A recent summary trial decision from the B.C. Supreme Court
confirms that claims arising from breaches of the B.C.
Employment Standards Act (ESA) cannot be pursued in a civil
action and denies the application of the tort of intimidation to a
threatened breach of an employment contract.
In Belanger v. Tsetsaut Ventures Ltd. 2019 BCSC 560, a
group of employees brought a civil action against their employer
for damages flowing from breaches of the ESA and damages arising
from the tort of intimidation. The employer brought the summary
trial application to dismiss the action.
The employer is a mining support services firm that requires
employees to travel to and work in remote locations in B.C. All the
employees worked at the underground Brucejack Mine in northwestern
B.C. As the mine is far from any nearby town or city, the employees
operated under 28-day work cycles, consisting of: a travel day to
the mine, 14 days of 12-hour shifts and a travel day from the
