'There really should be no doubt… surrounding compliance with the ESA': lawyer
Mar 19, 2025
“Termination clauses are among the more important clauses in a contract, but also ones that are probably the most closely scrutinized by courts, so regular review and updating of them is very important.”
So says employment lawyer and workplace investigator Ozlem Yucel of Turnpenney Milne in Toronto, after an Ontario court found that the termination provision in a worker’s contract was unenforceable due to ambiguity around the worker’s entitlement to benefits during the notice period.
The worker was an employee of Trader Corporation, a Toronto-based technology company specializing in classified automotive advertising.
The worker’s employment agreement contained a termination clause that included a paragraph allowing Trader Corporation to terminate the worker’s employment without cause “with such notice (or payment in lieu of notice), severance pay, if owing, accrued vacation pay and any other compensation or benefits that may be required to meet the requirements of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 [ESA].”
The second paragraph of the termination provision stated that in the event of a without-cause termination, the company would continue her group insurance benefit coverage during the statutory notice period “provided such coverage is available from the insurer.”
The provision concluded with the statement that “any future amendments...
In This Article: WBA +0.78% Walgreens agreed to pay the United States $300M, plus interest at a rate of 4.00% per annum accruing from October 20, 2024, of which $150M shall constitute restitutio...