Employment Law Risk: Where Employers can Limit their Exposure I regularly meet business owners who find themselves years into running and growing their company without having paused to consider the legal risks that come with being an employer, or newly established employers who want to get ahead of issues, but they are not sure where…
An additional piece of the B.C. Government’s new legislation regarding pay transparency takes effect today, November 1, 2023. Starting today, all B.C. employers must include the expected pay, or the expected pay range, for publicly advertised job opportunities. The Pay Transparency Act was passed on May 11, 2023, and is intended to assist in closing…
As of January 1, 2022, employers in British Columbia are required to provide a minimum of five paid sick days each year to all employees covered by the BC Employment Standards Act (the “Act”). This announcement has been anticipated by many employers in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has placed a spotlight on the…
By order of the Provincial Health Officer, as of September 13, 2021, British Columbians are required to demonstrate proof of vaccination to access several events and services. In the wake of this announcement, many employers and employees are left wondering whether their workplace will be able to implement similar requirements for employees to have had…
There are some people out there that can proudly boast “I have never been fired.” Unfortunately for many people this is not the case. Termination of employment is a great cause of stress in many peoples’ lives. The fear of being terminated often weighs in the back of employees’ minds. We spend the majority of…
In a 6 to 1 decision the Supreme Court of Canada struck down provisions preventing the RCMP from unionizing. The decision was released January 16th. The Court determined the exclusion of the RCMP from federal labour relations legislation was unconstitutional. The Court also determined that former regulations imposing an alternate labour relations regime on RCMP…
It’s just about Christmas time and there are plenty of festivities. If you are a business or corporation and are hosting a Christmas party for your employees there are potential liability issues which could dampen your Christmas spirit. The first case in Canada to apply host liability within the context of the work environment was…
These last couple of weeks and the events that have unfolded at the CBC and in Canada’s Parliament have brought sexual harassment in the work place to the forefront of conversation, politics and public awareness. Jian Ghomeshi was fired on October 26th after CBC managers were shown video, photos, texts and e-mails, some of which…
Mitigation is a basic principle of contract law. In the context of an employment relationship, a dismissed employee has to take all reasonable steps to minimize any losses that she has suffered as a result of her termination of employment. Generally, this means that an employee who has been dismissed must take reasonable measures to…
Bullying is seldom out of the headlines these days. In one of my last articles, I discussed new cyberbullying legislation. In this article we will take a look at the new provisions of the Workers’ Compensation Act. They give workers the ability to make a claim where harassment and bullying have caused a mental disorder. The…
