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By MacLeod Law Firm, July 27, 2012 11:50 am

Hiring Employees in Ontario, Canada

If you are thinking about hiring employees in Ontario, Canada here are five issues you’ll need to consider:

1.    Do federal or provincial laws apply?

About 90% of Ontario employees are governed by provincial laws.

Federal laws apply to employees who work for federal undertakings such as the federal government, banks, and telecommunication companies.

2.    What provincial laws apply?

There are several Ontario employment statutes including

-       the Employment Standards Act which sets out numerous minimum standards including hours of work,  minimum notice of termination, and severance pay;

-       the Human Rights Code which prohibits employment discrimination on 16 prohibited grounds such as sex, race, sexual orientation, and disability;

-       the Occupational Health & Safety Act  which imposes numerous safety obligations on, among others, owners, directors, and employers;

-        the Workplace Safety & Insurance Act which determines compensation for workplace injuries;

-       the Pay Equity Act which mandates equal pay for work of equal value; and

-       the Accessibility For Ontarians with Disabilities Act which requires employers to take measures to accommodate people with disabilities

3.    What judge made laws apply?

There are many legal proceedings that an employee can bring against his or her former employer including

-       a wrongful dismissal action if the employer did not provide the employee with “reasonable notice of termination. Damages are generally up to 24 months remuneration.

-       a no cost complaint under the Employment Standards Act where orders cannot generally exceed $ 10 000, or under the Human Rights Code where damage awards are theoretically unlimited.

-       an action in the courts for violating an employee’s privacy rights (i.e. the tort of the inclusion upon seclusion.

4.    What laws apply to unionized employees?

The laws mentioned above apply to both union and non-union employees.

About 28 % of Ontario’s workforce is unionized.

The process for unionizing an employer is set out in the Ontario Labour Relations Act. There is a different labour relations regime for the construction industry. Generally, a union files a written certification application, the employer has two days to respond, and an employee vote can be scheduled within five days of the union application.

5.    How does one navigate Ontario’s Employment Law waters?

There are numerous free on-line resources, particularly from the Ontario Ministry of Labour.

There are scores of employment law lawyers in Ontario particularly in the Greater Toronto Area.

Some employment law firms offer complimentary seminars on different employment law issues. In addition, a number of employment lawyers tweet and blog on employment law issues.

If you have any employment law questions, please call us at 1–888-640-1728 or email us at inquiry@macleodlawfirm.ca. You can follow us on twitter (@MacLeodLawFirm) or subscribe to our employment law blog at www.macleodlawfirm.ca/employers 

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By MacLeod Law Firm, June 28, 2012 7:08 pm

Employment Contracts

We recommend that every new hire sign an employment contract with a termination clause.

If the termination clause provides the employee with more than the minimum notice of termination provided under the Employment Standards Act, then can a terminated employee collect termination pay from your organization and salary from another employee at the same time?

Last week, the Ontario Court of Appeal decided that the answer to this question was yes, unless the termination clause explicitly permits the terminating employer to deduct the salary from the new employer.

The Facts: In this case, Mr. Bowes was entitled to six months notice of termination or pay in lieu of this notice under the terms of his written employment contract. He was terminated without any notice. He found another job during the six months following his termination earning the same income and his former employer stopped paying him termination pay.

The Decision: The Court of Appeal concluded that Mr. Bowes could collect termination from his former employer and income from his new employer until six months after his termination.

Lesson to be learned:  An employer should make sure that the termination clause in its employment contract explicitly addresses this issue of what happens to any income that a terminated employee earns during the agreed upon notice period.

The provincial government and judges are forever changing the employment law landscape. It is important to review your employment contracts, policies and practices to make sure they comply with all employment laws and are up to date.

We offer one-hour employment law check-ups where we will review your organization’s legal obligations and any employment law policies that are of particular interest to you. To give you some idea of the areas you can review, check out our Workplace Audit: 20 Areas to Consider.

If you want to amend your employment contract to enhance your management rights or have us conduct an employment law checkup at your workplace, please email us at inquiry@macleodlawfirm.ca or call us at 1-888-640-1728.

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By MacLeod Law Firm, May 25, 2012 11:43 am

Employee or Independent Contractor

There is a common misconception that an employer can choose whether to enter into an employment relationship or an independent contractor relationship with a person. The fact is it is the courts and administration agencies (like the CRA) who ultimately determine whether the person is an employee or not.

The cost of making this mistake on this issue can be VERY expensive.

Join us for this one hour complimentary seminar to find out what factors should be considered when deciding whether a person is an employee or an independent contractor.

MacLeod Law Firm’s complimentary breakfast seminars will be held on June 4^th and 5^th in Toronto, and on June 12^th and 14^th in Barrie. Seminars are limited to 10 registrants. To secure your spot, click here.

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By MacLeod Law Firm, February 10, 2012 8:22 pm

An Employment Contract – Implied Terms of Employment

An employment contract cannot predict every scenario that will arise in an employment relationship. However, you can anticipate that certain events will take place during most employment relationships.

Predictable Events during the Life of an Employment Relationship

1. At some point, the employer will want to change the employee’s duties.

2. The employee will likely be absent from work because of illness.

3. The employer will want to discipline the employee.

4. The employer will terminate the employee.

Even though these events are predictable, most employers decide not to address them at the beginning of the relationship.

Implied Terms of Employment

If the employee and employer don’t agree on how to address these issues, then the courts will make certain assumptions.

The courts will generally assume the following:

1. An employer has no right to make fundamental changes in an employee’s job duties.

2. A salaried employee is generally entitled to be paid his or her salary when he or she is sick.

3. As far as discipline goes, generally an employer only has the right to provide a verbal warning, a written warning or terminate an employee.

4. An employer is generally required to provide an employee with “reasonable notice of termination”.

These are called implied terms of employment.

Contracting Out of Implied Terms of Employment

An employer can usually contract out of these implied terms of employment in an employment contract. Because of this, we recommend that your employment contract include the following provisions:

1. The employer has the right to change duties with little or no notice.

2. A salaried employee is entitled to a maximum number of sick days.

3. The employer has the right to suspend an employee without pay as a form of discipline.

4. An employer will provide the employee with an agreed-upon amount of notice of termination.

If you have any questions about employment contracts, please call us at 1-888- 640-1728 or send us an email at inquiry@macleodlawfirm.ca.