Publications
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Labour shortage: answers to your questions about hiring a foreign worker
The labour shortage that affects Quebec as a whole as well as many other provinces has been a well-known issue for several years. Almost every week, we hear about companies that are forced to close their doors or limit their activities due to a lack of staff in positions of all nature. In order to (…)
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What can be done to discipline a manager? Potential solutions to keep in mind
Except in cases of “serious misconduct,” managing a manager whose performance is unsatisfactory or whose conduct is inappropriate can be delicate. Because of workplace usage and practices in Quebec, disciplinary management of managers differs from that applied to other employees of the company. (…)
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Right to Privacy: Can the Employer conduct Surveillance?
On October 3, the Court of Appeal of Quebec overturned an arbitral decision in which videotaped surveillance of an employee, suspected of activities incompatible with her alleged disability, would not be admitted into evidence. The majority of the appeal court judges concluded that the employer was (…)
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Duty of Loyalty and Non-competition: What are your Rights and Duties to Protect your Interests?
During Major Symposium in Montréal held on June 4, our colleagues Michel Desrosiers and Ariane Villemaire discussed the employees’ duty of loyalty under the Civil Code of Québec. In their presentation, they discussed the case of Xit Télécom Inc. and Madysta Constructions Ltée v. Beaumier et al.1 on (…)
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Conclusion of the Supervac 2000 saga: Dismissal is part of the inherent risks of a workplace
The Administrative Labour Tribunal (“ALT”) has ruled on the merits of the Supervac 20001 case, putting an end to the saga dealing with interpreting the part of section 326 of the Act respecting Industrial Accidents and Occupational Diseases (“AIAOD”) that concerns applications for transfer of costs (…)
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The Court of Appeal hands down its decision in the Kativik case: A second chance for poor performance employees?
Does an employer have to make reasonable efforts to reassign an employee to another suitable position before proceeding to dismissal due to poor performance? This issue has been the cause of a great jurisprudential controversy, especially since the Superior Court rendered its decision in Kativik1. (…)
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Employers: What is defamation and how do you protect your reputation?
At a time when it is becoming harder to distinguish true information from fake news and when a photo posted on social media can travel the world, companies are eager to do all they can to protect their image. What about when it’s your own employees who tarnish your company's reputation? Defamatory (…)
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3 things employers need to know about the modernization of the Canada Labour Code
As an employer, you may occasionally be required to impose disciplinary measures on problem employees. Handling such difficult situations requires an objective, planned approach so as to put an end to the misconduct and minimize the risk of litigation. To assist you in implementing your intervention (…)
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Amendments to the Pay Equity Act: What are the changes to expect?
On April 10, 2019, came into force several long-awaited amendments to the Pay Equity Act, which are mainly intended to improve the pay equity audit process. These amendments follow last year’s Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") judgment1. We discussed these judgments in a previous bulletin. It should (…)
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Disciplinary measures: What should employers do to reduce the risk of litigation?
As an employer, you may occasionally be required to impose disciplinary measures on problem employees. Handling such difficult situations requires an objective, planned approach so as to put an end to the misconduct and minimize the risk of litigation. To assist you in implementing your intervention (…)
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Personnel placement and recruitment agencies : what are the constraints of the new regulation?
In June 2018, amendments made to the Labour Standards Act ("LSA") included additional obligations and responsibilities for personnel placement agencies and temporary foreign worker recruitment agencies (the "Agencies"). However, these amendments were only supposed to come into effect on the date (…)
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“ Don't work here! ”: Employers' denigration may prove very costly
The Québec Superior Court has ordered a former employee to pay her employer $11,000 in moral and punitive damages because she posted defamatory comments about the company on Ratemyemployer.ca 1. In doing so, the employee contravened her loyalty obligations and the confidentiality and (…)
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Recruitment: Why you need to prepare your interview questions?
During a job interview, an employer cannot ask questions that involve grounds for discrimination prohibited under the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms1 (the “Charter”), including the religion, marital status, or ethnic or national origin of a candidate. Simply asking such questions could result (…)