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EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
Pension Benefits while on Pregnancy Leave
The courts and arbitrators have made a distinction between an employee's entitlement to receive "compensatory" benefits (such as wages) and "non-compensatory" benefits (such as accumulation of seniority) while off work on a statutory leave of absence. Generally speaking, it is not discriminatory for an employer to discontinue compensatory benefits during these leaves because the benefits are seen to be earned in exchange for work performed. Non-compensatory benefits, on the other hand, must be continued. Fred Bickford and Shelley Trewin examine the ruling of an arbitrator in Ontario, who assessed whether an employee on pregnancy leave should be allowed to accrue service for the purposes of determining eligibility to participate in a pension plan.
EMPLOYMENT TERMINATION
An Update on Salary Continuance
Providing an employee with salary continuance rather than a lump-sum payment at the time of dismissal can be an attractive option to an employer, particularly in the case of a long-term employee who would otherwise be entitled to a significant period of notice but who is likely to have no difficulty finding another job. However, as Susan Barber explains, because of some recent cases from British Columbia, it has become a "hot topic" whether employers are still permitted to take advantage of this option. Specifically, the author notes that while a series of cases in the early 1990s endorsed the salary continuance option, recent cases have called this into question.
DISCRIMINATION
Racial Discrimination in the Workplace
A recent human rights case from Nova Scotia concerned the allegations of a Mi'kmaq woman that her employer's use of the word "kemosabe" in the workplace amounted to discrimination on the basis of race. Her complaint was denied by a Board of Inquiry and by the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal. As William Hayter explains, the Court of Appeal applied the legal standard used in sexual harassment/poisoned environment cases to assess whether comments such as these are discriminatory. Given that the Supreme Court of Canada has recently denied a further appeal of this case, employers, employees and human rights tribunals can now look to the Court of Appeal's ruling for a framework and some guidelines with which to approach racist or potentially racist comments in the workplace. |
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