With legislation changing constantly, how can HR professionals keep up?

By Karen Stone, CHRE

The past decade of employment law has seen more change than ever before. In Ontario, our commitment to strong human rights legislation is commendable – and it takes a lot of research, knowledge and fast-paced legal advancement to keep up with emerging areas of the law. 

Creating Outstanding Organizations

By Lisa Gordon

By the time he finished high school, Greg Pinks knew he wanted to dedicate his career to helping leaders develop amazing organizations – the kind of workplaces that spark employee imagination, creativity and passion.

With more than two decades of experience in business strategy, employee engagement and leadership coaching, Pinks founded Axiom Performance Inc. in Guelph, Ont., two years ago.

The future of diversity in the legal profession

By Michael Bach

The way Canada “looks” has changed. According to Statistics Canada, women make up just shy of 50 per cent of the available workforce; 25 per cent of Canadians identify as racialized (people who are not Caucasian in their ethnocultural heritage) and that number skyrockets to over 50 per cent in cities like Toronto and Vancouver; one in five Canadians

Does anti-discrimination law create an inclusive workplace?

By Alison Grenier

The issue of discrimination in the workplace is an ongoing point of discussion and contention. From the evident gender pay gap to the advancement of visible minorities into C-suite positions, the market continuously experiences dialogue as it works toward the goal of equality in the workforce.

Strategies for HR professionals navigating Canada’s new global talent stream

By Naumaan Hameed

On June 12 of this year, Employment and SocialDevelopment Canada (ESDC) released the Global Talent Stream (GTS), a two-year pilot program that forms part of Canada’s Global Skill Strategy and seeks to enhance the competitiveness of high growth employers and innovation in Canada. The GTS has been developed in order to reduce the time and complexity required for Canadian employers

What really needs to be included?

By Patrizia Piccolo

Each time an employer considers putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard, as the case may be) to draft an employment contract, the potential for costly errors exists. However, if proper forethought is given to the essential terms of the contract, then mistakes can be avoided, money can be saved and heartburn can be escaped.

The decision could be good news for wrongfully dismissed employees

By Hendrik Nieuwland

The recent Court of Appeal decision in Brake v. PJ-M2R Restaurant Inc.has significant implications for employers involved in wrongful dismissal litigation. The court clarified a number of issues concerning mitigation income that can be used to offset a reasonable notice award in damages. It could be said that the decision in Brake can have the effect of placing a wrongfully dismissed employee in a better position than they would have been

The next class action?

By Kathleen Chevalier and Alex Lemoine

Historically, class actions have proven to be a challenge in employment law. Employees are thought to be a poor target for class action lawyers as they are notoriously difficult to access and organize, and individual claims tend to be of relatively low value. Most problematic, however, is that the claims tend to lack the required “common issues” between employees to permit a court to certify a class action. By their nature, the claims advanced are often inherently

Risks and responses for employers in the era of legalized cannabis use

By Michael F. Horvat

On Sept. 8, 2017, Ontario became the first province to announce its plan to sell and distribute recreational marijuana once it becomes legalized. The federal government’s timeline is to allow the sale and use of “recreational” marijuana by July 1, 2018, but each province can regulate distribution and limit availability. Ontario’s plan is to have government-run stores selling marijuana based on the province’s liquor distribution model,

Strategies to reduce severance obligations

By Daniel Chodos

Canadian companies express grave concerns about the enormous expense of terminating employees. These complaints are understandable: long-term workers are typically awarded substantial “reasonable notice periods” by the courts, and even short-service employees may become entitled to surprisingly generous severance obligations in some circumstances.

What to do if your employee is “one of them”

By Stuart Rudner and Brittany Taylor

It is hard to believe that in 2017, an article discussing the rights of employers who learn that their employees are spending their off-duty hours at neo-Nazi rallies and demonstrations would be considered timely and relevant. Unfortunately, the reality is that recent events in the United States involving demonstrations by

Entitlement to chronic mental stress BENEFIT to expand effective Jan. 1, 2018

By Laura Williams

The Ontario government’s budget implementation Bill 127, the Stronger, Healthier Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2017, amends numerous pieces of legislation, including the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 (WSIA). The most significant Bill 127

It’s a stone’s throw away from becoming law, and it’s bringing a massive wave of change to employment law. Is your organization ready?

By Melissa Campeau

When Bill 148 comes into effect, HR professionals need to be ready for sweeping changes to Ontario’s labour and employment laws, right away. In fact, many of the measures in the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017 need to be implemented by January 1, 2018.

2017’s biggest issues in Canadian employment law

By Heather Hudson

Marijuana, vacation pay claims and Bill 148 are just a few of the pressing topics on the minds of the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA)’s HR Law Conference co-chairs, David A. Whitten andJames D. Heeney.

... AND MORE ESA COMPLAINTS

By Jason Beeho

Although not yet in force at the time of this writing, the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017, otherwise known as Bill 148, will bring major changes to both the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) and the Labour Relations Act when it inevitably becomes the law-of-the-land.