Wrongful dismissal claim rejected after court decides employer conducted adequate investigation before termination
When a van body weighing 40,000 pounds separated from a truck chassis after sliding into a ditch, NOV Canada ULC terminated its assembly supervisor for cause.
The supervisor, Lawrence Driol, claimed he wasn't involved in mounting the body or installing the critical tie-down clips that were required.
It didn't matter, ruled assistant chief justice D.B. Higa of the Alberta Court of Justice, dismissing Driol's $126,857 wrongful dismissal claim. The Dec. 3, 2025 decision establishes that supervisors can be held accountable for failures they didn't personally commit but were responsible for overseeing.
Driol had worked for NOV since 2017 and was promoted to assembly supervisor in 2022. His role included supervising mechanical and electrical employees in the Wireline Assembly Department and participating in hands-on assembly of van body mounted units. The company built drilling and oil well servicing equipment for clients including major customer Bonnetts Energy Corp.
When Bonnetts commissioned a slickline unit, the assembly required mounting an aluminum van body onto a truck chassis and securing it with tie-down clips. Engineering drawings specified the clips were mandatory. Operations manager Stephen Skinner testified that Driol's responsibility was to ensure proper installation of the tie-down clips, characterizing his role as...
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