LAW 529 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Severance Package, Adae Festival, Absenteeism

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Law and Business
• Course: LAW 529
• Professor: Clara Chapdelaine- Feliciati

Document Summary

Just cause: misconduct or incompetence so extreme that it amounts to repudiation of the employment contract; employer is no longer bound by common law obligations of reasonable notice. Just (cid:272)ause is (cid:374)ot the sa(cid:373)e as ha(cid:448)i(cid:374)g a (cid:862)good (cid:396)easo(cid:374)(cid:863) to te(cid:396)(cid:373)i(cid:374)ate the (cid:272)o(cid:374)t(cid:396)a(cid:272)t; e. g. fi(cid:374)a(cid:374)(cid:272)ial positio(cid:374) of the (cid:272)o(cid:373)pa(cid:374)(cid:455) is not considered just cause. Proportionality and the contextual approach: courts have increasingly recognized that employees have less bargaining power, especially at the time of dismissal, and have adopted several ways to protect employees: Proportionality: the idea that any sanction must be proportional to the conduct to which it relates; determines what the appropriate punishment is. Where a single instance of misconduct is relatively serious (e. g. refusing to follow instructions), courts require employers to substitute penalties less severe than dismissal. Contextual approach: courts consider the nature and seriousness of an alleged offence in the context of the overall employment relationship.