Ontario Termination of Employment Law: A Practical Overview
Insights from Toronto Employment Lawyers
When dealing with employee discipline or dismissal in Ontario, it’s important for both employers and employees to understand the rules under Ontario employment law. This guide outlines how employment termination works in non-unionized and unionized settings and highlights key obligations around notice periods, severance, and final pay.
Employee Discipline and Dismissal Procedures in Ontario
There are no specific provincial laws in Ontario requiring formal discipline or grievance procedures for non-unionized workplaces. However, employers still have legal obligations when ending an employment relationship.
Termination Without Cause
In non-unionized settings, an employer can terminate an employee without cause, as long as they provide either:
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Reasonable notice under common law (or pay in lieu of reasonable notice of termination, often called a severance package); or
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The amount of notice set out in a written employment contract (as long as it complies with the statutory minimum entitlements to termination pay, benefits continuance and severance pay).
This is where an employment contract review lawyer can be essential to understand your rights and entitlements.
Termination With Cause
If an employer wants to dismiss an employee without notice or severance, they must prove “just cause” – a high legal standard. The misconduct must be serious and proportionate to justify such a significant penalty. The surrounding circumstances of the termination (context) and any mitigating circumstances are also considered to determine if this high justification is met.
Wilful Misconduct Exception
Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 sets an even stricter standard for denying termination entitlements: wilful misconduct, wilful disobedience, or wilful neglect of duty. This means the employee must have intentionally done something wrong — essentially, “being bad on purpose.”
The courts have described the legal test is higher than the test for “just cause”.
“In addition to providing that the misconduct is serious, the employer must demonstrate, and this is the aspect of the standard which distinguishes it from ‘just cause’, that the conduct complained of is ‘wilful’. Careless, thoughtless, heedless, or inadvertent conduct, no matter how serious, does not meet the standard. Rather, the employer must show that the misconduct was intentional or deliberate. The employer must show that the employee purposefully engaged in conduct that he or she knew to be serious misconduct. It is, to put it colloquially, being bad on purpose”.
Challenging a Termination
Employees who believe they been wrongfully dismissed (suffered a wrongful termination of employment) can:
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File a complaint with the Ontario Ministry of Labour under the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000; or
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Start a civil lawsuit to claim additional damages.
Working with a wrongful dismissal lawyer in Toronto can help you navigate this process and understand what compensation you may be entitled to.
Unionized Workers: Just Cause Requirement
In unionized workplaces, employees can only be disciplined or dismissed for just cause. If they feel the action was unfair, they can file a grievance through their union. These procedures are outlined in the collective bargaining agreement and typically end with arbitration. This is a far different procedure than in non-unionized workplaces.
Notice Periods: No “At-Will” Termination of Employment in Ontario
Ontario does not allow at-will employment. Employees who have been employed for at least three months are entitled to statutory notice of termination.
Here’s what the minimum notice period looks like under the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000:
| Years of Employment | Minimum Notice |
|---|---|
| Less than 1 year | 1 week |
| 1 year but less than 3 years | 2 weeks |
| 3 years but less than 4 years | 3 weeks |
| 4 years but less than 5 years | 4 weeks |
| 5 years but less than 6 years | 5 weeks |
| 6 years but less than 7 years | 6 weeks |
| 7 years but less than 8 years | 7 weeks |
| 8 years or more | 8 weeks |
Severance Pay and Benefits
Employers can offer pay in lieu of notice, but they must continue benefits during the statutory notice period. This includes:
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Group health and dental plan contributions
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Accrued vacation pay
A severance package review lawyer can help ensure the offer meets both Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 minimums and common law requirements.
Common Law: Reasonable Notice
Besides the statutory termination and severance pay entitlements under the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000, employees may be owed reasonable notice under common law if their employment contract is silent on termination (or otherwise has an invalid and unenforceable termination clause). In deciding a wrongful dismissal case (or constructive dismissal case), the courts will consider:
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Nature of the job
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Length of service
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Age of the employee
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Availability of similar jobs, given the employee’s qualifications
This is why many employees consult a Toronto employment lawyer to assess whether their termination package is fair.
Final Pay & Record of Employment
Employers are required to issue the final paycheck by:
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7 days after termination, or
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The employee’s next regular payday — whichever is later (ESA, s. 11(5))
They must also provide a Record of Employment (ROE) within 5 days of the interruption of earnings, as per Employment Insurance Regulations (s. 19(1)(3)).
Get Help from a Toronto Employment Lawyer
If you are an employee ho has recently been fired, laid off, or offered a severance package, it is wise to speak to a qualified:
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Toronto employment lawyer
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Wrongful dismissal lawyer
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Severance package review lawyer
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Constructive dismissal lawyer
They can help you understand your legal rights, maximize your entitlements, and guide you through either a Ministry complaint or civil claim.
Call Employment Lawyer Toronto Today
For many employers, termination of employment is a difficult and confusing time, especially when it comes to drafting severance packages. Therefore, in a wrongful termination of employment, it is important for employers to consult with an experienced Ontario employment lawyer for a severance package review to understand the impact of wrongful dismissal on pension plans.
If you are an employer or employee needing to speak with an experienced Ontario wrongful dismissal lawyer to discuss your options and next steps on how to deal with workplace issues, call Bune Law, employment law firm in Toronto. You will review and get guidance on your severance package before you agree to sign any termination documents, and help ensure that your severance package is fair and reasonable.