of services—police, fire, paramedic, transit, healthcare (homes for the aged), and libraries—in addition to their general municipal services. At the same time, they are under increasing pressure to deliver more with less. With fiscal responsibility, cost containment and the need for greater efficiencies come a host of…

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  • Non-Profit Organizations

    Non-profit organizations range significantly in their missions and goals, but they face many of the same challenges. The competition for donations is fierce, with funding an ongoing concern. And while most have a contingent of paid staff members, many workers are volunteers who may not have a full appreciation of the legal responsibilities that their…

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  • Long-Term Care & Home Care

    The long-term care and home care sectors continue to face increasing regulatory requirements for both private operators and publicly funded operators. Not only do operators need to conduct regular risk assessments, they must also proactively manage issues related to collective bargaining and interest arbitration, recruitment and retention challenges, workplace safety, accommodation, and the protection of…

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  • Professional & Technical Services

    Professional and technical services organizations are unique from a human resources perspective. While these workplaces can vary greatly, they share a key common element: their businesses are based primarily on selling the professional expertise of their employees or partners. A key challenge for these organizations is that employment laws—based on rules related to wages and…

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  • Retail & Wholesale Trade

    Technology is reshaping the retail and wholesale sector, with the growth of online shopping impacting various operations—from warehousing and staffing to logistics. Employers in this sector face a number of unique human resources challenges because of their geographical reach and the direct relationship they have with their customers. Whether companies operate online, through brick-and-mortar locations,…

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  • Social Services

    As a labour and employment law firm with extensive experience working with clients in the social services sector, our Social Services Industry Group understands the financial and political challenges faced in this sector and is mindful of the primacy of our clients’ service mandate—to support and protect the most vulnerable members of society.

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  • Transportation & Warehousing

    To maintain their competitiveness, companies in this sector must continually develop and adopt new technologies through changes to business operations and development of new skills sets. This places increased emphasis on recruitment, retention, training and appropriate compensation practices. The adoption of trade agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) can quickly alter the competitive landscape,…

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