Labour & Employment Law Highlights From 2017

As usual, 2017 was a year filled with interesting labour and employment law developments. What follows are a few of the highlights from a Manitoba perspective.

Further clarification/confusion related to the jurisdiction of labour arbitrators and human rights commissions: In 2017, the Manitoba Court of Appeal released its decision in Northern Regional Health Authority and Manitoba Human Rights Commission.

The genesis of this case is long and complex. The employment of a unionized employee had been terminated for reasons which were connected to alcohol addiction (a protected disability under The Human Rights Code) and the employee filed a complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission. After a hearing, the Commission held that the employer had failed in its duty to accommodate, reinstated the employee, and granted a substantial damage award.