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embark on such a plan needs to know up front what rules and laws apply, the costs of the rules to the plan, and what they can and cannot do. For example, an employer can't unilaterally change wages and terms of conditions of employment, such as reduce salaries by half, unless the employees agree. They can elect to consider themselves constructively dis- missed, which makes them entitled to severance. There's a whole body of law that determines what that will be." Nowakowski says another high- risk action is terminating 50 or more employees in four weeks. "This triggers the mass-termination provisions of the [Employment Standards Act], requiring notice to the minister [of Labour] and bringing into play notice of termination liabilities. In Ontario, there is normally an automatic right to eight weeks notice of termination. If you dismiss between 200 and 499 employees it increases to 12 weeks, and for greater than 500 dismissals there are 16 weeks of notice owing. If you don't give working notice they get pay in Let us open right door for you the We specialize in Employment and Labour Law in Canada Kuretzky Vassos Henderson is a leading employment and labour law fi rm situated in the heart of Toronto. We are comprised of nine lawyers, all of whom specialize in the area of employment and labour law. We act for many prominent public and private sector employers as well as for individuals. Kuretzky Vassos Henderson LLP Our work includes extensive experience in the areas of: Wrongful dismissal • Human rights • Labour relations/Labour law/Collective barganing • Workplace health and safety • Sexual harassment • Employment standards • Employment contracts • Canada Labour Code • Class actions • Mediation/arbitration/ADR www.kuretzyvassos.com • 416.865.0504 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com M AY 2009 43 uretzky_CL_Feb_09.indd 1 1/27/09 12:42:32 PM www.mathewsdinsdale.com lieu, which can be very significant." While ramifications in employment standards acts are substantial, the com- mon law requirements for reasonable notice can be significant too. "For exam- ple, a five-year employee might be entitled under ESA to five weeks notice and five weeks severance," says Nowakowski. "The common law might say 20 weeks, which would be inclusive of the ESA standard." If there is a collective agreement, the union must get notice before closure of operations. "There are potential liabili- ties if inadequate notice is given," warns Nowakowski. Then there are seniority bumping rights, severance rights, recall rights, and collective bargaining issues to which they are contractually bound. "Employers are running a big risk if they are not considering all these items." After calculating all that, employers still have to look at severance pay, which is separate from termination under the ESA. "Severance pay is owing to someone who has worked for the employer for five years or more," explains Nowakowski. "If you have an annual payroll of $2.5 million or more, or 50 workers have gone out the door in a six-month period, a maximum of 26 weeks could be owed." All of this calls for a lot of strat- egizing with clients before they take any steps. "They must go in with their eyes open," says McPhail. "The most diffi- cult cases are where people have already done the downsizing or reorganization, or changed terms and conditions, and problems and difficulties are arising. You protect them as best you can when it turns adversarial." Nowakowski says his firm sees all kinds of scenarios. "Lots of clients are proactive, but often it all needs to hap- pen in a hurry and the landscape is changing so quickly. You only have to follow what's happening to the Big Three automakers. We do spend some time putting out fires. For example, if you said today to 75 employees, 'sorry, there's no more work,' the termination is effective today and nothing can be fixed." If clients do come in beforehand, emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e - t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y e q u i t y immi g r a - t i o n emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y e q u i t y imm immi g r a t i o n emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n - a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y First in Labour Law Since 1956 Toronto 416.862.8280 Sarnia 519.336.5447 Sault Ste.Marie 705.253.3711 Since being founded in 1956 as the Country's first labour relations and employment law firm, Mathews Dinsdale has been dedicated to helping employers manage the increasingly complex laws relating to the workplace. For over 50 years, our lawyers have played a significant role in shaping labour – management relations. Today, with offices in Toronto, Sarnia and Sault Ste. Marie, Mathews Dinsdale continues to have one of the Country's most highly regarded management labour and employment law practices. It continues to be our goal to help management manage – and succeed.