Decision-Makers Punish Employers For Egregious Conduct

Edited by Jennifer M. Fantini

Awards of punitive damages in Canadian employment law cases are not very common. Courts are usually circumspect in granting such damages. Two recent cases, however, have awarded substantial amounts of punitive damages - in excess of half a million dollars - to plaintiff employees. Most recently, a BC jury awarded $572,000 in punitive damages to a former employee. These cases provide a useful indicator of the circumstances and extent to which courts and juries, where applicable, may award punitive damages in the employment context.

$572,000 in Punitive Damages Awarded to Employee by Jury

In Higgenson v. Babine Forest Products Ltd.¹, a wrongful dismissal suit, a BC jury awarded the plaintiff, a 34-year managerial employee, a global amount of approximately $809,000. This global amount consisted of approximately $572,000 in punitive damages and $236,000 in compensatory damages.