A fundamental principle of wrongful dismissal damages holds that damages compensate employees just for their actual economic loss. An employee awarded 20 months’ pay after being wrongfully dismissed is only entitled to recover the income they have lost during those 20 months.

Some business owners in British Columbia may not be pleased that just about every employer must register for and pay insurance premiums to protect injured workers. In BC, even property owners who build their own residences or those who hire casual workers as regular gardeners, domestic workers, nannies and cleaners must register with WorkSafe BC.

No business owner in British Columbia wishes to be held responsible for harm to employees. While accidents are known to happen when least expected, employers are required to take reasonable steps to prevent workplace injuries.

When it comes to recruiting sales representatives, it is only natural for a business owner to want the best of the best. In many cases, successful sales reps are noticed because they do such an excellent job for other companies. However, inducing an employee from another business could become costly if not all the intricacies of employment law are considered.

With the fresh legalization of cannabis for recreational use, employers and employees in British Columbia might have concerns about how cannabis use will affect work environments. WorkSafeBC has launched an educational awareness campaign dealing with cannabis impairment and potential workplace accident incidents.

Many British Columbia business owners choose to use the services of independent contractors instead of employees. There are benefits for both parties with such a work relationship, but there can also be severe consequences if the independent contractor arrangement is improperly executed.

Employers' legal obligations to their employees are not limited to meeting workplace standards under the applicable labour or employment legislation. Legal proceedings on the basis of human rights violations in the workplace have grown to comprise a significant part of employment law today.

Most employers in British Columbia know that human rights are not earned by employees -- instead, human rights are held by every person from birth. Regardless of an employee's level of education, skills or the position they hold, they have rights to equality, respect, dignity, and a right to not face any form of discrimination.

A 40-year-old marble mason in Vancouver suffered a work-related shoulder injury in 2015 for which WorkSafeBC granted him an award of permanent partial disability. Because his employer had no modified duties for him, he applied for assistance from the WorkSafeBC's vocational rehabilitation services department, which assists in finding alternative employment to accommodate the disabilities of such workers.

An adviser of workplace conduct says the results of a federal survey indicate that a significant percentage of violence or harassment complaints in the workplace are not addressed and resolved.

Employees in British Columbia may be unsure about their rights when it comes to deductions from their salary or wage payments. The BC Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c 113, authorizes some deductions and takes action against employers who make unauthorized deductions.

A British Columbia family who lost a loved one who died an unexpected death in March last year might be able to move forward after a year of battling with unanswered questions. Workplace accidents can be particularly traumatic because investigations can take many months before the cause of the incident is officially determined.

Business owners in British Columbia will know that there are many intricacies when it comes to the rights of their employees. One issue that often creates tension between management and employees is when employees want to form or join a union and the employer does not approve.

Pay equity, or the equal pay for work of equal value regardless of gender, is a human right. As such, employers have an obligation to ensure that they do not practice gender-based discrimination in their pay schemes.

In the age of easily accessed and readily shared information, it should come as no surprise that things that were once considered acceptable have started raising eyebrows. Before employees could access salary information on company review sites or co-workers could communicate via instant messaging service, salary information was far more discrete.

Under human rights legislation, including the British Columbia Human Rights Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act, employers must adjust workplace practices, policies and rules to allow full participation by all employees up to the point of undue hardship.

On April 28th, 2018, Canadians took a moment to pause and pay tribute to victims and survivors of workplace injuries. The National Day Of Mourning, or Workers’ Mourning Day, recognizes and honours the thousands of individuals and families who have had their lives irrevocably changed as a result of an occupational disease or workplace accident.

Although medicinal use of marijuana in British Columbia has been legal for some time, legalization of recreational use of this drug is on the horizon. Employment law will likely undergo some adjustments when the non-medicinal use of cannabis becomes legal.

Firefighters in British Columbia and other provinces and territories face multiple safety hazards. Instances of workplace injury are prevalent because they work in dangerous situations in which they are often exposed to extreme conditions that include high temperatures.

Employers in British Columbia face many challenges when it comes to the human rights of their employees. Under employment law, unanticipated claims may arise, and because they were not evident at first, employers can find themselves in a tight spot.