Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by Chuck Harrison A recent labor arbitration decision in Canada provides a guide for employers to “get it right” when balancing occupational safety and health obligations against employee privacy rights.
by Keri Bennett As noted in past articles here, Canadian employees can sue for lack of adequate notice of termination. Fired employees seeking damages for inadequate notice have a corresponding duty to mitigate or minimize any resulting losses. If other work is available, their losses may be minimal. Employees frequently claim a lack of available […]
by Hannah Roskey Although courts routinely order one party to pay the other party a portion of its legal fees, administrative tribunals in Canada very rarely have the power or inclination to do so. That includes human rights tribunals across the country, which very rarely order one party to pay the other’s legal costs even […]
By Bill Duvall Employers in Canada have taken comfort from the fact that most provincial workers’ compensation agencies provide benefits for workplace mental stress only in very limited circumstances. But that comfort may be threatened, at least in British Columbia. Earlier this month, the B.C. government introduced legislation that, if passed, will expand workers’ compensation […]
By Hadiya Roderique Modern technology provides many new avenues for human rights violations. As recently learned by the owner of British Columbia-based Metro Aluminum Products, sending sexually-related text messages or photos electronically by mobile phones, also known as sexting, can get you into trouble. Sexting is getting widespread attention in the media. It’s no longer […]
by Hadiya J. Roderique Human rights claims are an increasingly common occurrence for Canadian employers. Employees or former employees can initiate these claims at little or no cost in most Canadian jurisdictions (the various provinces, territories, or the federal sphere). An employer must defend human rights claims to avoid an award of damages or other […]
By Kevin O’Neill Employment standards acts (ESAs) across Canada impose certain personal liabilities on directors or officers regarding unpaid wages of a company. The potential amounts and the circumstances in which such personal liability may arise vary from one jurisdiction to another. In British Columbia (BC), the ESA imposes liability on directors or officers for […]
By Clayton Jones and Derek Knoechel The common wisdom is that Canadian courts are much more willing to enforce nonsolicitation clauses in employment contracts than noncompetition clauses. While this may often be the case, nonsolicitation clauses will still be closely scrutinized by the courts. Two recent cases from British Columbia emphasize the danger for employers […]
By David Wong Attendance management programs themselves aren’t discriminatory — they just need to be carefully designed and properly applied. Such is the latest conclusion in continuing litigation between Coast Mountain Bus Company Ltd. and the Canadian Auto Workers, a battle over an attendance management program covering transit operators in the Greater Vancouver region in […]
By Susan Bradley and Gilda Villaran In November 2009, we started a discussion on the fundamentals of Canadian work permits. Until now, Canadian employers didn’t have to obtain a Labour Market Opinion (LMO) from Services Canada for certain information technology (IT) professionals. Employers didn’t have to prove that they had advertised the position, that they […]