The decision of a summary judgment motion judge who ordered a former employee to pay his former employer $20 million in damages has been overturned by the Court of Appeal. In Plate v. Atlas Copco Canada Inc., the Court held that the motion judge erred when he found a trial was not necessary and proceeded…
Industry: Manufacturing
WSIB and Chronic Mental Stress
In this Client Toolkit, we set out the statutory changes, the policy framework and a list of steps employers can take to minimize the risk of workplace stress.
Proposed Workplace Law Reforms in Bill 66 Now at Committee – Note Short Deadlines
On March 6, 2019, Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2019, was referred to the Standing Committee on General Government. The Committee will hold public hearings on the Bill in Toronto on Monday, March 18, 2019, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The deadline to submit requests to…
A Cautionary Tale: Appellate Court Upholds Judgment Against Employer for Punitive Damages, Aggravated Damages and “Unusually High” Costs
In Ruston v. Keddco MFG. (2011) Ltd., 2019 ONCA 125 (CanLII)(Keddco), a unanimous Court of Appeal for Ontario upheld a substantial damages and costs award against an employer that breached its “duty of good faith and fair dealing in the manner of dismissal.” The Keddco decision serves as an important reminder for employers across Canada…
EI Changes – Parental Sharing Benefit Coming into Force on March 17, 2019
Changes to the Employment Insurance Act will come into effect on March 17, 2019 to implement the additional Parental Sharing Benefit announced in the 2018 Federal Budget. Additional employment insurance (EI) parental benefits (up to 5 weeks of standard parental benefits or up to 8 weeks of extended parental benefits) will be available to…
Pay Equity Compliance Checklist
This Client Toolkit is intended to help employers monitor pay equity compliance within their organization by providing a checklist of key compliance benchmarks that must be monitored regularly.
AODA Compliance Checklist
All organizations in Ontario which employ at least one employee are required to comply with a series of requirements under the standards established by the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) and the regulations promulgated under it. In this Checklist, we provide a general overview of an organization’s AODA compliance obligations, along with checklists to assist you in assessing your degree of compliance and the anticipated timing for future compliance deadlines.
Supreme Court of Canada Grants Appeal in Case Which Considered Constructive Dismissal, Long-Term Incentive Plan Entitlements and Duty of Good Faith
The Supreme Court of Canada has granted leave to appeal from a decision which considered long-term incentive plan entitlements as part of a constructive dismissal claim, and, in the dissent, the duty of good faith and honesty in the performance of employment contacts. In Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd. v. Matthews, an employee resigned from employment…
Federal Government to Study Further Changes to Canada Labour Code
Following recent amendments to the Canada Labour Code, the federal Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour has announced the creation of an expert panel tasked with the study of additional matters relating to the “changing nature of work.” This expert panel is to report back to the Minister by June 30, 2019 on the…
Government Announces Consultation on Pay Transparency Reporting Requirements
On February 19, 2019, the Ministry of Labour invited feedback on its Pay Transparency Consultation Paper to assist it in the development of regulatory pay transparency reporting requirements under the Pay Transparency Act, 2018 (Act). The coming into force date of that Act was postponed indefinitely by Bill 57, Restoring Trust, Transparency and Accountability Act,…