Reasonable Notice: Your Rights When Fired

In these difficult times, many people are scared of losing their job. Therefore, it is more important than ever to know your rights as an employee in Ontario. Employment law is a broad subject covering multiple statutes and cases. However, minimum standards are set out for employees in the Employment Standards Act. This act covers almost all workers in Ontario and lays out a set of rights that employees have. One of the most important set of rights are your rights to reasonable notice of termination.

To understand reasonable notice, you first need to understand the concept of “at-will employment”. In Ontario, barring any clause in your employment contract or union agreement that says otherwise, your boss can terminate your employment at any time without cause. This ability to hire and fire without cause is known as “at-will employment”. To balance the power created by at-will employment, the Employment Standards Act requires “reasonable notice” or “payment in lieu of notice” when employees are fired without cause. These rules can be found in sections 54 and 61 of the Employment Standards Act.

Section 54 of the Employment Standards Act states:

54 No employer shall terminate the employment of an employee who has been continuously employed for three months or more unless the employer,

(a) has given to the employee written notice of termination in accordance with section 57 or 58 and the notice has expired; or

(b) has complied with section 61. 2000, c. 41, s. 54.

And section 61 states

61 (1) An employer may terminate the employment of an employee without notice or with less notice than is required under section 57 or 58 if the employer,

(a) pays to the employee termination pay in a lump sum equal to the amount the employee would have been entitled to receive under section 60 had notice been given in accordance with that section; and

(b) continues to make whatever benefit plan contributions would be required to be made in order to maintain the benefits to which the employee would have been entitled had he or she continued to be employed during the period of notice that he or she would otherwise have been entitled to receive. 2000, c. 41, s. 61 (1); 2001, c. 9, Sched. I, s. 1 (14).

As you can see from the above clauses, if an employee is fired, they are entitled to either advanced notice or payment in lieu of notice. This payment must include all benefits the employee would have been entitled to during the notice period.

How much notice are employees entitled to under the Employment Standards Act? Notice of termination is covered in section 57 of the Act:

Employer notice period

57 The notice of termination under section 54 shall be given,

(a) at least one week before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is less than one year;

(b) at least two weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is one year or more and fewer than three years;

(c) at least three weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is three years or more and fewer than four years;

(d) at least four weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is four years or more and fewer than five years;

(e) at least five weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is five years or more and fewer than six years;

(f) at least six weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is six years or more and fewer than seven years;

(g) at least seven weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is seven years or more and fewer than eight years; or

(h) at least eight weeks before the termination, if the employee’s period of employment is eight years or more. 2000, c. 41, s. 57.

It is important to note, when reading about employee termination rights in Ontario, that a variety of factors can affect the length of reasonable notice periods. An employee’s rights may be affected by the reasons for the termination of their employment, their employment contract, union agreements or the common law. It is important to talk to a lawyer to find out your rights and the best course of action in your specific situation.

If you have been fired and want to discuss your rights as an employee, call us at 647-494-9599 for a free consultation or email us at info@law365.ca.