About Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
Enforcing the right to disconnect
The inclusion of a right to disconnect in the ESA was initially considered as a positive step forward for employees in Ontario. The reality is that this “right” was a procedural guarantee in the ESA. This article will focus on the provisions of the ESA regarding a “right to disconnect,” and their enforcement.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
5 minutes read
January 3, 2025 
Ontario overtime exemption: Managers
In Ontario, managers are exempt from overtime rules, but only if they fall within a fairly narrow exemption for managers and supervisors. That exemption is not nearly as broad as many people believe, which means that many employees who are considered to be managers by their employer are actually entitled to overtime pay.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
Employers, it’s time to wake up: Nepotism in Canadian workplaces
Although nepotism may not be illegal per se, it poses serious concerns including a bad workplace culture at best and the creation of a toxic work environment at worst, poor employee morale, bad business practices and decision-making, conflicts of interest, and damage to an employer’s reputation.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
Is requesting a layoff a resignation?
Employers often make the mistake of thinking that they can put an employee on a temporary layoff, so long as they respect the applicable employment standards provisions. To their dismay, they are then served with a constructive dismissal claim.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
When is failure to attend work job abandonment?
Proceeding as though the employee has quit could create significant liability for an employer, both in terms of the employee’s legal entitlements and the employer’s reputation. Instead, an employer must…
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
$10,000 in punitive damages awarded for breach of ESA and employer’s reprehensible conduct
In a recent Ontario case, the court ordered the employer to pay a short-service employee two months of pay in lieu of notice plus $10,000 in punitive damages as punishment for conduct that was found to be “a marked departure from ordinary standards of decent behaviour.”
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
Court decision on termination clause and punitive damages award
The recent Court decision in Wilds v. 1959612 Ontario Inc. addresses the enforceability of a termination clause contained in the employment contract, as well as the availability of punitive damages.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
How much is enough? Court of Appeal for Ontario considers consideration
What happens when an employer wants a current employee to sign a new employment agreement? The employer must give the employee something in exchange for their signature to make the agreement binding, but how much is enough?
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
You’re fired: Welcome back!
When litigation can’t solve the issue of how much severance, the employer has a potent weapon in its arsenal that many overlook – either offering a job, or finding a job offer for the employee.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation