Editor's note: Welcome to Northern Exposure
Welcome to the introductory issue of Northern Exposure. This monthly e-zine offered by McCarthy Tetrault LLP, Canada's leading employment law firm, and M. Lee Smith Publishers LLP highlights important developments in Canadian labor and employment law and will be of special interest to companies with operations in Canada.
In addition to news articles, each e-zine will include a practical Employer's Tip and a Q&A to help you better understand Canadian employment law.
We hope you find this new information source useful, and we look forward to hearing your comments.
-- Brian Smeenk, Northen Exposure editor
NEWS
Collective bargaining - now it's constitutionally protected
In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of Canada has decided collective bargaining is a right protected in the national constitution.
The court's extension of "freedom of association" under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to include a right to collective bargaining is a reversal of previous Supreme Court decisions.
News
Canada's top court signals tougher days ahead on accessibility
By Tara McPhail
Canadian human rights laws require employers to accommodate employees and customers with disabilities up to a point. What point? The point at which the accommodation would constitute "undue hardship" on the employer. But what makes an undue hardship? A recent Supreme Court of Canada decision appears to set a high threshold for the undue hardship defense.
The court upheld a federal regulatory order forcing Canada's primary passenger railway operator, VIA Rail, to spend tens of millions of dollars to provide better access to passengers in wheelchairs.
The decision (Council of Canadians with Disabilities v. VIA Rail Canada Inc.) has a major impact on transport services including airlines and interprovincial bus companies. More broadly, the decision also influences the way Canadian courts and human rights tribunals are going to approach the issue of how far employers must go to accommodate employees and customers with disabilities.
EMPLOYER'S TIP
Your employees in Canada have the right to refuse tasks that may endanger them or others. Health and safety laws spell out not only your obligations but also what your employees must do when refusing work, so it's important for you to understand how to handle such situations. Here are some tips to help you deal with work refusals:
- Make sure you have a written health and safety policy that sets out the procedure to follow when someone refuses work.
- Make sure employees know how to communicate a work refusal, and establish procedures for investigating work refusals.
Q&A
When a company holds a social outing for employees and alcohol is served, what are the legal risks? How can potential liability be minimized?
Parties and other social events provide employers with an opportunity to reward employees and let them interact with coworkers outside of the office. Unfortunately, they also create some risk because you could be liable for the actions of your employees and guests who, for example, drink too much, harass guests or other employees, and become a danger to themselves and others.
What can you do to minimize the risk? Here are some tips:
- Hold your event outside of work hours and off site, a place such as a restaurant or banquet center that you hire for the event.
- Have a company representative inspect the site and make sure that the staff is properly trained to identify and deal with patrons who become intoxicated.
