Over the past few years, the Ontario Superior Court has rendered several decisions which consider the enforceability of termination notice provisions in employment contracts that provide only for the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) minimum entitlements. Depending on the specific wording used, many of these provisions have been held to be unenforceable for non-compliance with…
Industry: Transportation & Warehousing
Federal Post – Second Edition
Dear Friends, We are delighted to bring you this year-end edition of the Federal Post, our newsletter designed exclusively for federally regulated employers. In this issue, we cover a range of interesting developments in the areas of federal labour, employment standards, unjust dismissal law and health and safety. Ian Campbell, a lawyer in our Waterloo…
Police Record Checks Legislation Passes Third Reading
On December 1, 2015, Bill 113, the Police Record Checks Reform Act, 2015, as amended by the Standing Committee on Justice Policy, passed at Third Reading. When proclaimed in force, this legislation will implement a new process governing requests for searches of the Canadian Police Information Centre databases, or other police databases, in connection with screening an…
Private Member’s Bill Targets Temporary Help Agencies
On November 18, 2015, Bill 143, Employment Standards Amendment Act (Temporary Help Agencies), 2015, a Private Member’s Bill was introduced in the Ontario Legislature by a Liberal MPP. The Bill seeks to amend the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) with respect to the regulation of temporary help agencies. SUMMARY OF BILL 143 If passed, Bill…
Ontario to Reform Certain Workplace Laws Relating to Construction Labour, Pensions and Workplace Safety and Insurance
On November 18, 2015, the Ontario government introduced Bill 144, the Budget Measures Act, 2015, omnibus legislation that would, if passed and among other things, implement reforms to construction labour relations, workplace safety and insurance indexing and to certain rules governing multi-employer pension asset transfers. The proposed Bill 144 changes include: Amending the construction industry provisions of…
Appeal Court Confirms that Employer’s Financial Circumstances Not a Factor in Determining Reasonable Notice
Are an employer’s financial circumstances a relevant consideration in determining the period of reasonable notice to which a wrongfully dismissed employee is entitled? This is the question the Court of Appeal for Ontario was asked to decide in Michela v. St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic School, where the motion judge had reduced damages in lieu of…
Update on Timing of Proposed Changes to Taxation of Stock Options
In remarks accompanying the new federal government’s first fiscal update, on November 20, 2015, Canada’s Minister of Finance provided further guidance on proposed changes to tax rules that would limit the annual deduction from income that employees can claim upon exercising stock options. Significantly, Minister Morneau indicated that any such changes would only apply to…
Appeal Court Decision Underscores Importance of Clear Terms of Hire at Outset
In a recent decision, Holland v. Hostopia.com. Inc., the Court of Appeal for Ontario found that a termination provision in an employment agreement purporting to limit the appellant’s entitlements upon termination of employment to the statutory minimums under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) was unenforceable due to lack of consideration. The appellant had commenced employment…
Is an Employer Required to Accommodate an Employee’s “Personal Choice” to Breastfeed?
In Flatt v. Canada (Attorney General), a case that has garnered media attention, the Federal Court of Appeal upheld a decision that found an applicant who requested accommodation to breastfeed her child during working hours failed to meet the test for establishing prima facie discrimination. The Court held this request involved the applicant’s “personal choice” – not…
Planning for a Safe Holiday Party: A Checklist for Employers
It is that time of year again when thoughts are turning to seasonal and holiday celebrations. Whether these celebrations are large or small, it is important that employers take proactive steps to ensure the health and safety of their employees who attend office parties or other celebrations. In this FTR Now, we provide employers with…