Employment Law Tracker - September 2020

Potential Future Breach of ESA Renders Provision Void

In Rutledge v Canaan Construction Inc., the Ontario Superior Court of Justice determined that even if an employee is exempt from certain minimum standards under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 ("ESA") a termination clause may be deemed void if there is even the possibility that it may violate the ESA in the future. This recent decision joins a growing body of case law from the Ontario courts which makes clear that even hypothetical deviations from the required statutory minimums are likely to be fatal to a contractual termination provision's enforceability and will expose an employer to liability for common law reasonable notice. » Read More