The BC Supreme Court recently affirmed the high threshold required of employers when purporting to dismiss an employee for just cause. In Chu v China Southern Airlines Company Limited, 2023 BCSC 21, the court found that the plaintiff employee had been dismissed without cause and awarded $150,000 in aggravated and punitive damages in addition to the 20 months reasonable ...
On January 1, 2023, an amendment to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) came into force that creates a new exemption for business and information technology (IT) consultants.[1] This means that if an individual meets the criteria for a “business consultant” or “information technology consultant” under the ESA, then the consultant is ...
On February 7, 2023, Labour Minister Harry Bains introduced in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for first reading Bill 2, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Act. If passed into law, Bill 2 will recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30) as a public holiday in British Columbia and will establish it as a statutory holiday under ...
In Oostlander v Cervus Equipment Corporation, 2023 ABCA 13 the Alberta Court of Appeal (“ABCA”) confirmed that payments received under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit program (“CERB”) cannot be deducted from damages awarded for wrongful dismissal.
The ABCA was greatly persuaded by the decision in Yates v Langley Motor Sport Centre Ltd, 2022 BCCA 398[1]
It’s hard for me to take off the labour and employment lawyer hat. I view everything through a certain lens.
Even as an avid Royal watcher, I was initially quite critical of Prince Harry and thought of him as a disgruntled employee who had quit his job, yet strangely thought he should retain his salary and benefits. Then, as I read his memoir “Spare” I considered what an ...
If revising your employment and independent contractor agreements is on the “to do” list for 2023, the recent case of Quick Pass Master Tutorial School Ltd. v Zhao, 2022 BCSC 1846 is a good reminder to review any restrictive covenants in those agreements. The law in this area is always evolving and restrictive covenants can be difficult to enforce without careful ...
In Yates v. Langley Motor Sport Centre Ltd., 2022 BCCA 398 the British Columbia Court of Appeal (“BCAA”) recently resolved much of the uncertainty surrounding whether or not payments received under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit program (“CERB”) could be deducted from damages awarded for wrongful dismissal.
The BCCA unanimously held that CERB payments ...
On November 24, 2022, Bill 41, the Workers’ Compensation Amendment Act, 2022 (the “WCA Amendments”), received Royal Assent.
As we previously reported, the WCA Amendments impose new obligations on BC employers in respect of the return of injured workers to their job. These employers will have a new statutory duty to return injured workers to their pre-injury work or ...
In our earlier blog post, we provided an overview of the new paid medical leave provisions for federally regulated employees, which are coming into force on December 1, 2022. The new provisions will entitle such employees to up to 10 days of paid medical leave per calendar year.
Initially, the amendments to the Canada Labour Code permitted the Federal Government to apply the ...
On October 31, 2022, the B.C. government introduced Bill 41 – 2022: Workers’ Compensation Amendment Act (No. 2), 2022 (the “WCA Amendments”) proposing changes to the Workers’ Compensation Act (the “WCA”). The intent behind the WCA Amendments is to bring in a more “worker-centred” approach to B.C.’s workers’ compensation system. Below we discuss ...
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Lawson Lundell's Labour and Employment Law Blog provides updates on the most recent legal developments impacting the Canadian workplace and offers practical tips for employers. We cover a range of topics, including labour relations, employment law, collective bargaining, human rights, employment standards, employment equity, workers' compensation, business immigration, privacy, occupational health and safety and pensions and employee benefits.
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