Employment and Labour Law Blogs
Looking to stay up to date on the latest news and information regarding employment law and how it impacts your workplace situation. Use our information centre to find informative blogs, media commentary, Globe and Mail articles and other helpful resources to ensure you understand your workplace rights.
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All the information you need on workplace rights is at your fingertips. Our library of blogs, articles, media interviews, videos, etc. are available here to ensure you have the power to take control of your situation.
Amazon layoffs: Company to reduce 9,000 employees.
Amazon layoffs have been announced, with the company revealing its plan to cut 9,000 jobs over the next few weeks.…
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Disney Employees Oppose Return-to-Office Mandate
It has been 3 years since the COVID-19 pandemic officially started in March of 2020. During this time, many companies…
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Office Romance – Pros and Cons of Dating a Co-worker
The recent news of the now-former Toronto mayor John Tory’s affair with a colleague has sent shockwaves through Toronto’s political…
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Employment Law Protections for Parents Affected by Last-Minute Daycare Strike
Special to The Globe and Mail The question My child’s daycare was closed because of a last-minute daycare strike so…
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Are Workplace Relationships Illegal?
Toronto Mayor John Tory has resigned due to a workplace relationship with a former member of his staff. This has…
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Mishandling a Layoff Can Be a Costly Mistake for Employers
Special to The Globe and Mail Eyebrows were raised recently when Elon Musk issued an ultimatum to Twitter employees that…
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$800M Class-action Lawsuit Launched Against RBC Dominion Securities
On December 29, 2022, the Ontario Superior Court certified a class proceeding against RBC Dominion Securities, which claims that it failed…
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Salesforce and Amazon Layoffs in Canada
More large technology companies have recently announced mass layoffs and terminations amid a slowdown in the sector. Salesforce has declared…
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Remote Work Ban at Twitter – What are Your Employee Rights?
Since he purchased Twitter, Elon Musk has been taking a hard line with employees. He has told them there will…
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City of Burlington Mandates Mandatory Masks Again: Your Rights
Recently the City of Burlington re-launched a mandatory indoor mask policy for the City’s employees, effective from November 28, 2022,…
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Reviewing or Negotiating Severance Pay for C-Level Executives
Why C-Level Executives Should Always Have an Employment Lawyer Review Their Severance Package For C-level executives, severance pay usually consists…
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Departing Employees Be Aware: Risks of Taking Clients from Former Employer
Workers may well know the recently passed Ontario legislation (Bill 27: Working for Workers Act, 2021) that generally prohibits non-compete…
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TTC Drops Vaccine Mandate
The Toronto Transit Commission (“TTC”) has decided to drop its COVID-19 vaccine mandate that has been in place for approximately…
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Amazon to Lay Off 10,000 Workers
Amazon is planning to lay off approximately 10,000 workers who hold corporate and/or technology jobs, which would represent the largest…
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CUPE Strike: What Are Working Parents Rights If They Have to Stay at Home Due to School Closures?
Many people are probably confused about the recent twist during the recent CUPE strike – the Ontario government just announced…
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Meta Lays off 11,000 People
Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has laid off approximately 11,000 of its employees as a result of a continued decline in…
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Mass Layoffs at Twitter: Severance Package Rights for Employees
Shortly after Elon Musk took over Twitter, this multi-national social media company temporarily closed its offices and cut workers’ access…
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Mistreatment of Employees at Dismissal Might Come at a Cost
Being let go from your job unexpectedly can be stressful and difficult for any employee. In a recent Ontario Superior…
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Severance Packages in Mass Layoffs
Record inflation levels have many economists forecasting a looming recession in Canada, which will inevitably lead to many companies undergoing…
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Being Forced To Go Back To The Office – Remote Work
With more and more Canadians shifting back to a more normal way of living given the current state of the…
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Ontario Courts Slashes Enforceability of Many Employment Contract Provisions
In recent years, the Ontario courts have been increasingly strict in the reading of employment contracts. New decisions by the…
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Chasing Increased Wages and Benefits During Inflation
As inflation continues to pound Canadians, many employees are expecting significant raises to chase the falling dollar and increased costs.…
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CP24’s Patricia Jaggernauth Alleges Racial and Gender Discrimination
Recently Patricia Jaggernauth, a former Bell Media employee, filed a complaint under the Canadian Human Rights Act (the “Act”), with…
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Ontario Court Rules Seneca College’s Vaccine Policy Does Not Violate Charter
In a recent decision, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that Seneca College’s vaccine policy does not violate the…
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Top-up while on Maternity Leave: What Are the Rules?
