Most often, employees considering or expecting to become parents, face concerns about whether they will still have a job to return to after their parental leave is over.

Overwhelmed by new parenthood duties and the possibility of losing their job, it may be harder than you think to find all the necessary information and to know your rights in the event that it happens to you.

Toronto Employment Lawyer, Daniel Lublin talks about common situations of terminations while on parental leave in his latest article published in the Globe & Mail, Can a company terminate someone on parental leave?.

Human rights and employment standards legislation across Canada prohibits termination and adverse treatment because of an employee’s intention to become pregnant, her pregnancy, or for taking a parental leave.

An exception is that an employer can terminate an employee who is on parental leave if the reasons for the termination are unrelated to the leave.  However, employers must show that the termination was unrelated to the employee’s pregnancy or leave, and this is often not an easy task.

Regardless of the reason for a termination during parental leave, employers are required to pay severance to the employee.  However, employers are not required to provide the severance figures to an employee who is still on leave.  Some will agree to provide numbers as a courtesy if required by the employee and where the employer’s decision to terminate has already been made.

This topic is without a doubt, one of the most misunderstood and contentious issues in employment law.  To learn more about your options, refer to our related article, Maternity Leave can thwart dismissal, found on our website.