We congratulate Jack Graham, QC, a Partner in our Halifax office, on his nomination as President of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers (CACE).
CACE provides governments, courts, labour boards and other administrative tribunals with input with respect to policy and legislative reform from the perspective of lawyers acting on behalf of employers in Canada and speaks on labour and employment law matters from the perspective of management. CACE includes representation from all of the provinces and some of the leading labour lawyers in the country, with over 800 members including management-side lawyers in Canada as well as in-house counsel and affiliate members in the United States.
Oct 1, 2024
Effective September 1, 2024, amendments to the Nova Scotia Workers’ Compensation Act allow workers to be compensated for gradual onset stress.…
Jul 4, 2024
The duty to accommodate is a legal duty human rights laws impose on employers – but it’s not written down or described in human rights…
Jul 4, 2024
When an employee seeks accommodation of a disability, either physical or mental, the duty to accommodate is nuanced by both the employer’s…
Jun 27, 2024
Canadian businesses need foreign workers to address labour and skills shortages. Yet the Canadian government is taking steps to reduce the…
Jun 26, 2024
Effective October 1, 2024, public and private Prince Edward Island employees will be entitled to up to three paid sick days per calendar year.…
May 30, 2024
Using written employment contracts is a good start – but it doesn’t mean they will be enforceable. Courts interpret employment contracts to…
Apr 11, 2024
Provincial minimum wage rates continue to climb in Canada. Provincial minimum wage legislation across Canada, including in the Atlantic Canadian…
Mar 28, 2024
Many international companies set up shop in Canada through branch offices or subsidiaries. Many of these companies are looking to staff up their…
Mar 27, 2024
In its February 2024 decision in Dufault v. The Corporation of the Township of Ignace, the Ontario Superior Court voided yet another contractual…
Feb 29, 2024
It used to be that an employee dismissal resulted in a single wrongful dismissal claim (if anything) against the employer. These days, an…
Jan 22, 2024
While 2023’s legal learnings will leave a lasting impression on employers, with the arrival of 2024 the time is right to look ahead - and get…
Dec 11, 2023
As 2023 draws to a close, the time is right to take a look in the rearview mirror and reflect on the key labour and employment law learnings…
Oct 13, 2023
Updated January 10, 2024. On September 12, 2023, the New Brunswick Court of Kings Bench sentenced a front-line supervisor who “did nothing…
Sep 20, 2023
You’ve experienced a workplace accident that’s resulted in serious injury to, or worse the death of, an employee. Do you need legal counsel…
Jun 23, 2023
Effective June 23, 2023, Section 45(1.1) of the Competition Act makes it a criminal offence for all unaffiliated employers to enter into…
Jun 22, 2023
Employers understand the risk that departing employees will take sensitive information, compete for customers and solicit other employees.…
May 18, 2023
Employees used to gather around the water cooler to share views on controversial issues, discuss co-workers and complain about their employer.…
May 1, 2023
While the December 2021 Bill C-223, An Act to Develop a National Framework for a Guaranteed Livable Basic Income seems to have died in both…
Apr 27, 2023
The benefits to employees, and often to employers, of remote work has made it a staple of today’s workplace. But the move to remote work…
Apr 3, 2023
Updated April 16, 2024. On February 15, 2023, an adjudicator ordered an employer to pay what could be the “largest employment…
Mar 29, 2023
Immigration continues to play a key role in addressing Canada’s labour and skills shortage. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada…
Mar 27, 2023
Updated May 8, 2024. On July 1, 2023, the Nova Scotia Medical Certificates for Employee Absence Act took effect. The Act regulates workplace…
Mar 23, 2023
NOTE: On December 19, 2023, the N.B. Court of Kings Bench upheld the adjudicator’s decision. On February 15, 2023, a New Brunswick…
Feb 27, 2023
2022 left important lasting implications for employers. With 2023 here, it’s time to look ahead to key issues that will affect employers in…
Feb 23, 2023
Many Canadian employers continue to be challenged not only with hiring the right number of people, but with finding candidates with the right…
Jan 16, 2023
