Atlantic Employers’ Counsel – Spring 2015
Hello! We are very pleased to be the new Atlantic Employers’ Counsel (AEC) editors. We look forward to bringing you what we hope you will find to be interesting articles and we welcome your feedback.
To celebrate our inaugural edition, we thought probationary employees was an appropriate theme. And who better to write on that topic than four of Stewart McKelvey’s up-and-coming associates (with thanks as well to articled clerk, soon-to-join-us-as-an-associate in the Labour & Employment group, Dante Manna).
Avoiding the “long-haul” begins with the agreement
It all starts with the agreement.
Probationary periods are a useful tool for employers assessing the suitability of new hires.
Generally, a valid agreement setting out a probationary period allows the employer to dismiss an employee during the probationary period without meeting the high threshold of just cause.
Well, what did you expect? Setting expectations for probationary employees
Hiring employees on a probationary basis allows employers to ensure they hire the right people. While implementing trial periods for new employees has many advantages, employers should be aware of key rules applying to probationary employees to avoid potential costly liability should the relationship not work out.
Is the duty to accommodate less onerous for probationary employees? Possibly…
A recent case from the Alberta Court of Appeal considered this question in the context of an employee with Asperger’s syndrome working at a call centre but, unfortunately, did not provide a definitive answer. Although the decision suggests that the duty to accommodate can be less onerous for probationary and short service employees, the threshold for establishing undue hardship is onerous and is always judged on a case by case basis.
How to dismiss so it’s not amiss – termination guidelines for probationary employees
Dismissing a short-term probationary employee can be a risky proposition, with expensive consequences if not done properly. Where just cause exists, the employee can be terminated with minimal risk that compensation will be awarded. However, in probationary employment, the decision to terminate is not always based on just cause. Instead it may be based on other considerations such as whether certain performance goals were met. This article focuses on how to terminate without just cause.
Archive
By Peter McLellan, QC In the 1970s the issue for employers was long hair and sideburns. In the 1980’s it was earrings for men. Today the employer’s concerns are with tattoos and facial piercings. What are…
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Read MoreBy Jennifer Taylor – Research Lawyer Nova Scotia’s Cyber-safety Act1 is no more, after a successful Charterchallenge to the legislation. In Crouch v Snell, 2015 NSSC 340, Justice McDougall of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia found the entire statute—enacted in…
Read MoreBy Jennifer Taylor Introduction: Did Ontario have jurisdiction? Arguments about access to justice are not enough to oust the general principles of jurisdiction, according to a recent Ontario case. In Forsythe v Westfall, 2015 ONCA 810, the…
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Read MoreSeveral important changes in the tax rules that apply to charitable gifts will be coming into effect in the near future. Some of the new rules take effect in 2016, and others will apply beginning…
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