The Ontario Superior Court recently confirmed that disputes arising from a collective agreement, including allegations of sexual harassment and sexual assault in a unionized workplace, fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of a labour arbitrator and cannot be pursued through a civil action. In De Facendis v. Toronto Parking Authority, the Court held that this regime…
Practice Area: Employment Law
Supreme Court of Canada Denies Leave to Appeal in Case Where Termination Clause in Employment Contract Found to be Unenforceable
On March 18, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an application for leave to appeal from a decision of the New Brunswick Court of Appeal, Abrams v. RTO Asset Management. In that case, the New Brunswick Court of Appeal (Court) held an employer could not assert that dismissal was for cause where the employer’s…
Arbitrator Rules That Virtual Class Prep Time Arrangement Violates Collective Agreement
On March 5, 2021, Arbitrator Susan Stewart released an award (Award) between the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board (Board) and ETFO dealing with preparation time (prep time) for remote learning elementary teachers in its virtual classes during the current 2020-21 school year. The grievance alleged that the Board had failed to provide prep time in…
Temporary Wage Enhancement For Personal Support Workers and Others to be Extended
The Ontario government has announced that the temporary wage enhancement for personal support workers and direct support workers in publicly funded home and community care, long-term care, public hospitals, and social services sectors will be extended until June 30, 2021. At that time, the wage enhancement will again be reviewed by the government. The temporary…
Appellate Court Considers Contractual Rights Upon Termination in Light of Ocean Nutrition and Affirms Original Decision
In Mikelsteins v. Morrison Hershfield Limited, the Ontario Court of Appeal confirmed its earlier finding that an employee’s common law entitlements upon termination of employment are distinct from any rights the employee may have under a shareholder agreement where they have purchased the shares separate and apart from their compensation structure. Background In June…
Further Amendments to Ontario’s Screening Tool for Workers
On March 9, 2020, the Ontario government again updated its “COVID-19 Screening Tool for Businesses and Organizations (Screening Workers)” (Tool). Among other things, the Tool has been clarified to state that workers must be “actively screened” (as opposed to “screened”). In addition, if the worker answers “yes” to the question “Is anyone you live with…
Court Awards 5 Months’ Notice to Plaintiff with 4.5 Months’ Service and Who Was Pregnant at Time of Dismissal
In a recent summary judgment decision, Nahum v. Honeycomb Hospitality Inc., the Ontario Superior Court awarded 5 months’ reasonable notice to a plaintiff with 4.5 months’ service. In doing so, the Court found that the fact that the plaintiff was 5 months pregnant at the time of termination was an “important factor” in assessing her…
Important Updates Regarding Employment Insurance Regular Benefits, Recovery Benefits, and Upcoming CEWS Claim Periods
In the latest evolution of the federal government’s response to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, on February 19, 2021, the government announced that it would be introducing regulatory and legislative amendments to increase the number of weeks of benefits available for Employment Insurance (EI) regular benefits, as well as the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), the…
Ontario Again Updates its Screening Tool for Workers
On February 26, 2021, the Ontario government made minor revisions to its “COVID-19 Screening Tool for Businesses and Organizations (Screening Workers).” The screening questions now ask if the person using the tool is experiencing “one or more” of the listed symptoms (previously, it was “any one” of the listed symptoms). More significantly, the screening questions…
Ministry of Education Releases New “School Board Teacher Hiring Practices” PPM
On February 22, 2021, the Ontario Ministry of Education (Ministry) released the much anticipated Policy/Program Memorandum No. 165 (PPM 165) regarding “School Board Teacher Hiring Practices.” PPM 165 comes in response to the revocation of Ontario Regulation 274/12 “Hiring Practices” and will replace the Interim policy for school board hiring practices. The PPM is effective…