Common employee handbook mistakes and how to avoid them
Employee handbooks can be a useful tool in managing the workplace. When done properly, they offer a number of advantages, such as helping to formalize various processes (fostering consistency and transparency); reduce the risk of arbitrary decision-making and/or favouritism; promote legal compliance; reinforce company culture and values; and defend against potential employee claims and/or complaints.
Vey Willetts LLP
5 minutes read
December 17, 2024 
Employers, it’s time to wake up: Nepotism in Canadian workplaces
Although nepotism may not be illegal per se, it poses serious concerns including a bad workplace culture at best and the creation of a toxic work environment at worst, poor employee morale, bad business practices and decision-making, conflicts of interest, and damage to an employer’s reputation.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
A reminder for employers: Unconscious bias in the workplace investigation process
Workplace discrimination can take many forms and may include situations where an employee is the target of unintentional discriminatory behaviour informed by unconscious bias. Unconscious bias refers to social stereotypes about groups of people that individuals form outside of their own conscious awareness. While workplace investigations can play an important role in addressing discrimination, they […]
Vey Willetts LLP
Employers’ duty to accommodate family status when scheduling shifts is not unlimited
Family status is a protected ground under the Ontario Human Rights Code and employers have an obligation to provide reasonable accommodation in the circumstances.
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Navigating the challenges of AI fairness, bias and robustness
In the past several years, artificial intelligence (“AI”) has exploded into the public consciousness and emerged as a driving economic force that underpins some of the world’s largest companies and most exciting new start-ups.
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Failure to comply with drug and alcohol policy results in termination for just cause
Termination for cause, health and safety obligations and workplace disability accommodation are some of the most challenging employment law issues Canadian employers need to navigate when managing their workplaces. A recent case from Alberta, Quong v Lafarge Canada Inc., provides significant insights for employers, especially those operating in safety-sensitive industries. Here’s a breakdown of the key points and how you can apply them to your workplace.
SpringLaw
Dress codes: Discrimination isn’t fashionable
With more and more people heading back to work in person, many are rethinking what appropriate work attire really means. In some cases, employers may choose to provide a dress code with guidelines for employees to follow. However, careful thought must be given to ensuring that a dress code is compliant with human rights legislation.
Simes Law
Firing pregnant worker after 8 days’ employment proves costly for business owner
Read about a recent success at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario in securing an award of almost $40,000 against a corporate respondent (and its owner) for firing a pregnant employee after 8 days of employment.
Vey Willetts LLP
Forfeiture clause for breach of confidentiality and non disparagement provision in an HRTO settlement upheld
In L.C.C v M.M. (2023 HRTO 1138) Adjudicator Lavinia Inbar was dealing with an allegation that the former employee had breached a settlement agreement by publishing on LinkedIn the following statement:
Barry B. Fisher LL.B.