If you have been terminated in Burlington, Ontario it is important to know that you are entitled to a minimum amount of termination or severance pay that is set out by the Ministry of Labor, as well as pay in lieu of notice. If you have been fired, you should no doubt have your termination papers reviewed by a qualified Burlington wrongful dismissal lawyer or employment lawyer who will make sure that you are treated fairly and getting the termination compensation that you deserve.
Wrongful dismissal is when an employer terminates an employee without providing that employee with proper reasonable notice. The primary purpose of reasonable notice is to give you an opportunity and a reasonable period of time to search for another job – but the period of notice is not necessarily equivalent to the period required to find a new job. The obligation of your employer is to give reasonable notice. If your employer does not do so, the employer can be exposed to damages for the loss of salary and benefits that you would have received during the period of reasonable notice.
Proper notice of termination is an “implied” term of the employment contract but payment in lieu of notice is not – meaning that your employer has to give you enough notice of your termination to allow you to look for work. Your employer can also terminate your employment and pay you money in lieu of notice. If your employer does not provide you notice, nor does your employer pay you in lieu, you will have a case for wrongful dismissal. Payment in lieu of notice is seen by the Courts as merely an “attempt” to compensate for the employer’s breach of the contract of employment, not as an attempt to comply with an implied term of the contract of employment.
The determination of how much reasonable notice to provide to you is a very fact-specific exercise and is calculated in accordance with the numerous factors. If you go to Court to argue your case, a trial judge is entitled to consider the period of reasonable notice owing to you on the basis of the facts before the court, rather than blindly following cases with different facts. The facts could be your experience, your age, your length of service, your job duties, whether or not you were a professional, ect. Nevertheless, the court should strive to ensure that notice periods which are inherently individual are consistent with existing cases that have been decided before yours.
Sometimes an employer’s obligation to provide reasonable notice can be replaced by providing pay in lieu of reasonable notice. Payment in lieu of notice is technically not an alternative means of lawfully terminating employment. Payment of damages is technically the remedy for failure to provide reasonable notice.
We can fully explain the variables and your rights that pertain to how your notice should be calculated. There is no precise rule of thumb for calculating compensation; the Ontario guidelines are used to estimate a fair amount. Some variables that are taken into consideration are:
Consult with a wrongful dismissal lawyer in Burlington before signing any agreement. You may be entitled to more compensation than the minimum required by the Ontario Employment Standards Act. Any service you have given to the company should be rewarded appropriately.
If you believe you have been wrongfully dismissed it is important that you have your termination papers reviewed by a qualified Burlington wrongful dismissal lawyers. We have been representing employees in Burlington since 2003. We can explain your rights in a free consultation at no obligation to you. You can reach us at (905) 333-8888 or speak to our live operator who will help you set up an appointment.
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