Blog for Employers
We would love to become your “go-to” law firm for employment related matters. Our lawyers are very knowledgeable in this field and can assist employers with all types of employment matters, including advice when the need arises to terminate or lay-off an employee. We can also assist you in developing employment contracts that include non-competition clauses, non-solicitation clauses, confidentiality provisions, non-disclosure agreements, severance limits, stock options, etc. We can also develop your company’s employee handbooks, policy manuals, etc.
We invite you to review some of our blog posts on these subjects below and encourage you to keep watching, as new ones will be posted on a regular basis.
Navigating Workplace Harassment: An Employer’s Duty to Investigate
As workplaces evolve, so do the expectations placed on employers to ensure a safe and respectful environment for their employees. In British Columbia, like many jurisdictions, addressing workplace harassment is not only a moral imperative [...]
A Path Towards Pay Equity? – The Pay Transparency Act and New Obligations on Employers
According to Statistics Canada, British Columbia has one of the biggest divides between pay for men and women in Canada. In an effort to increase pay equity and decrease the gender pay gap in British [...]
How to hire a temporary foreign worker in BC
It is becoming increasingly common to rely upon Temporary Foreign Workers in British Columbia, especially in sectors such as hospitality, construction, and agriculture. As we come into spring and summer in the Fraser Valley and [...]
Employment terms and avoiding a constructive dismissal
Changing your employee’s pay, schedule, benefits, position, duties, or other work terms? Here is how you can avoid a constructive dismissal claim. If you are an employer changing an employee’s work terms, you need to [...]
Clarification on differing treatment of discrimination based on family status
The recent BC Supreme Court case of Gibraltar Mines Ltd. v Harvey, 2022 BCSC 385 provides some clarity to how the issue of discrimination based on family status may be handled in the employment context [...]
UPDATE- Temporary layoffs and the Employment Standards Act of B.C.
May 6, 2020 By: Azadeh Taghizadeh, Daniel Sorensen and Lawrence Smith The British Columbia government has extended the temporary layoff period to 16 weeks under the Employment Standards Act (“Act”) to financially help businesses and [...]
WHAT BUSINESSES NEED TO KNOW DURING COVID-19
March 31, 2020 By: Azadeh Taghizadeh, Daniel Sorensen and Lawrence Smith Temporary Wage Subsidy I. What is it? Many employers do not have the means to be able to continue paying their employees as [...]
COVID-19: A GUIDE TO WORKPLACE LAW FOR EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES
March 22, 2020 By Daniel Sorensen and Lawrence Smith, Partners The ongoing COVID-19 health crisis has led to staff shortages, reduced hours, and business closures across British Columbia; leaving many employers unsure of their legal [...]
Would you consider yourself to be a Family Person?
November 5, 2019 By Brian Grootendorst, Daniel Sorensen and Lawrence Smith Two related topics that have come up recently are “what sort of questions can I ask, or should I avoid when interviewing a new [...]
Possible changes to the British Columbia Employment Standards Act
May 6, 2019 - By Azadeh Taghizadeh, Lawrence Smith and Daniel Sorensen As the world around us advances, so does the workplace and so should our employment laws. There is no doubt that today’s economy [...]
PROBATION – WHAT ARE MY RIGHTS? WHAT ARE MY OBLIGATIONS?
Blog Post by Michael Truong, Lawrence Smith and Daniel Sorensen Sorensen Smith LLP, Legal Counsel April 5, 2019 Employers and employees often misunderstand what their respective rights and obligations are when it comes to [...]
WHEN INJURY, ILLNESS AND/OR DISABILITY CAN TERMINATE AN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP
Blog Post by Sebastian Chern Lawrence Smith and Daniel Sorensen January 31, 2019 A FRUSTRATING SITUATION: WHEN INJURY, ILLNESS AND/OR DISABILITY CAN TERMINATE AN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP One of the most trying and difficult scenarios in [...]