2022 is in the rearview mirror, but the past year left lasting implications for employers. Here’s a retrospective on five of the key 2022…
Dec 1, 2022
Updated September 5, 2024. The COVID-19 pandemic drove remote work to unprecedented heights. Employee calls for greater flexibility, and cost…
Sep 15, 2022
When Prime Minister Trudeau announced that September 19, 2022 would be a National Day of Mourning for Queen Elizabeth II, the Atlantic provinces…
Jun 23, 2022
The current labour crunch is only strengthening the business case for building a workplace that’s welcoming to diverse employee pools –…
Jun 8, 2022
Updated July 28, 2023. Effective June 1, 2022, Bill 119 amended the P.E.I. Employment Standards Act to add new pay transparency provisions.…
May 27, 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic is (arguably) gone but the pre-pandemic labour crunch - for both white and blue collar workers - is back. And there’s no…
Apr 28, 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic changed many aspects of the workplace for good – but pre-pandemic labour shortages isn’t one of them. While the…
Apr 1, 2022
While the Canada emergency response benefit (CERB) has ended, the focus on the concept of a universal or guaranteed basic income the COVID-19…
Mar 24, 2022
COVID-19 public health restrictions are coming to an end, even though the COVID-19 virus is not. Employers face reconstructing their workplace…
Mar 16, 2022
In February 2022, thousands of people led by a convoy of trucks (many displaying company logos) from across Canada congregated in Ottawa and…
Feb 24, 2022
As the Omicron wave wanes, and COVID-19 moves from pandemic to endemic, provincial governments have quickly pivoted to loosening – some even…
Feb 8, 2022
Updated June 17, 2024. On May 17, 2022, the P.E.I. Non-disclosure Agreements Act took effect, significantly restricting the use of…
Jan 27, 2022
Since COVID-19 vaccinations rolled out, employers have grappled with workplace COVID-19 vaccination policies, with little guidance from courts…
Dec 14, 2021
This publication has been updated as at January 26, 2022. Since COVID-19 vaccinations rolled out, employers have been grappling with how to…
Nov 25, 2021
As COVID-19 continues, many workplaces have morphed from remote work arrangements into hybrid arrangements for many employees. By necessity,…
Oct 28, 2021
COVID-19 forced many employers to make temporary, and even permanent, changes to the terms of employees’ employment, from scheduling and…
Oct 27, 2021
Updated July 17, 2024. On October 22, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada clarified that labour arbitrators have exclusive jurisdiction over…
Sep 21, 2021
We updated this publication on December 14, 2022. COVID-19 has been changing Canadian workplaces for 18 months. For some employees, the…
Jul 21, 2021
Updated February 9, 2024. It’s now widely accepted: it’s imperative that workplaces be both diverse and inclusive. Perhaps the most oft…
Jun 15, 2021
As of January 1, 2021, federally regulated employers (such as banks, telephone and cable systems, most federal Crown corporations,…
Jun 10, 2021
This publication has been updated as at August 27, 2021. With the COVID-19 vaccine widely available, and the COVID pandemic continuing,…
Mar 31, 2021
Close to five million Canadians who didn’t usually work from home, did so in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as public health…
Feb 16, 2021
This publication has been updated as at September 17, 2021. Employers across the country – including the federal government, some…
Jan 21, 2021
Well-drafted, properly implemented written employment contracts are a key tool to avoiding or resolving disputes during and at the end of…
Jan 20, 2021
Termination clauses, particularly “without cause” ones, are among the most important clauses to include in any employment agreement. But the…
Nov 3, 2020
This publication has been updated as at July 9, 2021. For some time, every Prince Edward Island employer has been required to comply with…
Oct 19, 2020
On October 9, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada delivered its decision in Matthews v. Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd. on whether a former employee…
Aug 12, 2020
This publication has been updated as of May 5, 2021. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led many employees to continue working from home, by…
Jul 6, 2020
On June 26, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada released Uber Technologies Inc. v. Heller, a much-awaited decision regarding the enforceability of…
May 14, 2020
