Canadian HR Reporter is the national journal of human resource management. It features the latest workplace news, HR best practices, employment law commentary and tools and tips for employers to get the most out of their workforce.
Issue link: https://digital.hrreporter.com/i/617115
53 Vendors Vendors Vendors Vendors BENEFITS — CONSULTANTS RWAM Insurance Administrators 49 Industrial Dr� Elmira, ON N3B 3B1 (519) 669-1631 Fax: (519) 669-1923 Special Benefits Insurance Services 366 Bay St�, 7th Fl� Toronto, ON M5H 4B2 (416) 601-0429 Fax: (416) 601-0308 SSQ Life Insurance Company Inc. 2525 Laurier Blvd� P�O� Box 10500, Station Sainte-Foy Quebec City, QC G1V 4H6 (888) 400-0023 Stevenson and Hunt Insurance Brokers Limited 250 York St�, Unit 400 London, ON N6A 6K2 (519) 646-5800 Fax: (519) 646-5815 Synergy Benefits Consulting Inc. 80 King St�, Suite 801 St� Catharines, ON L2R 7G1 (905) 641-0028 Fax: (905) 641-0056 T.I. Hull Benefit Consultants Corp. 181 Bay St�, Suite 4200 BCE Place, P�O� Box 841 Toronto, ON M5J 2T3 (416) 865-0131 Fax: (416) 865-0896 The Benefits Edge Insurance Services Limited 820 - 6459 Cedar Springs Rd� Burlington, ON L0P 1G0 (905) 632-8634 Fax: (905) 315-8324 TK Benefits Inc. 880 Lady Ellen Pl�, Suite 100 Ottawa, ON K1Z 5L9 (613) 728-7030 Fax: (613) 728-6005 TRG Benefits & Pensions 1055 West Georgia St�, Suite 1800 P�O� Box 11119, Royal Centre Vancouver, BC V6E 3P3 (604) 714-4442 Fax: (604) 714-4401 TRG Group Benefits & Pensions Inc. 1177 W� Hastings St�, Suite 800 Vancouver, BC V6E 2K3 (604) 714-4400 Fax: (604) 714-4401 Western Compensation & Benefits Consultants 1188 W� Georgia St�, Suite 2000 Vancouver, BC V6E 4A2 (604) 683-9155 Fax: (604) 687-2315 WorldatWork Global Headquarters 14040 N� Northsight Blvd� Scottsdale, AZ 85260-3601 (480) 951-9191 Fax: (480) 483-8352 Emplo y ment Law Today Canad a ian www.employmentlawtoday.com Subscribe today! $299 per year! Order No.20612 • 22 issues of Canadian Employment Law Today • Full access to Canadian Employment Law Today's website, www.employmentlawtoday.com featuring and searchable archive of past articles • Access to Canadian Employment Law Today's multi media centre- the home for employment videos, webinars and blogs • Bi-weekly email alerts to keep subscribers up-to- date on breaking news and notifications of new issues Start your subscription and receive: Call toll free 1-800-387-5164, in Toronto Online at www.employmentlawtoday.com/subscribe Email carswell.customerrelations@thomsonreuters.com Access a sample issue now at: bitly.com/CELT-FreePreview PM40065782 Emplo y ment Law Today Canad ad a ian www.employmentlawtoday.com March 18, 2015 Dependent contractors awarded 26 months' notice of termination Cabinet-making couple started o as employees then became subcontractors but employer still essentially controlled their business BY JEFFREY R. SMITH AN ONTARIO couple who were depen- dent contractors with three decades of ser- vice have been awarded almost $200,000 in wrongful dismissal damages and costs by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. Lawrence Keenan, 63, was hired by Canac Kitchens — a company in the business of delivering and installing kitchen cabinets, vanities and countertops — in 1976 as an installer of kitchen cabinets. In 1983, he be- came a foreman supervising other install- ers. Also in 1983 his wife Marilyn, 61, joined Canac as a foreman after previously assisting her husband on an informal basis. In October 1987, Canac informed the Keenans they would no longer be employ- ees. Instead, they would be independent contractors while performing the same work for Canac. e Keenans would responsible for paying installers, who would provide their own trucks and pick up materials from Canac. Canac would set the rates paid to installers and pay the Keenans money from which the installers would be paid. Canac would also pay the Keenans on a piecework basis for each box or unit installed. Canac recommended the Keenans set up an incorporated company, as they would be responsible for their own employment in- surance, Canada Pension Plan and income tax deductions. ey would also be respon- sible for any damage to cabinets and their own insurance. e Keenans set up a business called Keenan Cabinetry — though it was never in- corporated — and Canac drafted a subcon- tractor agreement that stated "as a subcon- tractor of Canac, you will devote full-time and attention to the business of Canac and shall report to Canac's installation manager." Job duties continued under subcontractor agreement e Keenans' job duties and income re- mained essentially the same under the subcontractor agreement, so they signed it without seeking legal advice. Canac issued them each a record of employment that said the reason for issuance was "quit." e Keenans worked exclusively for Canac until 2007, with the exception of a few weekend jobs that were not invoiced through Keenan Cabinetry. In 2007, work from Canac slowed down, so they did some work for a competitor of Canac. e Keen- ans thought their agreement prevented Jail nurse faced abuse, OHS risk from manager pg. 3 Jail employees shocked at manager's breach of policy with Brian Kenny CREDIT: WAVEBREAKMEDIA/SHUTTERSTOCK Church employee loses faith in employer pg. 4 Poor relationship with church leadership leads to health and safety, harassment complaints and dismissal WORKERS on page 6 » ASK AN EXPERT pg. 2 Medical exemption from uniform shoes Employee afraid of change not constructively dismissed: Arbitrator AN ONTARIO employee was not con- structively dismissed when she left for an- other job after her employer proposed a new assistant and future review of her employ- ment terms, an arbitrator has ruled. Crystal Rabethge, 35, was the manager of a Sirens clothing store in Kitchener, Ont., owned and operated by YM Incorporated. In 2011, Rabethge gave notice to the compa- ny that she had accepted an o er of employ- ment with a competitor for a higher salary. Sirens responded by o ering to match that salary if she stayed with Sirens. Rabethge ac- cepted and stayed on to manage the store. Rabethge signed a new employment con- tract on July 5, 2011, that stipulated a sal- ary of $35,800 plus monthly bonuses and a guarantee that her income would be "a min- imum of $45,000 for each year provided you are still employed at YM Incorporated." e monthly bonuses were payable if Rabethge was employed at the end of each month. In August 2013, Rabethge met with the district manager and the vice-president of operations. ey indicated the appear- ance of the store needed improvement and EMPLOYEE LEFT on page 7 »