What is maternity and parental leave? How to top up your maternity leave? A maternity leave for Canadian employees can be either…
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What is Quiet Firing and How is it Different From The Trending Quiet Quitting?
As the topic of quiet quitting continues to be discussed in most workplaces and news outlets, we are also seeing…
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Workplace Discrimination – Ontario Transgender Teacher Sparks Controversy by Wearing Prosthetic Breasts in Class
Media outlets have been circulating a recent video clip from an Ontario high school of an Ontario transgender teacher wearing…
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Impact of Inflation on Compensation and Benefits
Record inflation in Canada has left all Canadians feeling the impact of the increased cost of groceries, gas, basic household…
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Federal Tribunal Reverses EI Denial For COVID-19 Vaccination Refusal
Federal Tribunal Reverses EI denial A federal tribunal has recently held that an employee terminated as a result of noncompliance…
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Why Should You Negotiate a Severance Package in a Mass Layoff?
With recent mass layoffs in Canada, many workers are frustrated in trying to learn how to protect their legal rights…
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Working Remotely From Another Province
The initial wave of the COVID-19 pandemic forced many employees to work remotely if they were able to do so.…
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What The 2008 Recession Taught Us About The Job Market
Google Trends show that many Canadians have recently been Googling “recession”. As we see news reports of a potential recession…
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Quiet Quitting At Work – What You Need To Know
The term “Quiet Quitting” has been making headlines in the past few weeks as employees and employers alike discuss the…
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Lisa LaFlamme And Age Discrimination In The Workplace
Bell Media, the parent company of CTV News, announced today that it would conduct a workplace investigation of the recent…
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Unconscious Bias – Firing Workers When an Illness is Involved
Special to The Globe and Mail Far too often, employers make decisions that are tainted by discriminatory motivations, without even…
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Workplace Age Discrimination is on The Rise
Special to The Globe and Mail Workplace age discrimination is on the rise. But it can be difficult to detect.…
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Amendments to the Competition Act
With its first significant amendments to the Competition Act since 2009, Canada has taken a major step toward strengthening the…
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Relocating Abroad: Can I Move Abroad and Not Tell My Boss?
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw many workers jump on the opportunity to move out of the city and into…
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Employee’s Privacy Rights in the Workplace: What is Acceptable?
The Ontario Court of Appeal’s most recent case involving an employee’s privacy rights in the workplace provides that Section 8…
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Things You Should Know About Severance Pay Calculator
A person’s job represents something so fundamental to their day-to-day life and sense of purpose that if they are let…
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Choosing the Right Employment Lawyer for Workplace Disputes
Whether you are an employee facing a legal issue at work, or an employer determining how to address an issue…
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Workers Quitting Over Return to Office Policies
Now that things appear to be returning to a level of normalcy since the pandemic started, some companies have opted…
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What courts Say About Rights of Dependent Contractors Should be a Wake-up Call for Businesses
Special to The Globe and Mail For many Canadian workers, the Pandemic has accelerated an evolution toward freelance work. Both…
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Can You be Fired for Refusing to Adhere to the Mask Policy at Work?
Employees should tread carefully when choosing to not follow workplace restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent case from…
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Fired During Recession – Recession as a Pretext for Termination?
Recessions can put great pressure on employers’ bottom lines, and payroll often gets put on the chopping block. The process…
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Terminated for Cause: Severance Entitlement
Employment relationships generally come to an end in one of a few ways – with one of the more common…
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Mental Health vs. Salary – 1 in 4 Workers Quit Jobs Over Mental Health
Mental health is playing an increasingly important role in the North American workplace. Recent studies show that many workers are…
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Employee Reference Check – Can a Former Employer Badmouth You?
It is inherently awkward to ask a former employer to give you a positive reference when you are seeking to…
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What Does The News of Looming Recession Mean for Employees?