This publication has been updated as of April 23, 2021. Employers that hire and employ temporary foreign workers must comply with many and…
Apr 30, 2020
While the world is still reeling from ongoing COVID-19 concerns, many provinces have announced plans to relax public health restrictions put in…
Apr 15, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting more than Canada’s domestic workforce. It’s also disrupting Canadian employers’ access to temporary…
Mar 27, 2020
The COVID-19 novel coronavirus has evolved rapidly, and so have the workplace issues employers are facing – and the questions employers were…
Mar 12, 2020
The havoc that COVID-19 (a.k.a. “novel coronavirus” or SARS-CoV-2) is wreaking around the globe – and around workplaces – is about to…
Oct 10, 2019
“Do the unexpected. Take 20 minutes out of your day, do what young people all over the world are dying to do: vote.” Rick Mercer (hailing…
Sep 6, 2019
This publication has been updated as at July 9, 2021. Violence and harassment is an unfortunate reality of society – and of the workplace.…
Jun 5, 2019
Updated September 19, 2024. Like it or not, Canadians live life online. More people - and more employees - are sharing more information,…
Apr 8, 2019
Updated September 6, 2024. Growing a business takes people. In early days, many companies have just one “employee”: the owner or founder.…
Feb 27, 2019
We updated this publication on July 9, 2021. As of April 1, 2019, employers of New Brunswick employees must comply with new occupational…
Feb 22, 2019
As of April 1, 2019, employers of New Brunswick employees must comply with new occupational health and safety law requirements specific to…
Dec 19, 2018
On December 13, 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that a third party can’t waive a person’s right to privacy or their rights under…
Dec 18, 2018
On December 18, 2018, the maximum sentence possible for impaired driving (among other things) will increase as the result of amendments to…
Dec 13, 2018
This publication has been updated as of October 15, 2020. Canada became only the second country in the world to legalize cannabis (or…
Sep 28, 2018
Immigration is one of the key solutions to looming (and current) worker shortages in Canada. But an employer that hires a foreign worker must…
Jul 16, 2018
Every parent knows that a lot can happen in 18 months. Many employers agree. The federal government’s extension of employment insurance…
Jun 27, 2018
The legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada is imminent. Employers are feeling the heat to prepare – even as they continue efforts to…
May 11, 2018
Updated July 4, 2024 It can be challenging for employers to fulfill their legal duty to accommodate an employee under human rights laws…
Apr 2, 2018
Workplace sexual harassment isn’t a new issue, nor is it limited to any one industry or country – but it's one that far more women than men…
Apr 2, 2018
Equity compensation plans are a valuable and versatile tool for many corporations, from early-stage startups to established blue-chips.…
Mar 29, 2018
We updated this publication on March 11, 2020. The #metoo and #timesup movements drove workplace sexual harassment to the front and center of…
Feb 2, 2018
Many employers use written workplace policies as a day-to-day workplace management tool; common examples include attendance management policies,…
Jan 25, 2018
Insurers have generally been leery of coverage for medical cannabis in both the health benefit claims and in cost of care claims in the personal…
Dec 8, 2017
Updated November 23, 2023. For many people, the holiday season now upon us is a fun-filled time of the year. But for employers, and…
Oct 31, 2017
Intellectual Property (IP) can be a valuable asset – even the most valuable asset – of a business. So it’s worth making sure the business…
Sep 22, 2017
Canada’s most important trading relationship is – in all likelihood – about to change: the current U.S. administration has put the future…
Sep 21, 2017
Updated February 13, 2024 An increasing number of employees are struggling to meet the challenge of the competing demands of their employers…
Jul 28, 2017
This publication has been updated as of October 14, 2020. On June 19, 2017, Bill C-16, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the…
Jul 28, 2017
Updated June 10, 2022. The rapid rise in ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) principles has increased focus on workplace diversity and…
May 19, 2017
Investigations are a vital - but difficult - part of workplace management. The value of a proper investigation can’t be overstated: it plays a…
