Managing Termination of Employment in the Canadian Workplace: New Developments and Best Practices

Managing termination of employment in Canada is complex, especially for employers used to dealing with United States employment law, or for Canadian employers who have limited experience in the area. Failure to effectively limit termination entitlements in the contract, or provide sufficient notice of termination, has led to claims with employees receiving over 24 months of pay in place of notice in recent decisions. Failure to follow minimum standards in employment standards legislation has also been grounds for punitive damage awards in wrongful dismissal claims. Even beyond these forms of damages, failure to be forthcoming in a termination meeting, or where the employer is unduly insensitive, can lead to moral damages claims, creating further liability for employers. Attending this session will summarize the basics and cover what we are seeing in recent caselaw in Canada, along with best practices to help avoid some of the common pitfalls leading to substantial liability for employers.

• Understand employee entitlements upon termination of employment
• Understand the effect of an employment contract
• Understand the role of employment standards legislation and minimum notice of termination
• Understand the potential liability for employers following termination of employment; and Understand and feel comfortable implementing best practices to avoid the common pitfalls by employers.

• Employee entitlements upon termination of employment;
• Common law reasonable notice (what is it and how can it be limited by)
• Employment standards legislation entitlements
• Effect of an employment contract
• Potential liability for employers following termination of employment
• Best practices to avoid the common pitfalls by employers.

To understand termination of employment in Canada and help your company or business avoid the potentially significant liability associated with termination of employment where the proper steps are not followed.

• Employee Relations Specialists
• Human Resource Managers
• Human Resource Executives
• Lawyers interested in learning more about Canadian employment law

Ben Currie is a labor and employment lawyer who works for Spring Law, a virtual workplace law firm based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Ben is called to the bar in the provinces of Ontario and Nova Scotia. Ben practices labor and employment law exclusively with experience in all areas of workplace law. Ben regularly advises employers of all sizes on areas such as employee discipline, termination of employment, day-to-day workplace issues, contract drafting, and policy drafting. Ben also has a background in labour and employee relations before law and prioritizes practical advice for clients