Major Employee Attitude Not Enough For Just Cause

In X-treme Packaging Services Inc. v Savoie, 2025 ABESAB 13, an employer was not able to establish just cause for dismissal of an employee who had made a disrespectful and insubordinate comment, and had prior discipline.

This case is important because it illustrates how important an employer's disciplinary practices can be to its ability to assert just cause for dismissal.

Facts

The following were some of the pertinent facts summarized by the Alberta Labour Relations Board, sitting as appeal body:

• The complainant employee was employed at X-treme Packaging Services Inc. for 6 months as a labourer, was promoted, and then worked over a year as a press operator prior to his termination of employment, purportedly for just cause