There has been increasing talk of a looming recession recently. While we at Whitten & Lublin can’t predict the future,…
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Failure to Mitigate Can Have Serious Repercussions for Dismissed Employees
Most employees dismissed without cause will be entitled to reasonable notice of their dismissal. What reasonable notice will mean in…
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Employee Rights During Downsizing
The changing economy has many employers looking for areas to cut costs and maximize efficiencies. Unfortunately, that often leads to…
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Working for Workers Rights – Digital Platform Workers Rights
We live in a world that is becoming increasingly digital including how we order a pizza, groceries, and get around…
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Canadian Banks Drop Vaccine Mandates
Canada’s “Big Five” banks have all either suspended or removed their mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies. As of Spring 2022, COVID-19…
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Is an Employee Entitled to Severance if the Employer Files for Bankruptcy?
Over the COVID-19 pandemic, many Canadian businesses were given government assistance and subsidies in an effort to support struggling businesses…
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Case for Terminating Workers Who Engage in Sexual Harassment is Stronger Than Ever
Special to The Globe and Mail The case for terminating workers who engage in sexual harassment is stronger than ever.…
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Who Decides When Employees Must Return to Office?
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, is known for making bold moves and statements when managing his companies and business interests.…
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Can a Refusal to Vaccinate Get You Fired for Just Cause?
Ever since vaccines have become widely available, many employers have implemented mandatory vaccination policies. Recent arbitration decisions like Unifor Local…
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Employment Lawyers for Workplace Disputes
Workplace disputes are often an inevitable event for most workplaces. When these issues arise, employers must ensure that they respond…
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Mental Health at Work
Studies show that approximately 1 in 5 Canadians struggle with a mental health issue, and many of these issues manifest…
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Employee Rights on Election Day – Ontario Provincial Election 2022
Thursday, June 2, 2022, is election day in Ontario for the provincial elections. Employees who would like to exercise their…
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Jennifer Valentyne Alleges Gender Discrimination in the Workplace
Jennifer Valentyne, a Canadian broadcast personality, has recently spoke out against her alleged experience of gender discrimination in the workplace,…
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Does Your Workplace Have a Right to Disconnect Policy Yet?
Time is ticking for many employers to get a written Right to Disconnect policy into place. Ontario added new requirements…
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Negotiating Your Severance Package
In most cases, it is safe to assume that a party’s first offer is not its best offer. Negotiating your…
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Unjust Dismissals in Canada
Although many people may use the terms “unjust dismissal” or “wrongful dismissal” interchangeably, each have a separate meaning and are…
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How to Pick the Best Employment Lawyer?
Are you looking for an employment lawyer, perhaps the best employment lawyer? Read on to find our take on how…
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Constructive Dismissal vs. Wrongful Dismissal
Employers and employees always enter into an employment agreement with the hope of a long and prosperous working relationship, however,…
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Can my employer change my regular work schedule?
The answer to this question will largely depend on whether your contract has any provisions concerning the change in work…
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Quitting your job requires more than providing two weeks’ notice. Here are the legal landmines to avoid
SPECIAL TO THE GLOBE AND MAIL Questions about what the new workplace will look like are a key theme in…
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How Severance Package Lawyers Review Your Severance Pay?
A person’s job represents something so fundamental to their day-to-day life and sense of purpose that if they are let…
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Can an Employer Recall Laid off Employees and Workers?
As COVID-19 restrictions loosen, many employers are in the process of recalling employees that were laid off over the pandemic. …
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With Vaccine & Mask Mandates Being Removed, Can Employees Refuse to Return to Office?
Many employees have been required to work remotely over the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of…
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Deloitte Reversing COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
The announcement that Deloitte is reversing COVID-19 vaccine mandates signals the crossroads at which many employers find themselves as society…
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No Such Thing as a "Free" Consultation
People often get exactly what they pay for. This is as true in law as it is in life. Here…
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What is Severance Pay and When is it Owed to the Employee by the Employer?
When an employer wishes to terminate employment, the employee is entitled to notice or pay in lieu, and severance pay…
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Ontario Government to Introduce Legislation Addressing Electronic Monitoring
On February 24, 2022, the Ontario government announced its plans to introduce new legislation that would require larger employers to…
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Is Secretive Recording in the Workplace Cause for Dismissal?
A recent BC case considered this very question. The BC court shed some light on how secretive recording in the…
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Can Your Employer Require You to Take a COVID Booster Shot?
