Many of us have gone to the all-too-familiar place where an employee returns their revised employment contract. In most cases, it`s just that the employee has forgotten it or doesn`t realize they have to sign it because they`re actively working in the new role. This means that when reviewing an employee`s compensation, it may be a good time to review your employment contracts and, if necessary, create new contracts that may include the necessary changes. With the benefit of the state`s job preservation program and the unnecessary requirement to have workers` consent, this has calmed people`s minds and perhaps reduced some court cases, but the risks are still there! The High Court held that the employee was in favour of the new general terms and conditions and the restrictions on dismissal, although he did not sign and return them because it could be implied that he had accepted them, since he had applied for private health insurance coverage which was only offered to him under the new conditions given to him. Whether or not you are an employee or an employee, you have the right not to be discriminated against (directly or indirectly) on the basis of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, gender change, pregnancy or maternity, race and religion or belief. You and your employer can agree on almost all the explicit conditions you like, but neither of you can accept a condition that puts you in a worse situation than the law (the law). In other words, any employment contract must respect your legal rights. If you need advice on contracts or labour matters, visit our website or call us in an emergency at 1800 128 268, 24/7. 1 Get to know your employee: Your next step is to talk to the employee. Make sure your meeting is private. Explain that the company is required to submit the employment contract.
Ask the employee if they have any questions or concerns about the contract. Answer any questions the employee may have that you may have in the documentation. If you don`t know the answer, tell the employee you don`t know instead of giving the wrong answer and explain that you`ll get back to them as soon as you know. You own an advertising agency. You have 2 marketers who have been with you since you opened the agency 12 years ago. Due to increasing competition, your business suffers. You come to the conclusion that you need to fire one of the marketers. You pay your marketers $20.00 an hour, or $3,200.00 a month. According to the Employment Standards Code, you must pay him 2 months` salary = $6,400.00. This is not an easy sum for someone whose business is in trouble.
However, $6,400.00 will not satisfy your employee, so they will sue you. After hearing 2 days of testimony, a judge concludes that due to your employee`s limited education (Grade 12) and age (38), as well as limited prospects of finding a new job, you must notify them 8 months in advance. Since that employee is already gone, you will now need to raise an additional $25,600.00. $25,600.00 = Common Law Notice c. $6,400.00 Limited Contract Notice = $19,200.00 saved. You will notice that in my example, I used a situation where the company had to downsize due to economic pressures. The reason for someone`s dismissal is only important if you cancel for cause. Termination of a person for another reason, e.B. “fit”, “not the right person for the job” or even economic pressure leads to dismissal without notice. Their economic reality is irrelevant. There is no legal obligation to have the employment contract or written declaration of information signed. Once the candidate has accepted the position, there is a legally binding employment contract between the employer and the candidate.
The law does not require witnesses or a signature to make it valid. What really matters is that there is an offer, an acceptance, a consideration and the intention to establish legal relationships. As always, it is important to seek advice in labour law when it comes to employment contracts. Most of the time, an agreement or compromise can be reached through a grievance process, but the challenges become when the employee does not want to agree and a court case begins. This written declaration should ideally be signed and dated by both parties. Make a decision about the importance of having a contract signed. If you give them a contract, let them know that it will come into effect in 4 weeks. Establish obligations, such as . B respecting privacy and confidentiality, in a signed contract is the best way for an employer in such a scenario: a simple email, phone call or personal reminder can solve the problem, and the contract is returned and signed. You are also protected from victimization because you have filed a complaint of discrimination or testified in a complaint from another employee, as stated in the case of “FW Farnsworth Ltd and another against Lacy and others”. After the employee received a promotion in 2009, in which he received a new contract with revised dismissal restrictions, and additional benefits such as access to the company`s contribution pension and private health insurance. Following his resignation in 2012 to work for a direct competitor, a lawsuit was initiated against Mr.
Lacy to enforce the restrictions after termination – Mr. Lacy argued that they could not be enforced because he had not signed and accepted them. Do they refuse to sign their contract or have they simply not done so? Then cancel for no reason. If you resign without giving reasons, you must inform the employee appropriately. The cancellation will be calculated in good time (i.e. 2 weeks in advance). However, most employers prefer to pay only the notice period rather than give an employee the required notice period. All provinces in Canada have laws that set the minimum amount of notice that an employer must provide. I reproduce the dismissal provisions of the Manitoba Employment Standards Code below. You can find them here in the Employment Standards Code. For example, if you fire an employee with 7 years of employment, you must terminate it for 6 weeks.
But this is just the beginning. In any case, it is preferable to have the contract signed and dated and returned to you. There are two main reasons for this. Even if you do, it is recommended that you give the employee a printed copy or an electronic version that clearly shows their signature. Before we get into the cost of liability, we need to look at termination. You have two options for firing someone. First of all, with just cause. If an employee is rebellious, scandalous (assuming the incidents are serious enough), engages in illegal activities, etc., you can resign with good reason.
Determining if an incident is serious enough to end with a reason can be a bit tricky, so you should consult a lawyer if you`re considering this option. If you don`t do things right and the employee sues you, you`re probably responsible for severance pay. The judge may conclude that even if you had a reason to take disciplinary action, that reason was not sufficient to justify the dismissal. The judge may decide that the employee is entitled to dismissal (more on this below). If you have to fire someone for cause, that employee is clearly a burden on the company. You must cancel. But what do you do with employees who just don`t fit in? Or what if you have to downsize? The contract should ensure that it is the employee`s responsibility to keep abreast of policy changes, but it is always recommended that employees be informed when policies are changed. In the event that an employee does not return their contract when it is continued, or if the employee requests to review the contract, it is recommended that the issuing manager or HR member agree to an informal meeting or request a meeting with the employee.
(These meetings can be held by phone or, if possible, video call to be more personal and, in some cases, reduce employee tension and frustration when you can see each other.) If you do not have a written employment contract that describes the notice period or , the common law applies. Judges establish the common law. Over the years, lawyers have negotiated employment contracts and various rules have evolved. There is no clear formula, but judges now consider things like years of service, the employee`s age (if the employee is older, they may need more time to find a new job = more notice), the employee`s training (if the employee has a high school diploma, it may be harder to find work = more layoffs). Ultimately, an employee with 10 years of service may be entitled to a notice period of between 6 months and one year. Let that work on you for a few moments. You read that right. Although the Employment Standards Code provides for a maximum notice period of 8 weeks, this is simply the minimum amount. A judge could quadruple that amount. There is sometimes a misconception that just because you have worked in a certain way for a long period of time, there is an implicit term that gives you the right to work that way. While terms may be implicit over time, it`s not that easy for them to do so. .
