Legal Insights from a Toronto Employment Lawyer
Practical articles on wrongful dismissal, severance packages, employment contracts, and workplace rights in Ontario — written by Sezar Bune, J.D.
Constructive Dismissal vs. Wrongful Dismissal in Ontario
When an employer officially terminates an employee from their employment, it can be in one of two ways: For Cause - the employer believes the employee committed serious misconduct in the performance of their job that justifies "firing" them immediately - with no prior...
Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements in Employment Contracts
Most employment contracts in Canada contain important sections (called "clauses") that govern the rights and obligations of employees. The purpose of an employment contract is to set the rules regarding the entire employment relationship, including: compensation (what...
End of CERB and Transition to Employment Insurance (EI) Benefits in Canada
In response to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian introduced a variety of economic and financial measures. One of those key financial support tools was the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) for employed and self-employed Canadians who were...
Different Grounds for Human Rights Claims – Employment Law Ontario
Employment lawyers in Ontario regularly assist both employees and employers with a wide range of human rights (discrimination) claims in the workplace context. While "discrimination" is a term that is widely used in society, not many people know the legal basis for...
Severance Packages and Impact of Termination on Employee Pension Plans
An employee may participate in an employer's pension plan as part of his/her job compensation package. This often makes up a significant term of the employee’s remuneration package, and becomes more valuable the longer the employee has been able to participate (and...
The Typical Severance Package: Top 4 Things to Expect in Ontario
Ontario Employee Severance Package Review What happens when an employee loses their job? Typically, the employer notifies the employee their job has been "terminated" - and may or may not provide a specific reason. If there is no reason for the termination, it is...
What is a “Wrongful” Dismissal in Ontario?
What Makes a Termination of Employment Wrongful? While an employment relationship may be indefinite (no preset expiry date), an employer is not required to keep the employee working forever. In Ontario, employers are free to end an employee's job at any time - and in...
Employee Duty to Mitigate Wrongful Dismissal Losses in Ontario
Duty to Mitigate after Termination of Employment | Under Ontario employment law, an employee who is "wrongfully dismissed" - either because they were improperly fired "for cause" with no notice or severance compensation, or were not given the correct amount of notice...
Employee Fired While on Maternity Leave – Is it Legal?
Discriminatory Termination of Employment A typical scenario employment lawyers encounter is a client whose employment is terminated by the company in the following scenarios: before, during or immediately after a maternity leave or medical leave of absence complaining...
Federally Regulated Employees in Canada – Basic Workplace Rights
Employment Law for Federally Regulated Employees in Canada | For employees who work for employers that are federally regulated, employment law standards are set out in the Canada Labour Code. This is equivalent to the Employment Standards Act, 2000, which applies only...