Industry: Financial Services

2015 Ontario and Federal Budgets Released

· 2 min read

On April 23, 2015, the Ontario government tabled the 2015 provincial Budget, “Building Ontario Up” (“Budget”) and Bill 91, Building Ontario Up Act (Budget Measures), 2015 (“Bill 91”), supporting omnibus legislation designed to implement some of the proposals contained in the Budget. We are in the process of reviewing the Budget and Bill 91, and…

Federal Budget 2015

· 13 min read

On April 21, 2015, the Minister of Finance tabled the 2015 Federal Budget, “Strong Leadership: A Balanced-Budget, Low-Tax Plan for Jobs, Growth and Security.” This FTR Now focuses on some of the key proposals that are of particular interest to employers, human resources professionals and pension plan administrators. These include: changes to registered retirement income…

FSCO Updates Form 1 (Pension Plan Registration), Asset Transfer FAQs

· 2 min read

On April 7, 2015, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (“FSCO”) published a revised Application for Registration of a Pension Plan, Form 1 and added new frequently asked questions for plan administrators (“FAQs”) with respect to Multi-Jurisdictional Pension Plan Asset Transfers, among other things.  The Form 1 has been updated to provide FSCO with additional…

Termination Clause in Federal Employment Agreement Enforceable

· 2 min read

The recent decision in Luney v. Day & Ross Inc. is good news for employers. The Plaintiff worked for an interprovincial trucking company subject to the Canada Labour Code (“Code”). The Defendant terminated the Plaintiff’s employment without cause and offered the Plaintiff a severance package that it asserted was consistent with the termination clause in…

Federal Court: Unjust Dismissal Complaint for Without Cause Termination Requires Evidentiary Hearing

· 2 min read

In a recent decision, Sigloy v. DHL Express (Canada) Ltd., the Federal Court overturned the decision of an adjudicator which had granted an employer’s preliminary objection and dismissed a complaint of unjust dismissal for lack of jurisdiction because the complainant had been dismissed without cause. At the adjudication, the employer objected to the unjust dismissal…

Indefinite Suspensions with Pay: The SCC Clarifies the Test for Constructive Dismissal

· 5 min read

The Supreme Court of Canada recently considered the common law doctrine of constructive dismissal in Potter v. New Brunswick Legal Aid Services, where a majority of the Court (with two justices concurring in the result) concluded that placing an employee on an indefinite administrative suspension with pay constituted constructive dismissal. It found that even where…

Ontario Minimum Wage Increasing to $11.25 on October 1, 2015

· 1 min read

On March 19, 2015, the Ontario government announced that the general minimum wage will increase from $11 to $11.25 per hour, effective October 1, 2015. A list of the new minimum wage rates for students, liquor servers, hunting and fishing guides and homeworkers is available on the Ministry of Labour’s website. Background information on the…

New Holiday Pay Provisions Now in Effect

· 1 min read

As we reported in our January 2015 FTR Now, significant reforms to the general holiday pay provisions of Part III of the Canada Labour Code come into force effective March 16, 2015. Federally regulated employers are reminded that the amendments include the introduction of a new “holiday pay” formula and the elimination of certain qualifying requirements….

Supreme Court of Canada On Pregnancy and Parental Leave Top-Ups

· 5 min read

The Supreme Court of Canada recently upheld a decision of a British Columbia arbitrator which had found that denying birth mothers entitlement to parental supplemental employment (“SEB” or “top-up”) benefits where they had received pregnancy SEB plan benefits was discriminatory. The issue before the arbitrator turned on an interpretation of the collective agreement in place…