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.


Reaching Out

Reaching Out – Fourteenth Edition

· 16 min read By: Michael S. Smyth, Sean M. Reginio, Anna Jeffery, Paul Schwartzman

Dear Friends, Welcome to our Winter 2019 edition of Reaching Out. The last 18 months have been a tumultuous time in employment law in Ontario. We saw the introduction of sweeping changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and Labour Relations Act, 1995 in January 2018, only to see many of them repealed in January…

Human Resources Legislative Update

Amendments to Complaints and Appeals Provisions of the Canada Labour Code to Come into Force on April 1, 2019

· 2 min read By:

The federal government has proclaimed April 1, 2019 as the coming into force date for certain provisions[1] of Bill C-44, the Budget Implementation Act 2017, No. 1 which amend a number of provisions in the Canada Labour Code. For details on the changes to be implemented under Bill C-44, refer to our Federal Post article…

Case In Point

Appellate Court Upholds Finding that Injured Worker who Returned to Full-Time Work Entitled to Receive 100% FEL Benefits to Age 65

· 2 min read By: Ryan Plener

In Hydro Ottawa v. Ontario (Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal), the Divisional Court has upheld a decision of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (Tribunal) that concluded an injured worker remained entitled to his 100% future economic loss (FEL) benefits until age 65 despite the fact he returned to full-time work in 2013….

School Board Update

School Boards Take Note: Recent Developments of Interest

· 20 min read By: Amanda E. Lawrence-Patel, Dianne E. Jozefacki, Kate Shao, Diana Holloway, Matin Fazelpour

In this Update, we discuss a recent decision of Arbitrator Nyman with respect to what constitutes a collective agreement and which re-affirms the longstanding principle that the interpretation of a collective agreement is first to be based on the plain and ordinary meaning of the written words. We also discuss a topical case with respect to a grievor’s obligation to produce arguably relevant medical documentation in the context of a grievance arbitration – notwithstanding the contractual restrictions that may exist.

Human Resources Legislative Update

Significant New Incident Reporting Requirement for Federally Regulated Financial Institutions

· 2 min read By: Hicks Morley

The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) has recently issued an advisory of significance to federally regulated financial institutions (FRIFs). Beginning on March 31, 2019, FRFIs will be required to report material technology or cyber incidents to OSFI. An incident is defined as follows: a technology or cyber security incident is defined to…

Case In Point

Federal Court Finds Release Signed upon Termination Not a Bar to Unjust Dismissal Complaint

· 2 min read By: Amy R. Tibble

The Federal Court recently upheld a decision of an adjudicator made under the Canada Labour Code (Code) that an agreement and release signed by an employee whose employment with a bank was terminated did not act as a bar to her unjust dismissal application. The employee had received a lump sum payment and had released…

Case In Point

Appellate Court Considers Employment Issues Arising out of a Termination Post-Sale of Business

· 5 min read By: Will McLennan

In Kerzner v American Iron and Metal Company Inc., the Ontario Court of Appeal considered a number of complex issues arising out of a sale of business and successive employment contracts entered into after that sale. The Court provided guidance on what can and cannot be agreed to during those transitions and how releases should…

FTR Quarterly

FTR Quarterly – Issue 12

· 12 min read By: Shivani Chopra, Will McLennan

In This Issue: Year in Review – Key Human Resources Law Developments of 2018, The Road Ahead: Human Resources Trends and Issues to Watch in 2019 and more!