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  • April 30, 2020
  • Photo: "Coronavirus Research" by danielfoster437 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
In March, 2020, concerns began to mount over covid-19. We heard that certain group gatherings resulted in outbreaks of the virus. Some of these events involved health care professionals.  An Alberta outbreak was traced to an Edmonton curling bonspiel. More than...

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  • April 24, 2020
  • Photo: "Canadian Flag" by Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine is licensed under CC0 1.0
Most employees fall under provincial employment standards legislation. However, if your employer is federally regulated, the Canada Labour Code (CLC) applies. Federally regulated businesses include banks, telecommunication companies, and transportation companies that cross provincial boundaries.   The CLC now includes a...

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  • April 15, 2020
  • Photo: "Corona Virus" by danielfoster437 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
British Columbia’s Employment Standards Act (ESA) has been amended in response to concerns regarding covid-19.  The amendments are now in effect. They include two new job protected unpaid leaves of absence: a covid-19 related leave; and an unpaid illness or injury leave. BC’s...

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  • April 9, 2020
  • Photo: courtesy of creative commons, Cemetery 011
“Moot” is commonly used to mean “hypothetical.”  Whether a case is legally "moot" or not is a narrower question than common usage may suggest.  It is a question which may, depending on the case, require some analysis. The framework for determining whether...

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  • March 28, 2020
  • Photo: "response" is licensed under CC0 1.0
Liquor and cannabis stores remain open.   The list of essential services seems to be about a mile long. Amid all the concern about coronavirus, covid-19, even dollar stores are open. Lawyers are considered an “essential service.”  By definition, this includes the judiciary. Why,...

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  • March 12, 2020
  • Photo: "The view at random times" by jon_a_ross is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
Have you ever encountered a situation in which you knew an organization was being unfair, but you weren’t sure what to do about it? It is possible that a violation of the administrative law duty of procedural fairness may have occurred.  This is...

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  • March 6, 2020
  • Photo: "Wahi Sawaal | Short Film" by Abhey Singh, jaikishan patel is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
As International Women’s Day approaches, what better time to introduce legislative amendments to assist employees impacted by “domestic or sexual violence.” For simplicity, I will refer to this as domestic abuse.  If implemented, the amendments will also apply to employees...

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  • February 27, 2020
  • Photo: courtesy of pexels, Nathan Cowley
Sometimes tensions rise in the workplace and someone storms out the door in the heat of the moment. Other times, an employee repeatedly fails to show up for work, without providing an explanation. Or, an employer makes the workplace so intolerable for...

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