OHRC Issues Policy Position on Medical Documentation and Disability-Related...
When faced with a disability-related accommodation request, employers often have questions around the type and scope of medical information they can request from the employee in order to support the...
View ArticleHow to Say What You Mean: The Importance of Contractual Bonus Language
In the last six months, Canadian appellate courts have considered employer’s bonus plans three times. Having discussed the implications of these decisions with many clients, the common reaction seems...
View ArticleGuidance From the Ontario Court of Appeal on the Enforceability of...
In our overview of significant cases and trends in 2016, we reported on a series of decisions signalling a move away from the overly technical interpretation of termination clauses in employment...
View ArticlePersonal Emergency Leave and Bereavement Leave in the Automotive...
Under the Employment Standards Act, 2000, (the ESA), most employees whose employer regularly employs 50 or more employees are entitled to 10 days of unpaid personal emergency leave annually for any of...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal Confirms That Employer s Failure to Pay $330,000 Bonus Did...
When an employer breaches an employment agreement and an employee resigns in response, a critical question is raised: has the employee been constructively dismissed? If so, the employee is deemed to...
View ArticleOntario s Employment and Labour Legislation Facing Big Changes
The Liberal government of Ontario has confirmed a release date for its long-awaited Changing Workplaces Review, which solicited feedback on, and will make recommendations regarding changes to, the...
View ArticleDenial of Non-discretionary Bonus Payable After Expiration of Statutory...
In a good news decision for employers, the Court of Appeal for Ontario in Kielb v National Money Mart Company, 2017 ONCA 356, denied an employee’s claim for payment of a non-discretionary bonus on the...
View ArticleHighlights from Ontario s Changing Workplaces Review
Today the Ontario Government released its long-awaited final report (Report) in its Changing Workplaces Review (Review). Initiated in February of 2015, the Review aimed to consider broader issues and...
View ArticleChanging Workplaces Review: Potential Changes on the Horizon for Ontario s...
After much anticipation, the Special Advisors appointed to lead the Ministry of Labour’s Changing Workplaces Review (Review) released their final report (Report) this past Tuesday (May 22, 2017). The...
View ArticleChanging Workplaces Review: Ontario Government Announces Significant Changes...
Following the release of the final Changing Workplaces Review report last week, Ontario employers and (and their lawyers) have been anxiously awaiting the government’s response. In press conference...
View ArticleChanging Workplaces Review: Ontario Government Announces Significant Changes...
As we previously wrote here, last week Ontario’s Ministry of Labour released the final report in its Changing Workplaces Review (Report), which proposed a number of amendments to the Employment...
View ArticleA Rare Win for an Employer s Ability to Drug Test
As Canadian employers and U.S. employers with Canadian subsidiaries well know, the climate in Canada has never been favourable to drug and alcohol testing. Earlier this month, however, the Supreme...
View ArticleHuman Resources Professionals Association Issues White Paper on Marijuana at...
With legalization of recreational marijuana use on its way, many Canadian employers have been looking for guidance on how to respond to a potential increase in the number of employees who have access...
View ArticleChanges to Bill 148: More Obligations for Ontario Employers
On June 1, 2017, the government introduced Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017. As we have previously reported, if passed, Bill 148 will significantly alter the employment and labour...
View ArticleI Want a Second Opinion: When Can Employers Require an Independent Medical...
Many employers have found themselves in a situation where their employee has provided a medical note or doctor’s recommendation that doesn’t seem quite right. But how do you investigate further...
View ArticleOntario Labour Relations Board Opens the Door to Franchisee Unionization in...
The Ontario Labour Board has found that Canada Bread’s drivers, who were principals of franchisee corporations that contracted with Canada Bread for the right to deliver products along designated...
View ArticleNew prohibited grounds of discrimination may be added to Ontario s Human...
The Human Rights Code Amendment Act, 2017 (“Bill 164”) was introduced to the Ontario Legislature and passed First Reading on October 4, 2017. Bill 164 proposes to add four new prohibited grounds of...