Many employers in Ontario implemented mandatory vaccine policies in 2021 that required their employees to receive COVID-19 vaccinations to continue…
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Who Pays for Rapid Antigen Testing in the Workplace?
As regular testing for COVID-19 continues to be commonplace in many workplaces, it is not always clear who should be…
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Employees Refuse to Return to Work Over COVID-19 Concerns
There have been instances where employees have refused to return to work over Covid-19 concerns. Their refusal to continue working…
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Lockdown Terminations: Cineplex Laid Off 6,000 Part-Time Workers
Cineplex laid off 6,000 part-time employees temporarily in Ontario and Quebec last week. Approximately 5,000 of those jobs were in…
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Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit Eligibility
The government of Canada has announced that it will be expanding the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit (CWLB). CWLB provides temporary…
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The Pandemic and Reduction of Hours: Employee Options and Rights
The pandemic has hit many workplaces with decreased demand for their services, which in turn affects the availability of work…
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Right to Disconnect and a Rule Against Non-Compete Agreements
On November 30, 2021, the Ontario government announced the passing of new legislation, the Working for Workers Act, 2021 (“WWA”),…
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When it comes to vaccine mandates, how do unionized workers differ from non-unionized?
Special to The Globe and Mail Some unions may be headed for a breaking point in Canada. The imposition of…
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Non-compete Clause – Working for Workers Act, 2021
The Ontario government has recently announced a new bill that, if passed, will have significant implications on workplace relationships. Called the…
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The Ontario Working for Workers Act, 2021: Right to Disconnect
The Ontario government has proposed legislation today – Working for Workers Act, 2021 that, if passed, would help workers adjust…
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BC’s Goodberry Restaurant Group Fired Server: Paid $30,000 in Damages
Nelson v. Goodberry Restaurant Group Ltd. dba Buono Osteria and others, 2021 BCHRT 137 The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal (BCHRT)…
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Who is Responsible for COVID-19 at Work?
Generally speaking, it would be very difficult to prove that one individual has infected another with COVID-19 given the widespread…
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Vaccination and Terminations in Federally Regulated Workplaces
If you are an employee working in a provincially regulated workplace, absent discrimination upon illness or religious grounds, an employer…
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Mandatory Vaccination Policies for Contractors
Much ink has been spilled debating whether an employer can require its employees to vaccinate, as well as the consequence…
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Can an Employer Ask Employee to Work While on Vacation or Return Early from Vacation?
What should an employee do if their boss cancels an approved vacation? Or if an employer requests an employee to…
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COVID-19 Return to Work – What Happens if an Employee Isn’t Willing to Return to Office?
As vaccination rates increase and cases of COVID-19 decline, many workplaces have begun announcing their return to office plans. Some…
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OHL Vaccination Policy – Mandatory Vaccination Policies of OHL and NFL
The Ontario Hockey League (“OHL”) has recently released its COVID-19 vaccination policy, which requires all OHL Community Members to be…
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What is the Difference Between Termination Pay and Severance Pay?
As an employee, if you are terminated without cause, you are owed termination pay and maybe owed severance pay, pursuant…
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Fired While Pregnant or Upon Returning from Maternity Leave?
Special to The Globe and Mail For many working women across Canada, a worst-case scenario is beginning to unfold as…
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Russell v The Brick Warehouse : Judge Awards 24 Months Notice and $25,000 in Moral Damages
In the recent decision by the Superior Court of Ontario in Russell v The Brick Warehouse case, the court has…
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Kraft v Firepower Financial: Court Increased Notice Period Due to COVID-19 and Awarded Unpaid Commission
In a recent summary judgment motion (Kraft v Firepower Financial, 2021 ONSC 4962), Daniel Lublin successfully obtained 10 months’ compensation…
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Can an Employee Claim Constructive Dismissal for a COVID-19 Layoff?
Under the Infectious Disease Emergency Leave regulations of the Employment Standards Act, an employee placed on layoff or reduced hours…
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Vaccination Policies at Work: Can You be Fired for Refusing a COVID-19 Vaccine?
Employers’ duty to maintain workplace safety with vaccination policies in place Employers have a duty to provide a safe workplace…
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Are CERB Payments Deductible From Wrongful Dismissal Damages?
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the Canadian government has provided various social benefit programs, including the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (“CERB”).…
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