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ARTICLE · 29 APRIL 2014

Without Cause Termination Is Not Necessarily ‘Unjust’ Under The Canada Labour Code

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A recent decision has ruled that a valid employment contract can be used as a shield against a claim of unjust dismissal pursuant to the Canada Labour Code.

CanadaEmployment and HR
Andrew Cogswell
Andrew Cogswell
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A recent decision has ruled that a valid employment contract can be used as a shield against a claim of unjust dismissal pursuant to the Canada Labour Code (the "Code").  The issue in this case centered on an adjudicator's jurisdiction when the parties have entered into a valid and enforceable employment contract allowing for 'without cause' termination.

The Code permits a dismissed employee to file a complaint, pursuant to s. 240 of the Code, with the Ministry of Labour if they believe their dismissal was 'unjust'. This protection is available to all federally regulated workplaces as long as the employee is not subject to a collective agreement and has completed 12 consecutive months of continuous employment prior to the dismissal. The minister is granted the authority to appoint an adjudicator to resolve the complaint. The adjudicator is granted a fairly wide authority on remedy pursuant to s. 242(4):

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