On May 2, 2013, the Ontario government tabled its Budget 2013, “A Prosperous and Fair Ontario” as well as Bill 65, Prosperous and Fair Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2013, legislation which, if passed, would implement certain initiatives contained in the Budget. Among other things, the measures contained in the Budget of interest to employers…
Insights
Hicks Morley publishes a number of materials, both electronic and print, on issue-specific and sector-specific topics of interest to our clients. Our insights section has links to all of our various publications, updates and blogs, both current and historical, to keep you informed of developments in the law that impact human resources.
Case In Point
New High Water Mark for Punitive Damages Award: $4.5 Million
A recent decision of the Court of Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan, which granted an injured worker $4.5 million in punitive damages, has garnered considerable media attention. The plaintiff, Mr. Branco, was a Canadian citizen. He sued his employer (Kumtor, owned by Saskatchewan-based Cameco) and insurers AIG and Zurich Life in relation to benefits arising from…
FTR Now
No Charter-Protected Right to Strike Says Saskatchewan Court Of Appeal
In a much-anticipated decision – Government of Saskatchewan v. Saskatchewan Federation of Labour, 2013 SKCA 43 – a five-member panel of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal has found that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the “Charter“) does not guarantee a right to strike for unions and their members. Rather, the Court found that…
News
Changes to Temporary Foreign Worker Program Announced
On April 29, 2013, the federal government announced significant reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (“TFWP”). Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, commented that the “reforms will require that greater efforts be made to recruit and train Canadians to fill available jobs … [and to] help ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker Program…
Human Resources Legislative Update
Federal Budget Bill Tabled, Changes To Temporary Foreign Worker Program Announced
On April 29, 2013, the federal government tabled Bill C-60, Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1, omnibus legislation giving effect to some of its Budget 2013 initiatives. In conjunction with the tabling of Bill C-60 and further to its Budget 2013 initiative to ensure that Canadians have first priority at job opportunities when they…
Case In Point
Saskatchewan Court of Appeal Finds Right to Strike Not Protected by Freedom of Association Guarantee in Charter
A five-member panel of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal has overturned a lower court decision which had found in part that restrictions on the right to strike in The Public Service Essential Services Act infringed the freedom of association guarantee in section 2(d) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Court of Appeal…
News
Federal Health and Safety Tribunal Considers Fukushima Nuclear Incident in Context of Canadian Work Refusal
An Appeals Officer of the Occupational Health and Safety Tribunal Canada recently considered the damage caused to the Fukushima nuclear facility by the 2011 Japanese tsunami in the context of a work refusal under the Canada Labour Code. The appellant was a mail sorter with Canada Border Services Agency. Shortly after the Fukushima incident in…
Human Resources Legislative Update
Registered Human Resources Professionals Act, 2013 Passes Second Reading
On April 25, 2013, Bill 32, Registered Human Resources Professionals Act, 2013, carried at Second Reading and was ordered referred to the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills. As previously reported, if passed Bill 32 would repeal the Human Resources Professionals Association of Ontario Act, 1990. Among other things, it would provide a framework…
Case In Point
Federal Appeals Officer Confirms Work Refusal Must Be Based on More Than “Hypothesis or Conjecture”
The Occupational Health and Safety Tribunal Canada has found that there was insufficient evidence of radiation contamination on parcels arriving from Japan after the Fukushima nuclear incident in 2011 to warrant a work refusal at a mail sorting facility. For a reasonable expectation of danger to exist, there must be more than hypothesis or conjecture….
FTR Now
Overtime Eligibility Class Action Certification Dismissal Upheld on Appeal
On April 23, 2013, the Ontario Divisional Court unanimously dismissed an appeal from a decision of Justice Strathy in which he denied a motion for certification of a proposed class action against CIBC and CIBC World Markets. We summarized the lower court decision in a previous FTR Now. In this FTR Now, we provide an…