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…
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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…
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…
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…
Concerted Withdrawal of Voluntary/Extracurricular Activities by Teachers Declared an Unlawful Strike
In a landmark ruling, and after much anticipation, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (“OLRB”) has finally rendered its decision in the longstanding debate about whether the withdrawal, in combination or in concert, of participation in voluntary extracurricular activities by teachers constitutes a “strike” within the meaning of the Education Act. In this FTR Now, we…
Arbitrator Finds Video Surveillance Reasonable in Light of Safety Issues in the Workplace
A recent arbitration award has confirmed that where an employer has legitimate concerns regarding safety in the workplace, it may install and operate video surveillance. This decision, which involved surveillance in a fire station to ensure equipment was not tampered with, engaged privacy considerations, the reasonableness of such surveillance and whether the surveillance was conducted…
Michael Hines Mentioned in The Globe and Mail
Hicks Morley’s Michael Hines was mentioned in the April 11, 2013 edition of The Globe and Mail in an article entitled, “Ontario teachers’ union call to halt voluntary activities was illegal strike action: labour board.“ The article discusses a recent decision by the Ontario Labour Relations Board where it was decided that the Elementary Teachers’…
OLRB: Withdrawal of Extracurricular Activities Constitutes an Unlawful Strike
Today, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (“OLRB”) rendered Trillium Lakelands District School Board and Upper Canada District School Board v. Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, a significant decision in which it found the withdrawal of extracurricular activities by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (“ETFO”) constituted an unlawful strike according to the definition set out…
Important Changes to the WSIB’s Appeals Program – What You Need to Know and Do
In February 2013, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (“WSIB”) implemented its Modernized Appeals Program. The WSIB plans to reduce its backlog of cases through significant changes to the appeal process. This new program only applies to claims and does not apply to financial or revenue issues. Some of the key changes under the Modernized…
Employers Must Investigate Work Refusals
A recent decision under the Occupational Health and Safety Act is a stark reminder to all employers to take any work refusal, no matter how small, seriously. The Ontario Labour Relations Board concluded that an employer failed in its obligations under the OHSA when it terminated an employee, after he refused to drive his faulty…