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Lindsay is a licensed paralegal with a background in criminal law and sexual assault and personal injury civil litigation. She brings compassion, understanding and a client-centered approach to the legal process, and strives to make what may seem like an intimidating legal process as easy as possible for our employer and employee clients.

If you’ve ever explored SpringLaw’s Teams’ Bios, it’s no secret that we are huge pet lovers over here! And, being a virtual law firm, we are lucky enough to work with our furry friends daily. For workplaces that are in-office or hybrid, we have seen various workplaces try to replicate this joy by introducing pet-friendly policies to allow employees to bring their pets to work. For animal lovers, the benefits of bringing your pet to work days may be obvious including improved morale, reduced stress, and even increased productivity. However, it’s not all rainbows and butterflies for all employees and if you’re thinking about rolling out a Pet Policy at your workplace, there are some very important legal factors to consider before doing so.  

Continue Reading Bring your Pet-to-Work Policies – The Do’s, the Don’ts, and the Cautionary Notes 

In this current work climate, it’s all about work-life balance. Employees know what they want and if it’s not being offered at one job, they will search for it elsewhere. This has employers scrambling to offer higher salaries, greater benefits, hybrid or remote work options, or even four-day work weeks to keep up with the competitive job market. All these perks seem fine and dandy to attract employees but if you’re considering a shift to a four-day workweek, it’s important to know the legal implications this could impose.

Continue Reading Thinking of Implementing a Four-Day Workweek? Be Mindful of the Potential Legal Implications

Learn about pay equity obligations for Ontario employers under the Pay Equity Act, including equal pay for work of equal value, applicable exemptions, and consequences for non-compliance.
Continue Reading Equal Pay for Equal Work – Everything You Need to Know About Pay Equity in Your Workplace

An Employer’s Guide to Managing Employees with Progressive Discipline

If you’re an employer, you know that, whether you have 10 employees or 100, there is an art to managing your workforce and a well-oiled human resource process is necessary for a well-run business. You invest a lot of time and money into your employees and, understandably, expect attendance, productivity, and proper work conduct in return that will benefit your business as a whole. 

If you have employees who aren’t meeting the expectations of their role, it’s important not to have a knee-jerk reaction. Instead, progressive discipline gives both the employer and employee the opportunity to get on the same page and provides the employee with a roadmap for improvement.

Continue Reading An Employer’s Guide to Managing Employees with Progressive Discipline

Rehiring a Past Employee

In our recent blog, we addressed boomerang employees and, specifically, the HR issues surrounding them. We know you’ve been eagerly awaiting part two where we promised to address the employment law implications of rehiring a past employee, so here we go! Below we will do a deep dive into the various legal issues that may arise when hiring boomerang employees. 

Continue Reading Boomerang Employees Part 2 – The Employment Law Implications of Rehiring a Past Employee

As we all know, the pandemic has had lasting effects on the employment world. Some of the major trends we saw were mass layoffs, terminations, downsizing, and of course, the infamous move to remote work. Another trend we saw across the board was mass resignations as the pandemic led to many employees reevaluating their career paths. With the pandemic trends seemingly in the past, an anticipated recession on the horizon, and things getting back to “normal”, the newest trend we are seeing in employment is rehiring and a surge in boomerang employees. 
Continue Reading Boomerang Employees – What Employers Need to Know about Rehiring Past Employees

How to Avoid Constructive DismissalsNow, more than ever, businesses are modifying and evolving in order to keep up with changes in social and industry trends, work environments, office locations, and the economy.  Generally, your business evolving is a good thing and means you’re doing well but major changes to the organization of your business can also lead to constructive dismissals. As an employer, you need to be aware of how to make changes at work, without forcing employees out. 

What is Constructive Dismissal? 

It’s no secret that hiring and firing are pretty common and well-known practices while running a business. What is less talked about are constructive dismissals. A constructive dismissal happens when a unilateral change made to an employee’s contract or overall employment relationship is so significant that it basically breaks the contract.  A change leading to a constructive dismissal claim must be fundamental and done without the employee’s agreement, leaving the employee feeling like their only option is to resign and sue for breaking that contract. 
Continue Reading How to Avoid Constructive Dismissals

As of October 1, 2022, minimum wage rates in Ontario have increased. The general minimum wage for provincially regulated employees has increased by 50 cents from $15.00 to $15.50 per hour. This raise represents a 3.33% rise in response to rising costs and inflation. 

Generally, minimum wage requirements apply to all employees, whether they are full-time, part-time, or hourly. There are special minimum wage requirements for specific categories such as students, liquor servers, hunting, fishing and wilderness guides, and home workers. The Employment Standards Act (ESA) Guide nicely outlines all minimum wage requirements here

For employees whose pay is based wholly or partly on commission, their pay must amount to at least the minimum wage for each hour the employee has worked. 
Continue Reading The Ontario Minimum Wage Has Increased as of October 1, 2022