Spring Law (LexBlog Canada)

Important update for all federal employers! Amendments to the Canada Labour Code are now in force as of February 1, 2024. Do you fall into this category? And if so, what does this mean for you?  Federal Employers As we’ve discussed in a previous blog, the Canada Labour Code is a federal law which sets...

When bringing people in to work with your business, the distinction between an “employee” and an “independent contractor” is not just an administrative detail; it carries significant legal implications, particularly in the realms of tax and employment law. If a court, the Ministry of Labour, or the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) finds a worker has...

On November 1, 2023 British Columbia’s new Pay Transparency Act (“Act”) took effect, which requires employers throughout British Columbia to post expected salary ranges for job postings. Notably, as explained by the British Columbia government in a guidance document, this requirement will also apply to postings for remote positions if the position is open to...

According to Statistics Canada, in 2023 20% of Canadian workers reported that they “usually” work from home. This is a significant jump from the pre-pandemic numbers, with only 7% of workers reporting that they usually worked from home in 2016. Many employers now are trying to figure out how to move forward with working arrangements...

Canadian Employment Law for US Employers: Part 2 - Contracts

Discover key differences in US and Canadian employment laws in this blog series tailored for US employers operating in Canada.

Are you an employer with operations in both Canada & the US? This post is for you. Contracts vs At-Will Employment For our US readers, Canada does not have at-will employment. In Canada, employment relationships are governed by employment contracts, either written or implied, and various employment laws and regulations. Employers are generally required to...

Public Service Alliance of Canada seeks to enshrine the right to work remotely in new collective agreements for thousands of Federal workers.

This past Monday marked the three-year anniversary of the date the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Since that fateful day in 2020, a lot has changed. Though there remain areas where transmission rates are still high, increased vaccination rates, higher immunity, and public health measures have helped curtail the spread of the virus...

When Mental Health Meets Canada’s Favourite Pastime A human rights claim alleging discriminatory reasons for a termination is sure to get noticed this week as it intersects with Canada’s favourite pastime: hockey. A former video analyst for the Canucks, Rachel Doerrie, filed a claim alleging that she was told she wasn’t “mentally fit” for the...

Human rights legislation across Canada protects employees from discrimination on the basis of disability and requires employers to accommodate employees with disabilities to the point of undue hardship. Long-term leaves of absence often leave employers wondering how to fulfil their duty to accommodate and at what point are they able to terminate an employee after...

As inflation rates have soared in recent months, the impact has been felt by employers and employees alike. According to Statistics Canada, Canada’s inflation rate, now at 7.7%, has skyrocketed at the fastest pace in almost 40 years. This is the highest rate since 1983.  In an ideal world, wages would keep up with rising...

We’ve been hearing about unlimited paid time off (PTO) for some time, but it is not yet a common trend in Canada. However, from time to time in our employment law practice, we encounter employers who offer unlimited or unstructured time off to their employees. At first glance, unlimited PTO may sound wonderful and generous,...

With the rise of remote working in the past couple of years, virtual work meetings, whether over video or phone call, have become a common occurence. With that comes the issue of recording work calls. In this post, we address the possible risks involved when an employee records work meetings, either surreptitiously or with consent. ...

In the world of workplace law we often say that, absent exceptional circumstances, the greatest notice period that any wrongfully dismissed employee could be awarded by an adjudicator is 24 months. But what are those exceptional circumstances? Years ago, we blogged about Dawe v. The Equitable Life Insurance Company of Canada, a case in which...

Across Canada, government mandates regarding masking and vaccination are lifting. In Ontario, vaccine passports are no longer required as of March 1 and masking mandates were lifted as of March 21. Employers who previously rolled out vaccination policies may be wondering what these wider government changes mean for their workplace policies. Is A Vaccination Policy...

Across Canada, government mandates regarding masking and vaccination are lifting. In Ontario, vaccine passports are no longer required as of March 1 and masking mandates were lifted as of March 21. Employers who previously rolled out vaccination policies may be wondering what these wider government changes mean for their workplace policies. Is A Vaccination Policy...

In the context of the increasing prevalence of vaccine mandates, employee requests for accommodation on religious grounds are becoming common. Religious beliefs and practices and the resulting accommodation requests can be varied and tricky. Today we will take a look at what employers should know and do about requests for accommodation based on religion. What...

This month has seen arbitral treatment of two mandatory vaccination policies in the context of unionized workplaces. In a grievance brought by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Canada, Local 333 against employer Paragon Protection Ltd., the arbitrator found that the employer’s vaccination policy was reasonable. In a grievance brought by the Power Workers’...

This month has seen arbitral treatment of two mandatory vaccination policies in the context of unionized workplaces. In a grievance brought by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Canada, Local 333 against employer Paragon Protection Ltd., the arbitrator found that the employer’s vaccination policy was reasonable. In a grievance brought by the Power Workers’...

As of Saturday, October 23, 2021, a suite of federal benefits formerly slated for both individuals and small businesses was set to expire following several extension periods. In partial response, the federal government has earmarked $7.4 billion for new programs intended to maintain some level of support for businesses and individuals throughout the Covid-19 pandemic....

Today marks Canada’s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.  This day provides Canadians with an opportunity to honour, reflect upon and educate themselves about the lost children and Survivors of residential schools, and their families and communities.   At SpringLaw, each of our team members will be dedicating part of today to observing the National...

Last week, the federal government announced that it will be making vaccinations mandatory for federal employees and also for those working in some federally regulated industries related to travel. You can read the news release here. The government intends to require vaccinations for federal employees by the end of September. It projects that vaccinations will...

How much notice should you give your employee on termination? A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court in Herreros v Glencore Canada reiterates that when calculating the period of reasonable notice owed to a wrongfully dismissed employee, it is the circumstances at the time of termination that matter.  The rule comes from a decision...

To enter Canada, all travellers over the age of 5, including those who are fully vaccinated, are required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test. Samples to test for COVID-19 can be collected through a nose swab, throat swab, or saliva sample. Many employers are now mandating, or considering mandating, that employees get COVID-19...

More than 13 million people in Canada are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, yet we’re finding employers are more and more worried about those who still aren’t and don’t plan to be. Below, we answer some of the questions we are hearing from employers and set out what we think they should be considering. 1....

Over the course of the past year, many people have had reductions in earnings and received some form of government income assistance – EI, CERB or Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB). In some cases, employees who initially thought that their interruption or reduction in earnings was temporary have had their employment terminated.  In almost all termination...

HR Professionals vs Employment Lawyers – Who Should Do What to Solve Your Workplace Issues? Join us as SpringLaw’s Lisa Stam and guest Eric Appleyard, Director of Human Resource Business Advisory at ADP Canada, walk you through who can help with what in your workplace, best practices for HR and external Legal Counsel to collaborate...

Since 2019, there have been five proposed class actions against insurance companies and banks for failure to pay proper vacation pay to employees, both past and present. The total amount claimed in the aggregate of these five actions is around $1.2 billion. Royal Bank of Canada is a named party in three of the five...

A recent Supreme Court of Canada decision serves as a helpful reminder to workers and businesses about the importance of honesty in their contractual dealings. C.M. Callow Inc. v. Zollinger involved condo maintenance contracts. The plaintiff, C.M. Callow performed summer and winter maintenance for the defendant Zollinger, who managed maintenance contracts for several condos (referred...