Human rights law update – News from the front
New human rights procedures came into effect in Ontario in mid-2008, and we’re beginning to see the results of the changes. Session Two at First Reference’s Ontario Employment Law Conference, June 2, 2010, will look at the following topics…
Adam Gorley
2 minutes read
May 14, 2010
Employment law update – Learn the latest!
This year’s Ontario Employment Law Conference co-sponsored by First Reference and Stringer Brisbin Humphrey on June 2, 2010, will touch on several topics of importance to employers. The first topic on the Agenda will provide employers with guidance on a significant court decision and changes in court procedures affecting the termination process. Specifically it should help employers minimize claims arising from the termination process.
Marie-Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor
The new age of workplace gossip – TMI!
I’ve discussed workplace gossip here before, and what bosses can do to prevent it or at least reduce the potential harm, but there are a couple of hyper-modern developments that I didn’t get into: reality television and the Internet. These two things have created a culture of “sharing”, for lack of a better word, that encourages people at play or work to divulge the most mundane and private details of their lives to others—the kind of information that one previously might only have shared with family or best friends.
Adam Gorley
Slaw: Canadian Human Rights Commission’s controversial ‘anti-hate’ policy
The Canadian Human Rights Commission recently posted a policy on its website concerning how it interprets and applies section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA) when it receives an inquiry or complaint. The purpose of section 13 of the Act is to balance Canadians’ rights to equality and freedom of expression with respect to hate messages, as protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The parliamentary record indicates that section 13 was initially included in the legislation to address activities of individuals and groups who used the telephone system to disseminate hate messages. In December 2001, parliament amended the CHRA by adding section 13(2), which makes it clear that Internet hate messages come under the jurisdiction of the commission.
Read the whole article on Slaw.ca.
Marie-Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor
Workplace violence and harassment policies – to integrate or not?
Ontario’s upcoming occupational health and safety violence and harassment rules require that employers implement violence and harassment prevention policies. Manitoba and Saskatchewan also require OHS policies for both workplace hazards. When drafting or updating your violence/harassment policies to meet legal OHS requirements (e.g., Ontario’s Bill 168), are you creating individual policies or integrating your policies? That was the question asked in the most recent HRinfodesk poll. According to the results of the poll, out of 155 responses, 84 (~54%) respondents intend to comply to the letter of the law, while 71 (~46%) respondents have taken another approach by integrating both policies into one.
Marie-Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor
Employees with disabilities – accommodation strategies (Part I)
Accommodating employees with disabilities to the point of undue hardship under human rights legislation can be a complicated task. It’s important to make sure the accommodation process goes smoothly and the employee can focus on working as efficiently as possible, but employers may not be sure about what kinds of questions to ask disabled employees in order to meet their needs.
Christina Catenacci, BA, LLB, LLM, PhD
Sleeping on the Job? What do you have to do to get fired in Canada, anyway?
Employees can be dismissed for cause, and therefore without notice or severance, when their misconduct or performance is so egregious that the employment relationship has been irreparably harmed. In assessing this issue, employers must adopt a contextual approach, which considers not only the misconduct in question, but the entirety of the employment relationship.
Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation
Disclosing persons with a history of violence
The Ontario Occupational Health and safety Act violence and harassment prevention provisions (Bill 168) require employers to provide information, including personal information, about a person with a history of violent behaviour if:
Marie-Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor
Addressing domestic violence in the workplace – some insights
The Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act violence and harassment prevention provisions (Bill 168) require an employer to take all reasonable precautions in the circumstances for the protection of all employees if a domestic violence situation is likely to expose a worker to physical injury in the workplace and the employer becomes aware or ought reasonably to be aware of the situation.
But what does that imply? The law states the requirement but provides little guidance on what employers need to do to prevent domestic violence from spilling into the workplace. In addition, many employers are not comfortable addressing a situation of such a personal nature. It is not an easy task to complete and might never be.
Marie-Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor
