Fixed-Term Employment Defeats Wrongful Dismissal Claim

In Steele v. The Corporation of the City of Barrie, 2022 ONSC 7245, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice provided guidance on how courts will determine whether an employment relationship is truly fixed-term such that it disqualifies the employee from employment standards benefits.

Whether an employment relationship is fixed-term or indefinite can have a drastic effect on an employee's entitlements under the Employment Standards Act, 2000. Certain employment standards protections afforded to employees, including notice of termination (or pay in lieu), are generally unavailable to valid fixed-term agreements. This is because such an employee was effectively given notice at the onset of their fixed-term employment. Such agreements are therefore heavily scrutinized by courts to determine whether the underlying employment relationship is more accurately described as an indefinite-term one, with all the employer obligations that follow such a finding. Courts