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Since the amendment of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) in 2022, Ontario employers with 25 or more employees as of Jan 1 are legally required to implement a written “disconnecting from work” policy. On paper, it sounds like a big shift. In reality, these policies do little for an already flexible or metrics-driven workforce that has moved beyond the traditional Mon-Fri or 9-5 dynamic. 

If your business already operates with a flexible, remote or asynchronous model, you might be wondering: Do we still need a formal disconnect policy? Continue Reading Your Workplace May Be Flexible, But Your Disconnecting Policy Obligations Are Not

When we meet with employers regarding a needed change or a tough new situation at work, we often find that mention of constructive dismissal can really catch employers off guard. When it comes to constructive dismissal, there’s no termination meeting or official decision by the employer, but the law can still treat the situation as if the employee was fired.

Substantial changes to a job, or a work environment that becomes so bad, the employee feels they have no reasonable choice but to leave, can trigger a constructive dismissal. Ultimately, constructive dismissal creates the same obligations for the employer as a termination, including paying termination pay, severance, and possibly damages to the employee. Continue Reading Oops, You Might’ve Fired Them: A Constructive Dismissal Reality Check

The Case of the Comma

Remember the online meme comparing “Let’s eat grandma!” with “Let’s eat, grandma!”? Well, here we have the legal version of it.

A judge in Nova Scotia recently invalidated part of an employment contract because it didn’t have a comma. Is that nitpicking, you ask? 

Not really, it’s actually important. Here’s why.

The part of the contract in question was the termination clause. Basically, a termination clause dictates what an employee is entitled to when they’re terminated. 

The case is named Brocklehurst v. Micco Companies Limited, 2025 NSSC 192.Continue Reading “Let’s Eat Grandma” – How Commas Can Ruin or Make Your Case (and What To Do About It!)

When it comes to taking time off work in Ontario, many employees (and employers) are confused about the difference between vacation time and vacation pay. Both are mandated by the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), but they are distinct entitlements with different purposes and rules.Continue Reading Vacation Math: Why Time ≠ Pay Under Ontario’s ESA

Unlimited Vacation sounds great in theory – employees take time when they need it, the administrative burden of ‘counting days’ is alleviated, the ‘use it or lose it’ drama disappears,  and employers are able to avoid the “helicopter parenting” style of monitoring an employee’s vacation entitlements. 

The Unlimited Vacation perk has become increasingly popular with the rise of burnout recognition, a greater understanding of the value of ‘mental health days’,  and a less rigid take on the typical 9 to 5. It’s trendy too: In 2024, 26% of tech companies offered Unlimited Vacation (versus 15% total market)1

Before you start deleting any vacation request forms from your HR drive, consider this: in Ontario (and across Canada), Unlimited Vacation policies may create more problems than they solve, especially if they’re not drafted carefully or maintained properly. Continue Reading Unlimited Vacation: Dream or Drama?

Happy Canada Day! As we celebrate everything that makes Canada both great and unique (personally as food lovers we’d like to mention poutine and butter tarts) we can’t help (because we’re lawyers) but reflect on what makes Canadian employment law so uniquely…Canadian.

Whether you’re running a business in Canada, or supporting HR for one, it helps to understand how our workplace laws differ from other countries, especially our neighbors to the south, and how new rules like updates to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act (“ESA”) effective July 1, 2025) continue to shape our employer obligations.

Let’s break it down.Continue Reading Oh Canada, Oh Compliance: What Employers Need to Know About Our Unique Canadian Workplace Laws

The AI revolution has begun

AI is changing how work is done, and people are taking notice.

According to a recent Gallup poll, 22% of employees in the U.S. are concerned that they will lose their jobs to generative AI. Four years ago, it was 15%.

Globally, AI is expected to transform the workforce by 2050. Experts estimate that up to 60% of current jobs will require significant adaptation due to AI, and Goldman Sachs predicts that up to 50% of jobs could be fully automated by 2045.Continue Reading How to Future-Proof Your Workforce for the AI Revolution

Termination clauses are a cornerstone of any employment agreement. A well-drafted termination clause can limit an employee’s entitlements on dismissal to the minimum standards under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), helping avoid the higher costs of common law reasonable notice.

But here is the catch: even the most carefully written clause can fail. Ontario courts are strict about wording and employer conduct. Clauses that are short, clear, and directly reference the ESA tend to stand up over time. However, one misstep in how a termination clause, or the termination itself, is handled can unravel the entire clause. Continue Reading Ontario Termination Clauses: What Really Matters

The Ontario Superior Court recently reminded employers that employment agreements aren’t optional – they’re enforceable.

In Timmins v. Artisan Cells, 2025 CanLII 2387, the employer ignored its own termination provisions and tried to use severance as leverage for a release. It backfired big time.Continue Reading Don’t Use Severance as Leverage: Courts are Not Impressed

The world of work has evolved rapidly in the last few years, and many workplace policies may not have kept pace.

Outdated handbooks and contracts not only risk legal non-compliance but also impact employee morale, productivity, and retention. Below are five common HR policy areas that may require a modern refresh.Continue Reading The Top 5 Outdated HR Policies That May Need a 2025 Refresh