View ArticleBill 148, Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, Passes Second Reading
On June 1, 2017, the Ontario Government introduced Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017. As we have previously reported, if passed, Bill 148 will significantly alter the employment and...
View ArticleOntario Government Announces Review of Exemptions under the Employment...
On October 18, 2017, the Government of Ontario announced that between October 18, 2017 and December 1, 2017, it will be seeking input from the public to review certain exemptions under the Employment...
View ArticleCanada Labour Code to be Amended to Strengthen Provisions on Workplace...
The federal government recently introduced a bill in the House of Commons that would amend both the Canada Labour Code (the Code) and the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act to address...
View ArticleTimeline of Bill 148 Amendments to the ESA, 2000
Bill 148 made significant amendments to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000. Below we have provided a timeline outlining when the most significant changes will come into force. Please note that...
View ArticleBill 148 Receives Royal Assent, Significantly Altering Labour and Employment...
On November 27, 2017, Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, received Royal Assent. Bill 148 makes significant amendments to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the ESA), Labour...
View ArticleVideocast - Bill 148: Significant Changes on the Horizon for Labour and...
Cassels Brock recently hosted a seminar highlighting some of the significant changes and implications of Bill 148 and discussing strategies on how to best prepare for these changes to employment...
View ArticleFive New Year s Resolutions for Ontario Employers
Ontario employers can be forgiven for a lack of enthusiasm in ringing in 2018. Several significant changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”) come into effect as of January 1, 2018 and...
View ArticleEmployer Posting Requirement: Updated Employment Standards Poster
In connection with the changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 coming into force on January 1, 2018, the Ministry of Labour has published a new version of the Employment Standards Poster....
View ArticleOntario Court of Appeal Provides Further Guidance on the Enforceability of...
In a good-news decision for employers, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld another less than perfect termination provision, adding to its growing collection of decisions on the issue of the...
View ArticleOntario Introduces Pay Transparency Legislation to Address Wage Gaps
On March 6, 2018, the Ontario Government introduced Bill 203, the Pay Transparency Act, 2018, which is intended address wage gaps and increase pay transparency by requiring employers to track and...
View ArticleCompliance Alert: Ontario s Equal Pay for Equal Work Laws in Effect on April...
The impacts of Bill 148 continue to be felt by Ontario employers as even more significant changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the ESA) are starting to come into effect.As of April 1, 2018,...
View ArticleOntario Court Rules Allegations of Workplace Sexual Harassment are Not...
A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court highlights the importance of including a comprehensive release in any separation package offered to an employee upon dismissal, particularly in the...
View ArticleOntario Government Introduces Further Protections for Temporary Help Agency...
An amendment to Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 (WSIA) that expands liability for injuries sustained by temporary help agency employees has been proclaimed into force.Effective April...
View ArticleOntario Superior Court Confirms that Employers Can Impose Changes in Terms of...
In Lancia v. Park Dentistry, 2018 ONSC 751, the Ontario Superior Court found that an employee who resigned after her employer provided 18 months’ notice of changes to certain terms of her employment...
View ArticleIf Only It Read Only Ontario Court Nullifies Termination Clause then Proposes...
While the Ontario Court of Appeal has had a number of occasions in the last couple of years to weigh in on the question of what makes for an enforceable termination provision in an employment...
View ArticleOntario Passes Pay Transparency Legislation Imposing New Obligations on...
On April 26, 2018, the Ontario government passed Bill 3, the Pay Transparency Act, 2018. The Pay Transparency Act, 2018 imposes requirements for employers relating to the disclosure of information...
View ArticleBack to the Drawing Board: Ontario Returns to Old Public Holiday Formula
The Ministry of Labour has announced that, as ofJuly 1, 2018, public holiday pay entitlements in Ontario will be calculated using the formula that existed prior to the enactment of the Fair Workplaces,...
