Canadian Employment Law for US Employers: Part 2 – Contracts

This is Part 2 of our blog series for US employers with operations in Canada. Click here to read Part 1 if you haven’t already.

Canadian Employment Law for US Employers

No At-Will: Contracts are a Big Deal in Canada

One of the core employment law differences between the US and Canada is that there is no at-will employment in Canada. Ever. In fact, when Canadian judges read “at-will” in a contract, they typically set aside the contract altogether and substitute in typically far more generous common law terms.

In addition, if you do not have any contracts in place, the courts will read in implied terms. This is because all Canadian employment relationships are governed by a contract under our law, whether expressly in an agreement or implied based on common law.

If an employer does not roll out a contract with their employees, the judge will imply terms and conditions that in most cases are more generous than anything the employer would have provided.

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Addressing Conflicts in the Unionized Workplace: The Grievance Process

This is the second entry in our blog that focuses on the topic of labour law. In case you missed it, the first entry provided a primer on managing a unionized workplace and you can find it here.

In this blog, we provide some practical tips and tricks for unionized employers to navigate the grievance process. Conflicts in a unionized workplace are almost always addressed through the grievance process. What constitutes a grievance is typically defined by the collective agreement. A grievance is typically defined as any dispute, difference or complaint regarding the application, interpretation or alleged violation of the collective agreement. The parties to the grievance, that is the parties who are entitled to file and respond to a grievance are usually also outlined by the collective agreement. Beyond defining a grievance, the collective agreement will typically also outline the grievance process.

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