Apr 20, 2017
On April 13, 2017, Canada’s federal government introduced legislation that, if passed into law, will legalize recreational cannabis in Canada.…
Apr 17, 2017
Recreational cannabis isn’t legal yet - but much of the associated stigma is already gone, usage is up and employers are feeling the workplace…
Feb 22, 2017
Note: On January 1, 2022, the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program became the permanent Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). Learn more at From…
Jan 31, 2017
We updated this publication on April 5, 2023. The hiring process and the termination process are equally important stages of the employment…
Dec 13, 2016
Employers’ legal duty to accommodate employees seems to most frequently come up in the context of employees with disabilities. But that duty…
Nov 22, 2016
Canada’s most important trading relationship might undergo some change with the results of the 2016 U.S. election. Facilitating cross-border…
Nov 15, 2016
The employment contract is an exchange of labour for wages and other benefits, so employers are entitled to expect regular ongoing attendance…
Oct 19, 2016
Business owners wear many hats – including employer. Your employees may be your business’s greatest asset, but they could also be your…
Sep 29, 2016
Whether someone is an employee or an independent contractor has long caused employers a degree of angst. And the recent emergence of a new…
Jul 15, 2016
On July 14, 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada decided that the “Unjust Dismissal” sections of the Canada Labour Code ensure that…
Jun 29, 2016
Employers are entitled to mandate dress codes in the workplace, and even to discipline employees who refuse to comply. But a workplace dress…
May 2, 2016
Updated October 4, 2023. Workplace accidents regularly lead to charges under occupational health and safety (OHS) law. These charges can be…
Mar 9, 2016
On January 11, 2016, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice sentenced a front-line supervisor to imprisonment for 3½ years for four counts of…
Feb 23, 2016
Employee tardiness is a significant problem for employers - and bad weather is one of the top three reasons that employees give for it according…
Feb 1, 2016
Updated April 13, 2023. A well drafted and properly implemented written employment contract can be instrumental to both avoiding or resolving…
Dec 7, 2015
Updated July 19, 2024. Violence has become an unfortunate reality in current society, and the workplace is not immune. With more people…
Aug 13, 2015
The employment contract, at its core, is an exchange of work for compensation. So at a very basic level, employers are entitled to expect…
Jun 25, 2015
Updated October 4, 2023. Most people know a company itself has occupational health and safety (OHS) obligations and risks corporate liability…
Mar 31, 2015
Updated June 24, 2021. Women make up close to half of the employed workforce: in 2019, Canadian women 15 years and older represented 47.4% of…
Feb 13, 2015
Updated January 26, 2022. With people spending so many of their waking hours at or connected to work these days, romantic relationships…
Feb 2, 2015
On January 30, 2015 the Supreme Court of Canada decided that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom’s protection for freedom of…
Jan 30, 2015
In December 2014, the Newfoundland & Labrador Supreme Court ordered an employer to pay its former employee $30,000 in moral damages to…
Dec 11, 2014
On December 11, 2014 the Supreme Court of Canada continued its trend to recognize privacy rights – and develop the law to protect them –…
Dec 5, 2014
Updated December 11, 2020. Employers host numerous events throughout the year – summer and holiday office parties, retreats, client and…
Nov 8, 2013
On November 7, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canda decided police require specific authorization in a search warrant to search the data in a…
Jul 2, 2013
On June 14, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada, Local 30 v. Irving Pulp…
Nov 28, 2012
On October 19, 2012 the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) decided a teacher criminally charged with possession of child pornography and unauthorized…
Jun 14, 2012
As any Canadian knows, July 1st – Canada Day – is the first long weekend of the summer; or is it? What about when July 1 falls on a…
Mar 1, 2012
Social media blurs line between work time and “off duty” time. Employers can, however, discipline employees who go over the line. We have 10…
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