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August 27, 2013
Jessica Bungay
Employment & Labour

Can Employers Reduce Retiree Benefits?

A recent Ontario Superior Court of Justice decision may have implications for pension reform a cross the country, including in New Brunswick. In O’Neill v General Motors of Canada, 2013 ONSC 4654 (“O’Neill”), the employer, General Motors of Canada (“GM”), substantially reduced the health care and life insurance benefits of former salaried and executive employees after they had retired. The central issue was whether GM was entitled to reduce the benefits of retirees.

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July 30, 2013
Jessica Bungay
Employment & Labour

The High Cost of Age Discrimination

Cowling v. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Alberta, 2012 AHRC 12, offers an important lesson to employers: terminating an employee on the basis of age comes with a hefty price tag. In this case, the employee was not only reinstated, but was also awarded five years of past wages in addition to general damages of $15,000!

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June 25, 2013
Jessica Bungay
Employment & Labour

Managers Can Be Held Personally Liable For Preventing Accommodations in...

Managers who impede the accommodation of a disabled employee may attract personal liability. In May, a decision was released, Cassidy v. Emergency Health Services Commission and another (No. 5), 2013 BCHRT 116, where the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal set an interesting precedent. The Tribunal found not only the employer, British Columbia Ambulance Service (“BCAS”), liable in failing to accommodate a disabled employee, but also the manager for his role in preventing accommodations.

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December 6, 2012
Jessica Bungay P. Alanna Taylor, KC
Employment & Labour

Employment & Labour Regional Newsletter December 2012

With the holidays only a few weeks away, many employers have already turned their thoughts toward their annual holiday party. However, without sufficient safe guards in place, the holiday party can be transformed from the social event of the year to a litigation nightmare.

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June 22, 2012
Jessica Bungay
Employment & Labour

Pension Benefits Act – Shared Risk Pension Plans “The Dutch...

The New Brunswick Government is in the process of amending the Pension Benefits Act (“Act”) to legally permit a new pension model. That pension model is a hybrid between a defined benefit plan and a defined contribution plan. It is referred to as a “Shared Risk Pension Plan”. This new model is based upon a Dutch model which has remained unscathed during the “dot.com” crash and the current recession.

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March 15, 2012
Jessica Bungay P. Alanna Taylor, KC
Employment & Labour

The Lurking Danger of Abruptly Ending Disability Benefits Upon Termination

While most employers are familiar with the concept of reasonable notice of termination, or payment in lieu thereof, few employers truly understand the potential liability they are exposed to if an employee is terminated without cause and subsequently becomes disabled during the reasonable notice period. This issue was recently highlighted by the Ontario Court of Appeal in Brito v. Canac Kitchens, 2012 ONCA 61.

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