Labour and Employment Law Blog

As we have previously blogged about here, the British Columbia Labour Relations Code (the “Code”) which governs labour relations in unionized workplaces, was recently amended effective May 30, 2019. The amendments included placing narrower restrictions on employer speech in respect of labour relations issues.

Between 2002 and the recent amendment, section 8 of ...

An Ontario court recently confirmed that an employee’s desire to return to work does not on its own trigger a duty to accommodate

In Katz Group Canada Ltd. v. Clarke, 2019 ONSC 2188, Mr. Clarke's employment was terminated following a five year absence, after the long term disability provider told the employer that Mr. Clarke was unable to perform the essential duties of the ...

Summer is often a time for rest and relaxation but federally regulated employers will need to spend at least part of the summer months preparing for significant changes to the Canada Labour Code (the “Code”) which come into effect September 1, 2019. These changes are in addition to amendments that have already come into force and further changes that are pending, all in ...

In Dumitrache v. Glenlyon-Norfolk School Society, 2019 BCHRT 68 (“Dumitrache”), the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal dismissed a complaint because the complainant had signed a release of claims, which included a term that he would not commence any human rights complaint against his former employer. This case is a good reminder for employers to ensure that ...

Effective May 30, 2019, the Employment Standards Act and the Labour Relations Code have been amended. You can read about the amendments in our previous blog posts – click here to read about changes to the Employment Standards Act, and here to read about changes to the Labour Relations Code.

Please also note that the minimum wage in British Columbia increased on June 1, 2019 to ...

On May 27, 2019, the Government of Alberta introduced Bill 2: An Act to Make Alberta Open For Business (Bill 2), in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Bill 2 introduces a number of changes to labour and employment legislation in Alberta and is partially aimed at rolling back certain changes introduced in 2017 by the previous NDP government.

In addition, pursuant to an ...

As the May long weekend approaches, it may be a good time for employers to consider reviewing or implementing social media policies. With the accessibility of social media, employees should be aware of corporate codes of conduct that apply to social media use.

A social media policy (also called a social networking policy) is a corporate code of conduct that provides ...

On April 30, 2019, the British Columbia government introduced Bill 30, Labour Relations Code Amendment Act, 2019 in the British Columbia Legislative Assembly.

Bill 30 follows the recommendations set out in Recommendations for Amendments to the Labour Relations Code (the "Labour Relations Code Report"), a government-commissioned report from an independent panel ...

On April 29, 2019, Labour Minister Harry Bains introduced in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for first reading Bill 8, the Employment Standards Amendment Act, 2019. If passed into law, Bill 8 will be the first major revision of the Employment Standards Act (the "ESA") in about 15 years.

Bill 8 introduces a number of changes to the ESA. Notably, the proposed ...

Nitrogen Studios, the Vancouver animation firm behind the animated film Sausage Party, was recently ordered by the BC Employment Standards Branch to pay overtime pay to non-unionized animators on the basis that its employees did not fall within the “high technology professional” exemption in the Employment Standards Regulation. The animators claimed that they ...