Diane Harbin

Diane provides strategic advice and representation to employers in both the private and public sectors on a wide-range of labour, employment and human rights issues. This includes wrongful dismissal actions, disability related litigation, labour disputes, grievance arbitrations, and human rights and accommodation.

Recent Cases of Note

Welcome to our latest edition of the School Board Update. In this Update we discuss three significant decisions. The first decision is from the Ontario Labour Relations Board. It clarifies that, with the revocation of O. Reg. 274/12 Hiring Practices, school boards are obliged to comply with Policy/Program Memorandum No. 165, School Board Teacher Hiring…

Addressing Anti-Black Racism in School Boards

This webinar will focus on updating and clarifying issues of Anti-Black Racism and systemic discrimination, with an emphasis on how adjudicators assess claims of racial and systemic discrimination, both broadly and in the school board setting.

Making the Call: Police Involvement in Student Misconduct Matters

What are the legal obligations of school boards under the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Education Act when considering police involvement in student misconduct and misbehaviour? This interactive webinar addresses these questions from a human rights and equity-informed perspective.

Arbitrator Upholds TDSB Mandatory Vaccination Policy

On March 22, 2022, Arbitrator William Kaplan issued The Toronto District School Board and CUPE, Local 4400 (Re COVID-19 Vaccine Procedure), an award in which he upheld the mandatory vaccination policy (Policy) of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). He found that the Policy did not infringe section 7 (life, liberty and security of person)…

Beyond COVID-19: 2021 Year in Review – Cases and Legislation of Note

Employers and human resource professionals will undoubtedly remember 2021 as another year shaped by the pandemic. But … there were also legal developments in 2021 that were not related to COVID-19. In this FTR Now, we look at some of the year’s notable “non-pandemic” cases and legislative developments of interest.

Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, Receives Royal Assent

On December 2, 2021, Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, 2021, received Royal Assent. We reviewed Bill 27 in detail in our FTR Now of October 26, 2021, Ontario Proposes Significant Changes to ESA and Other Employment-Related Legislation, as well as our FTR Now of December 1, 2021, Ontario Passes Bill 27, Working for Workers…