Wrongful Dismissal Lawyer

Unjust dismissal is a special remedy from the Canada Labour Code that may be available if you are both a (a) federally regulated employee and (b) non-unionized employee who has been wrongfully dismissed. Common industries include airlines, banks, and railways. The point is to protect you from arbitrary if wrongful dismissal occurs. Your employer either has to have a valid reason to terminate you or there must be a discontinuance of the job function.

Unjust dismissal is a powerful remedy that is not available in every employment situation. If you believe your employer has terminated you without good reason, don’t delay and contact Ball Professional Corporation. Our experts can advise you on whether you should proceed with adjudication under the Canada Labour Code or you should begin a wrongful dismissal lawsuit.

It is a serious situation if your employer has fired you for “just cause”. When an employer terminates an employee for “just cause”, they are claiming they have a legitimate reason to terminate them. Basically, they need to show some proof of “gross misconduct”. This is a big deal because an employee who is legitimately fired for “just cause” is not entitled to any termination or a severance package or pay upon job termination Common behaviors that might count as gross misconduct include theft, fraud and violence.

If you disagree with your former employer’s reasons and think you are being treated or wrongfully dismissed unfairly, contact the professionals at Ball Professional Corporation. We can help you to challenge the termination if your work behavior did not warrant being terminated for “just cause”, the capital punishment of employment law.

Everyone deserves a workplace free of harassment, including sexual harassment. Unfortunately, sexual harassment is still extremely common in the workplace. Sexual harassment can range from verbal comments to touching to sexual assault. If you have experienced any form of sexual harassment, you should speak to us about your options. Employers are supposed to develop policies to protect workers against sexual harassment, but oftentimes the policies are either not strong enough or they are ignored completely.

If you have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, contact Ball Professional Corporation for assistance. We can help you file a Human Rights Complaint or pursue a legal action or a civil lawsuit for a tort like assault or constructive or wrongful dismissal case. You have options and we can help you choose the best one that compensates you for the harassment you suffered and that lets you move forward in your job and in your life.

Employers often try to include termination clauses in their employment agreements. If a termination clause is enforceable, it will limit the amount of “reasonable notice” and compensation that you receive if you are terminated. Many employees accept these termination clauses at face value, which comes back to bite them if they are ever fired. Look out for your best interests and consult with Ball Professional Corporation before you make the same mistake!

If a termination clause is not enforceable, you may be entitled to the proper notice period that is calculated according to the common law. This amount is usually much higher. Whether you are signing a new contract and you want advice on the enforceability of a termination clause, or you have been terminated and you want to help fight the termination clause after the fact, all our experienced lawyers are here to help.

In Ontario, most employees can be terminated “without cause”. This means that for some reason or another, your employer has decided to let you go. When this happens, your employee has to provide you with the appropriate amount of “notice” or “pay in lieu of notice.” For example, you could receive 4 weeks of “notice” or 4 weeks of “pay in lieu of notice”, so you don’t actually need to keep coming into work for those 4 weeks. The amount depends on many factors, and it’s important because it will also affect any “severance” that you may receive.

Everyone is entitled to the minimum notice provided by the Employment Standards Act. Knowing this, employers often try to limit the amount of reasonable notice to this minimum, so they do not need to provide the common law notice period, which can be much higher. You may be entitled to more than you are told, and we at Ball Professional Corporation can help you tell. Contact us if you are signing an employment agreement, where we can review any termination clause, or if you have been recently terminated and want to make sure you are being properly compensated.

If you are signing an employment contract, you may find that it contains a Non-Competition or Non-Solicitation clause. An employer may even want you to sign a separate Non-Competition or Non-Solicitation Agreement. This is quite common, but that doesn’t mean you should take it lightly! Non-competition clauses or agreements prevent employees from working with an employer’s competitor for a specific period of time. In other words, it may prevent you from finding work after you have moved on. This can be a real problem that causes lots of stress, especially if you work in a specialized field with few job opportunities that are physically close to you.

Non-solicitation clauses or agreements are similar, but they try to prevent departing employees from poaching former customers, clients, suppliers or coworkers. These types of agreements are legal if they are “reasonable”. To decide whether an agreement is reasonable, courts will consider various factors: the length of the restriction, how much notice was, the geographic scope and whether the restriction was even clear. Contact Ball Professional Corporation for advice if you are being asked to sign a non-competition or non-solicitation agreement. It could have a big impact on your future career prospects, so please don’t hesitate to reach out.

If your former employer has significantly changed the terms or conditions of your job, you may have experienced a constructive dismissal. Examples of changes include changes to your compensation, your title, your job duties, your office location or the hours that you work. By changing some aspect of your job, the employer has essentially terminated your employment relationship with you.

Constructive dismissal is a type of wrongful dismissal. You may be eligible for damages if this happens to you, or our wrongful dismissal lawyers can help to negotiate an exit or a severance pay package that fairly reflects your situation. Don’t delay in contacting Contact Ball Professional Corporation to help determine whether you have been constructively dismissed.