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Labour & employment law column by Robert Smithson

EMPLOYEES ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THEFT

Another tragic death involving a gas station attendant occurred recently in Ontario. For B.C. residents, it was a grim reminder of events in 2008 which led to our so-called “Grant’s Law” (requiring pre-payment for gas purchases).

The C.B.C. reported that Jayesh Prajapati, 44, was killed after a motorist filled up his SUV with $112 worth of gas and allegedly left the Shell station without paying. Prajapati was run over and killed by the fleeing motorist.

DIPLOMATIC DEVELOPMENTS RECALL CANADIAN CAPER

The announcement of the suspension of diplomatic relations with Iran and the expulsion of Iranian diplomats from Canada, last week, brought to mind the so-called “Canadian Caper”. That 1979 rescue effort ranks, in my lifetime at least, as one of the great, inspiring stories of workplace heroism.

WORKING HARD, OR HARDLY WORKING?

The summer Olympics are finally over and the 4-year period of hand-wringing over Canadian medal results has just begun. Amidst all the drama, the achievements, the failures, and the medals of various colours, the aspect of London 2012 which stood out in my mind was the controversy over athletes not trying hard enough.

The whole saga kicked off with eight doubles badminton players being disqualified and sent home. Their offence was intentionally losing a match.

WHO IS AN EMPLOYEE IN B.C.?

A while back, I wrote about a B.C. Human Rights Tribunal decision which determined that a partner in a law firm amounts to an employee for the purposes of B.C.’s Human Rights Code.  Our Court of Appeal has reversed that finding, injecting some practicality to what had become a technical and esoteric debate.

The Human Rights Tribunal had determined that an equity partner at the law firm of Fasken Martineau Dumoulin LLP could be considered to be employed for the purposes of the Human Rights Code.  Among other things, the Code protects employees from discrimination in employment.

THE DEATH KNELL FOR HUMAN RESOURCES?

A recent article in the Globe and Mail’s careers section caused me to do a triple-take. It quoted studies indicating that the more an organization seeks to be undiscriminating and merit-based in its employment practices, the less likely it is to achieve those objectives.

If that’s truly the case, one can only wonder how human resources professionals will feel about the security of their jobs. After all, introducing policies and procedures aimed at limiting discrimination and emphasizing merit is a significant aspect of what they do.

AVOIDING THE TERM CONTRACT TRAP

It’s the time of year when many employers are filling out their seasonal workforce. The mistake of routinely hiring employees on “one year” contracts is a trap into which these employers routinely stumble.

If used properly, so-called limited-term contracts can be a useful and effective tool for structuring employment relationships. In my experience, however, there are three common outcomes from the use of limited-term employment contracts and two of them are undesirable.

EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: A VERY SENSITIVE SUBJECT

Our federal government’s recent introduction of proposed reforms to the employment insurance system has prompted the expected furor from both sides of the debate. As Finance Minister Jim Flaherty astutely noted last week, employment insurance is “a very sensitive subject” in this country.

THINK TWICE BEFORE HIRING YOUR SPOUSE

In smaller businesses, such as professional offices, achieving the right mix of boss and staff is critical. Losing that sometimes hard-won balance can have rather disastrous results.

Professionals – doctors, lawyers, and dentists for example – are particularly reliant upon their staff. They work closely together and many professionals would say that finding the right staff, and keeping them happy, is the most important factor in the success of the business.

THE WAR IS OVER (AND YOU’RE FIRED)!

In the history of questionable dismissals of employees, the saga of journalist Edward Kennedy has to rank near the top of the list. Over 65 years after his firing, his former employer has apologized.

Kennedy was a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press news agency during World War II. He was stationed in liberated France in 1945.

His claim to fame was that he broke possibly the biggest news story of the 20th century, Germany’s surrender to the Allied forces. Unfortunately for him, that scoop was also his temporary downfall.

IDENTIFYING THE THREE TYPES OF TRUTH

A couple of recent cases involving allegations of misconduct by teachers got me thinking about how little the truth really matters in our legal system. Well, the real truth, that is.

It seems to me that, when it comes to adjudication forums, there are three types of truth. There is the actual truth, there is the version of the truth which each competing party asserts, and there is the truth as the adjudicator ultimately determines it.

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