Constructive dismissal occurs when an employer substantially
alters, without the employee's consent, an essential term of
the employee's contract of employment. This can give rise to
litigation and financial liability for an employer. However, for a
unilateral change by an employer to constitute constructive
dismissal, the change must be a fundamental one going to the root
of the contract. The ultimate question is whether a reasonable
person in the same situation as the employee would have felt that
the essential terms of the contract were being substantially
changed.
In a recent case, a municipal employee with 20 years of
seniority was transferred to a new position in the same location,
requiring the same qualifications, and remunerated at the same pay
grade. What changed was the nature of the job itself. Originally,
the employee's work involved "hands-on computer
engineering applications" to address traffic control issues in
real-time. She had a number of people
