by Brian Smeenk
Editor - Northern Exposure

Like the hockey gag line about going to a fight only to have a hockey game break out, last week Northern Exposure was the site of shock and awe, and a good legal debate broke out.

There was a lot of interest in our post last week about a discrimination case against McDonalds by a British Columbia employee who wasn’t able to wash her hands frequently. We were surprised by all the attention it got. Some people might think employment law is dull, but sometimes it can really touch a nerve with people. It certainly inspired a heated debate online.

One person’s reaction was that Canadian human rights tribunals are full of “post modern ideologues”; others were afraid that restaurant food in Canada would never be safe again; still others defended the decision because McDonalds really had not tried to accommodate the employee at work to any real degree.

I contributed to the blog debate with some sympathy for both the critics and the tribunal. The critics may be right about unrealistic, ideological tribunal decisions in many cases; but in this case I think the tribunal got it right based on how poorly McDonald’s handled the accommodation needs of the employee. You can check out the whole debate on our blog. We also hope you’ll comment about our other posts and let us know what you think.

How will your business respond to Family Day?

by Brian P. Smeenk

A new statutory holiday, Family Day, has been declared in the province of Ontario. It will be celebrated on February 18. In subsequent years, it will fall on the third Monday of each February.

Employers should begin considering how their organization will respond. In particular, employers should begin reviewing existing employment contracts and collective agreements to determine whether they will treat Family Day as an additional holiday for employees.

Many employers already provide employees with more contractual public holiday rights and benefits than required by the minimum employment standards laws of Ontario – the Employment Standards Act (ESA). For example, a number of employment contracts and collective agreements provide “floater days” in addition to the original eight statutory holidays.

Employers should be aware that under the ESA, if the provisions of an employment contract or collective agreement provide a “greater right or benefit” than those provided by the ESA for the same subject matter, the contractual provisions apply and the ESA doesn’t apply. (more…)

Welcome to the introductory issue of Northern Exposure. This new e-zine and blog offered by McCarthy Tetrault LLP, Canada’s leading employment law firm, and M. Lee Smith Publishers 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, the blog and e-zine will include practical Employer’s Tips and Q&As 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, Northern Exposure editor