By Jeffrey Percival and Kate Bresner, Pallett Valo LLP
The US concept of “at-will employment”, which allows for termination of employment for any reason without notice (so long as it is not for an illegal purpose), does not exist in Canada. In Canada, reasonable notice of termination is an implied term in all employment agreements. In order to terminate an employment relationship without cause, an employer must provide appropriate notice or pay in lieu.
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By Dr Angelika Baumhof and Cathrin Kirchbach, Jakoby Dr Baumhof
The Federal Labour Court (BAG) has ruled that in the absence of a contractual provision on the period of notice in service contracts with managing directors, the statutory provision of § 621 of the German Civil Code (BGB) applies. The decision is surprising, as the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has so far assumed an analogous application of § 622 BGB (only applicable to employment contracts) in order to protect minor shareholding and third-party managing directors.
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By Maria Tassou, Pallett Valo LLP
In order to protect workers in federally regulated workplaces, the federal government made changes to the Canada Labour Code regarding workplace harassment and violence prevention, which came into effect on 01 January 2021. The new Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations (SOR/2020-130) (the Regulations) require federally regulated employers to implement certain policies and procedures to prevent and respond to occurrences of workplace violence and harassment.
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By Nichola Evans and Melissa Munday, Ward Hadaway
A lacuna has arisen regarding reciprocity of judgments following the UK’s departure from the EU. Given that there is no impact arising from Brexit on English arbitral awards, with their recognition and enforcement independently secured by the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958 (“New York Convention”), there may be greater focus on arbitration and an increase in dispute resolution clauses providing for arbitration in commercial contracts.
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By Christine Hasiotis, UnitedLex
Today's legal ecosystem has created a unique opportunity for law firms to partner with legal service and technology providers to collaborate on optimizing client experience, driving greater overall value for clients, increasing operating effciency, and reducing law firm working capital investment demands. UnitedLex offers a full suite of data management, legal services, and technology to support lawyers, accountants, experts, and consultants on litigation, investigations, and regulatory matters. We support you on matters that are too complex, bet the company matters when you need to scale or simply execute quickly.
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By Kelly Holden, DBL Law
In today’s largely remote work environment, companies face additional legal challenges in hiring and retaining top talent. Many hiring managers and supervisors have adjusted their application processes, with many conducting interviews and extending offers remotely.
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By Liam A. Entwistle, Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP
We are all coming to terms with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to the economic impact on employers, the arrangement of their workplaces in the future, and whether the sudden imposition of remote working has changed the make-up of their workplaces for good. It also applies to those many thousands of people who were unfortunate enough to contract COVID-19.
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By Jeffrey L. R. Kenens, TeekensKarstens advocaten notarissen
In case of company closure due to retirement or death of the employer, small employers may apply for compensation of the paid statutory severance at the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV) as of 01 January 2021.
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By Marty Rabinovitch, Devry Smith Frank LLP
Termination clauses are often relied upon by Canadian employers to define an employee’s entitlement to notice when their employment is terminated without cause (i.e., without a valid legal reason). These clauses are often drafted to limit an employee’s entitlement to their minimum statutory entitlements, which are significantly less than their common law entitlement. If the termination clause is unenforceable, then the common law will apply.
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By Kelly Holden, DBL Law
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released a publication entitled “Guidance on Returning to Work” on 17 June 2020. The publication offers guidelines on flexible workplaces, remote work, hygiene, social distancing, and other measures addressed by individual states and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
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