Employer Liability In The Administration Of Benefit Plans

Employers are facing increasing claims as a result of their failure to provide employee benefits and/or their negligence in the handling of benefit issues.

Summarized below are some of the areas where liability may arise.

1. Obligation to Extend Benefit Coverage Upon Termination of Employment

Absent an express term to the contrary, most contracts of employment contain an implied provision that they can only be terminated for just cause or, in the absence of just cause, upon reasonable notice. The amount of reasonable notice that must be given varies from employee to employee as it is based upon factors which affect the employee's ability to find comparable employment such as the employee's age, length of service, level of responsibility and salary. (See Bardal v. The Globe & Mail, [1960] O.W.N. 253).