There are countless reasons why an employee or employer might need the advice of an employment lawyer. Employment law covers countless issues and questions and overlaps with numerous other areas of law. Some of these issues are common, but no less important to the person facing that issue than a complex, once-in-a-lifetime legal question. Either way, an employee or employer might not be aware that they might want or need an employment lawyer to advise them.
Here are our top 5 reasons why you might need an employment lawyer in Toronto.
Number 5: Exit Agreements and Termination Letters
Exit agreements and termination letters are two kinds of documents that employment lawyers review daily. These documents are not required to be provided to a departing employee by law, but the majority of employers prepare these documents in the hope of severing their employment relationship with a worker as amicably as possible. These packages are binding agreements that protect the rights of employers.
Often, severance packages are offered to employees who have just been terminated, with or without cause. Less commonly, employers will offer severance packages to employees who voluntarily resign or retire. Regardless of the reason for offering the package, they almost always offer the employee monetary compensation in exchange for a binding promise not to sue their former employer. These offers nearly always fall well below what the employee’s true entitlements at law are.
As these agreements almost always favour the employer, employees should not sign an exit agreement without first speaking to a lawyer. These offers typically are not the company’s best offer and contain onerous terms that would heavily restrict an employee.
If you are an employer and need to draft an exit agreement or termination letter, you should contact our experienced team of lawyers.
Number 4: Workplace Safety and Compliance
All employers have the duty to provide a safe workplace and the duty to develop and implement policies and programs to prevent and eliminate workplace violence and workplace harassment.
For countless employees and employers, workplace safety is one of their paramount concerns. Nobody wants to see their friends or colleagues injured on the job or be injured themselves.
When employees are injured on the job, it creates an array of risks for both employees and employers. Employees often have to suddenly navigate the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board’s claim process, go on short- or long-term disability, and focus on recovering from what could be a catastrophic injury.
Employers have to report injuries and accidents, ensure that the incident can’t, and won’t, be repeated, and prepare for the employee’s return to work, without intentionally or inadvertently discriminating against the employee as a result of their injury. Being uninformed and ignorant of your responsibilities as an employer is not a defence for non-compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act (“OHSA”).
Workplace safety and compliance is a lengthy and complex process for employees and employers alike. It can be incredibly difficult and daunting to attempt to navigate the OHSA rules and requirements by yourself. If you have questions about your occupational health and safety obligations and responsibilities, you should contact us.
Number 3: Reviewing Employment Contracts
Employment contracts are the governing agreements in employment relationships. They set out the core elements of a person’s employment, including their wages, benefits, location and hours of work, and even their job duties. They also set out additional conditions that allow employers to take certain actions, including introducing a probationary period, temporarily laying off an employee, and binding the employee with restrictive covenants.
Employment contracts can be as short as a single-page document or can be dozens of pages long. It depends on the employer’s priorities and how extensively it wants to define the employment relationship with their employees.
The termination clause that lawyers spend the most time analyzing is typically the termination clause. Many employers wrongly assume that they can write a simple termination clause that uses stereotypical language, and that will be sufficient to limit an employee’s entitlements to the minimums under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”). Worse, many employers use termination clauses written in other provinces or countries and assume they will be sufficient for Ontario. Clauses drafted in this manner are unenforceable and allow an employee who has been fired to sue for common law wrongful dismissal damages.
This area of law changes often. There have been several major court decisions in recent years that have changed how employment contracts are interpreted. Employment contracts that were enforceable a year ago no longer are. Contracts that are enforceable this year likely will be unenforceable next year. As a result, employers and employees alike should be regularly reviewing their contracts to see if they are being affected by these rapid developments in the law.
If you are an employer, you want to have an enforceable termination clause to limit employees to their ESA entitlements. If you are recruiting a new employee or about to terminate one, you may benefit by having a lawyer review your contracts to see if they are enforceable.
If you have just been terminated ‘without cause’ or you are offered a severance package that limits you to your ESA entitlements, you may benefit by having a lawyer review your contract to see if you can get more compensation than your contract suggests.
Number 2: Unlawful Discrimination & Human Rights Violations
Workplace discrimination and human rights violations are some of the most common types of cases that employment lawyers handle. Workplace discrimination can include a wide range of discriminatory conduct, including racist or sexist harassment from supervisors or other employees, discrimination based on a physical or mental disability, age, religion, and more.
The workplace is supposed to be free from discrimination for all employees in Ontario. That is unfortunately not always the case. Unfortunately, there is as much variation in the types of discrimination that employees face as there is variation among individuals.
If you are experiencing discrimination in the workplace, whether it is from a colleague, supervisor, or the entire company, you should contact our firm immediately.
Employment lawyers regularly represent employees and employers through all stages of a human rights complaint, from beginning to end. Where human rights violations are an underlying element in other cases, such as wrongful or constructive dismissal, experienced employment lawyers regularly try cases seeking additional damages for human rights violations.
As with workplace safety compliance, employment lawyers also regularly work with employers to ensure that their workplaces remain a place that is discrimination-free. This includes advising on implementing policies and procedures to protect employees and discipline those guilty of discriminatory conduct.
If you are an employer, you have the duty to prevent discrimination in the workplace and to accommodate employees with disabilities and other human rights needs. If you are looking to review your policies or ensure you are protecting your employees from discrimination, you should contact our firm immediately.
Number 1: Wrongful Dismissal
The number one reason why people need employment lawyers is to represent them in cases of wrongful dismissal. When an employer terminates an employee ‘without cause’, they are required to give the employee notice of termination or pay them wages equivalent to what the notice period would be.
An employee is ‘wrongfully dismissed’ when they do not receive the amount of notice of termination they are legally entitled to. This can happen when an employee is dismissed without cause and does not receive sufficient notice of termination, an employee is constructively dismissed, and when an employer terminates someone for conduct that does not amount to cause.
This is why employers use termination clauses contained within employment contracts to limit the amount of notice owed to an employee upon termination to just the minimum notice under the ESA, which is measured in weeks. Employees try to get out of these clauses because they want to receive notice of termination under the common law, which is typically measured in months.
An unenforceable termination clause in an employment contract means that employees who are terminated without cause are entitled to common law notice of termination, which is worth more than the minimum amounts under the ESA.
Employment lawyers spend the majority of their time working on wrongful dismissal cases. Having an experienced employment lawyer familiar with the intricacies of wrongful dismissal cases can make (or break) your case. Wrongful dismissal cases are not always straightforward, and include countless steps and issues, including the complexities of determining reasonable severance, whether an employer had cause to dismiss, human rights violations, and rendering a termination clause void and unenforceable.
At Levitt LLP, we specialize in guiding employees and employers alike through the complexities of all aspects of employment law. Our experienced team is committed to helping you understand any questions that you may have about your obligations as an employer or as an employee. Contact us for a consultation and take the first step in understanding your legal rights and obligations in any employment law matter.
Please note that this article is only to be used as general information and it does not constitute legal advice. We encourage employees and employers to contact Levitt LLP directly to understand their legal rights better and seek legal advice for their questions.
