When a U.S. employer refuses to pay a Canadian employee’s wage and claims they are not within the jurisdiction to file a claim, the employee has options.  The foundation of an employer/employee relationship is that in exchange for an employee’s hard work, the employer pays a salary.  Simply because the employee works from home in Ontario for an employer in the U.S., does not mean that the employer/employee relationship functions any differently.

Daniel Lublin, Toronto employment lawyer provides reader’s with his response to the question, can a Canadian employee file a claim against a U.S. employer for wages owed?  His answer is yes.  You can commence proceedings against the employer in either Ontario or the U.S. state where the business is located. Although choosing where to pursue the claim is a matter of strategy.

Initiating the claim in Canada can be more costly for a number of reasons. Mr. Lublin explains that the best option is to hire a lawyer in the U.S. state where the business operates and explains in more detail the reasoning for this.

Read more about this topic in Daniel Lublin’s Globe and Mail column and full article My U.S. employer owes me $36,000 and refuses to pay