Does an unpredictable event that temporarily eliminates an
employer's business amount to frustration of the employment
contract? The British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision in
Aldergrove Duty Free Shop Ltd. v. MacCallum, 2024 BCCA 28
says it does not.
Background
The employer, a small, family-owned business, operates a
duty-free shop on the Canadian side of the border with the United
States. Ninety-nine percent of their customers are holiday and
vacation travelers. The employee, in her late 70s, worked for the
employer as a retail sales clerk since 2010.
In March 2020, the land border between Canada and the United
States was closed to all non-essential travellers because of the
COVID-19 pandemic. The employer temporarily closed its doors and
temporarily laid off its employees. Under the B.C. Employment
Standards Act, the layoffs of the employer's employees
became permanent effective August 30, 2020.
