PM41261516
Emplo
y
ment Law Today
Canadian
www.employmentlawtoday.com
Accommodation of difficult employee a
hard pill to swallow pg. 4
Harassment complaints, poor interpersonal
relationships made return-to-work program
challenging, but progress was being made
before dismissal
Hotel worker's stay extended after
firing for medical leave dishonesty
New Brunwick worker had second job while on
medical leave, but firing came too quickly
BY JEFFREY R. SMITH
A NEW BRUNSWICK hotel worker who contin-
ued to work a second job while on medical leave
and didn't tell her employer has been reinstated
by an arbitrator with a two-month suspension in
place of dismissal.
Wanita Mallory, 58, started working for Rodd
Moncton, a hotel operator in Moncton, N.B., in
July 2014. Initially, she worked in the hotel's laundry
and moved to performing daily tasks required in
the hotel's line operations. Eventually, she became
the hotel's full-time breakfast attendant, working
alongside a part-time attendant managing the ho-
tel's daily complimentary breakfast for its guests.
Over a few years of employment at the hotel,
Mallory developed a few physical limitations, but
she continued to work full-time. She had a good re-
lationship with the hotel's general manager, but she
developed concerns over working conditions at the
hotel. She raised these issues at union meetings, but
when her hours of work started to decrease in late
2017 and her supervisor started treating her unfair-
ly, she believed what she was saying at the meetings
A big breakup
Ontario worker lost job title, authority, privileges after romantic split
with company owner; more than $190,000 in damages
BY JEFFREY R. SMITH
THE END of a romantic relationship can be
messy for both sides. It can get even messier
when one person in the relationship owns
the company for which the other person
works. But regardless of how the personal
relationship ends, ending the employment
relationship has a number of legal obliga-
tions that can't be avoided.
Alissa Churchill, 39, was hired by Aero
Auction Sales — a Barrie, Ont.-based
company specializing in vehicle and heavy
equipment sales through auctions — in July
2009. Her position was that of vice-presi-
dent of administration, which involved
overseeing and supervising employees
through the company's bank accounts, hu-
man resources and payroll functions.
At the time of Churchill's hire by Aero,
she was in a common law relationship with
Aero's owner, Michael Duns, and the com-
November 6, 2019
Mischaracterizing working
relationships continues to cost
employers pg. 3
7 factors determine relationship,
regardless of the official agreement
between employer and worker
WORKER on page 6 »
CREDIT:
BAONA
ISTOCK
REASONABLE on page 7 »
with Leah Schatz
Ask the Expert pg. 2
Employee's refusal to take
safety training