View ArticleLegislation Governing Police Record Checks by Ontario Employers Coming Into...
Almost three years after the Ontario legislature unanimously passed the Police Record Checks Reform Act, 2015 (the Act), it will come into force on November 1, 2018, making Ontario the first province...
View ArticleTermination of Benefits Coverage at Age 65 Declared Unconstitutional
This decision has been anticipated for quite some time. Although the Ontario Human Rights Code (Code) was amended to remove the upper limit on age discrimination and prohibit mandatory retirement in...
View ArticleBill C-45 Passes in the Senate, Making Cannabis Legal in Canada
By way of a 52-29 vote, the Canadian Senate has now passed the federal government’s bill legalizing recreational marijuana in Canada. It is now up to the federal government to set a date for formal...
View ArticleComplainant Allowed to Participate in Wrongful Dismissal Claim of Her Alleged...
In an unusual decision, the Ontario Superior Court has allowed a complainant in a workplace sexual harassment investigation to participate in the wrongful dismissal trial of her alleged harasser.The...
View ArticleNothing Ambiguous About It - Ontario Court of Appeal Brings Some Clarity to...
As you will recall, in April of this year, we brought you an e-LERT examining the Ontario Superior Court’s decision in Bergeron v. Movati Athletic (Group) Inc. 2018 ONSC 885 (Bergeron) – a recent...
View ArticleOntario Government Announces Indefinite Postponement of New Smoking and...
Ontario’s provincial government recently announced that the coming into force of the new Smoke-Free Ontario Act, 2017 (SFOA) has been postponed indefinitely to allow time for the new government to...
View ArticleSeparating the Apples From the Oranges When Can Paid Time Off Benefits...
On January 1 of this year, Ontario’s Bill 148 officially expanded the reach of the personal emergency leave provisions of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the ESA) to not only require all Ontario...
View ArticleDeal or No Deal? When is a Final Release Actually Final?
A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice illustrates the challenges employers can face when attempting to enforce a signed release. In Swampillai v. Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance...
View ArticleSometimes Less is More: Requesting Information Regarding a Job Applicant s...
A recent decision of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (the HRTO) should serve as a caution to employers to limit inquiries into a job applicant’s ability to legally work in Canada only to the...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal Restores Distinction Between ESA Minimum Notice Requirements...
On September 19, 2018, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in Wood v. CTS of Canada Co.. The decision restores the important division between common law reasonable notice and the minimum...
View ArticleOntario Human Rights Commission Posts Q and A on Cannabis and the Human...
With legalization on Ontario’s doorstep, the Ontario Human Rights Commission has issued a new policy discussing the impact of legal cannabis on human rights issues in the province. The policy document...
View ArticleFrustrated by Employee s Prolonged Medical Absence? Useful Decision on...
As employers are likely aware, terminating the employment of an employee who is absent from work for a prolonged period due to disability is a thorny issue. The recent Ontario Superior Court decision...
View ArticleUnravelling Bill 148 The Making Ontario Open for Business Act Has Arrived
Significant changes to labour and employment laws in Ontario may again be on the horizon.BackgroundFollowing the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017 (Bill 148), which came into force under the...
View ArticleReminder for Employers in Ontario: Police Record Checks Reform Act, 2015 in...
Although employers in Ontario are no doubt preoccupied with the recently introduced Bill 47, Making Ontario Open for Business Act, 2018 (summarized in our recent article available here), they should...
View ArticleOntario Government May Delay Canada s First Pay Transparency Legislation
As of the date of writing, Ontario's Pay Transparency Act, 2018 (the Act) is set to come into force on January 1, 2019. The Act, which we initially reported on back in March 2018 and April 2018, was...
View ArticleBill 148 is Officially Unravelled as Bill 47, the Making Ontario Open for...
On November 21, 2018, Bill 47, the Making Ontario Open for Business Act, 2018, quickly passed third reading and received royal assent.The newly-elected Ontario government tabled Bill 47 on October 23,...
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