When Can Your Employer Terminate You for Just Cause?
“Just Cause” is a legal term that describes when employers can terminate employees without providing any notice of termination or pay in lieu of notice.
In a 2016 decision, the Ontario Court of Appeal found that a teacher’s misconduct was serious enough to warrant a just cause termination.
The Legal Test for Just Cause
An employer may dismiss an employee for just cause when the employee’s misconduct is sufficiently serious that it goes to the heart of the employment relationship. The courts will review the nature and extent of the misconduct, consider the circumstances, and determine whether dismissal was warranted.
The Case
In Fernandes v. Peel Educational & Tutorial Services Limited, a private school terminated a teacher for just cause after discovering that the teacher had submitted falsified and incorrect student marks. The school had provided the teacher two opportunities to change the inaccurate marks. Instead he lied to his employer and covered up his mistakes.
Recognizing that teachers occupy a special position of trust and have professional obligations to students and the school, the court found that the teacher’s actions constituted serious misconduct. The school trusted the teacher to properly evaluate student progress. The teacher intentionally acted against these interests.
The teacher did not describe any circumstances in his life that were affecting his job performance. If he did, this could have explained his actions. The teacher’s actions had endangered the school’s accreditation. The Court stressed that even though the school did not suffer harm, it is the severity of the potential harm that is considered in just cause.
Lessons to be Learned:
- Termination for just cause can deny employees significant pay in lieu of notice. Be cautious about your actions at work.
- If you are experiencing health issues, including mental health or addiction, that are affecting your work, inform your employer and seek assistance.
- Employers often cannot prove just cause. If you were terminated and did not receive notice or pay, speak to a lawyer.
If you would like to speak to a lawyer at MacLeod Law Firm, you can reach us at [email protected] or 647-204-8107.
The material and information in this blog and this website are for general information only. They should not be relied on as legal advice or opinion. The authors make no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of any information referred to in this blog or its links. No person should act or refrain from acting in reliance on any information found on this website or blog. Readers should obtain appropriate professional advice from a lawyer duly licensed in the relevant jurisdiction. These materials do not create a lawyer-client relationship between you and any of the authors or the MacLeod Law Firm.
Recent Posts
What is Employment Insurance Anyway? A Primer on EI
If you have lost your job and need temporary income support, do you know what to do? In Canada, you can apply for Employment Insurance (“EI”) for partial income replacement from the Federal government. To learn about the different types of EI and whether you would be...
read moreTermination Pay for Employees who Cannot Work Because of a Total Disability
If you are totally unable to work because of a medical disability are you entitled to receive termination pay? That is the question considered in this blog. Employees Who Do Not Have LTD Coverage Sometimes, an employer does not provide disability insurance and in this...
read moreShort service, long notice
Employees with only a few years (or even months) of service tend to believe that they aren’t entitled to much notice or pay in lieu of notice upon termination. As we have written before, we have seen a trend of longer notice periods being awarded to employees in...
read more