PM40065782
Emplo
y
ment Law Today
Canad ad a ian
www.employmentlawtoday.com
September 26, 2018
Offi ce closure, dismissal following
pregnancy announcement coincidental
Timing of decision soon after worker's pregnancy reveal raised eyebrows,
but evidence showed declining revenues and no place for worker in other offi ce
BY JEFFREY R. SMITH
A BRITISH COLUMBIA worker has lost
her discrimination complaint when the of-
fi ce where she worked was closed and her
employment terminated two months after
she announced she was pregnant.
Skeena Rent-A-Car is a car rental service
based primarily in Terrace, B.C., with offi ces
in Terrace and at the airport shared by Ter-
race and Kitimat, B.C. In February 2011, the
company set up an offi ce in Kitimat to tap
into the demand for increased vehicle rent-
als there due to a new policy by Rio Tinto,
a large company in Kitimat, associated with
a modernization project that was underway.
Rio Tinto's policy was to transport employ-
ees from the airport to Kitimat in company-
owned buses. Because of this policy during
the modernization project, Rio Tinto em-
ployees were unable to rent vehicles at the
airport and instead had to do so in Kitimat.
Skeena hired Sierra Crockart in Au-
gust 2014 to be the manager of the Kitimat
branch. She also occasionally worked at the
airport offi ce. In 2014 and 2015, revenues for
the Kitimat branch were high, so Crockart
Worker fi red after 6 months
gets 6 months' pay in lieu of notice
Employer's promises weren't part of employment agreement,
but they helped induce worker to leave secure employment
BY JEFFREY R. SMITH
A BRITISH COLUMBIA worker who was
persuaded to leave his old job for a new posi-
tion but was fi red six months later has been
awarded six months' pay in lieu of notice by
the B.C. Supreme Court.
James Greenlees, 44, was an outside sales
representative for a landscaping construc-
tion company in Langley, B.C., when he
was contacted in January 2017 by the sales
manager for Starline Windows, a designer
and builder of windows for residential prop-
erties in Surrey, B.C. ough Greenlees
wasn't looking to leave his current position
and didn't have experience selling windows,
he met with Starline's sales manager at Star-
line's offi ce.
e sales manager told Greenlees his "vi-
sion for growth for the company and op-
portunities for the future" and off ered him
Worker discourages prospective
co-worker, gets fi red pg. 3
Employer felt worker's negative
comments causing job candidate
to decline offer was breach of trust
Soliciting trouble with
restrictive covenants pg. 4
Employees and new employers
can get in trouble for breaching
non-solicitation agreements
PROMISES on page 6 »
REVENUES
on page 7 »
CREDIT:
ZLIKOVEC/SHUTTERSTOCK
with Leah Schatz
Ask the Expert pg. 2
Disclosure of medications
in safety sensitive workplace
