In most cases, at the end of an employee’s employment the employer is required to give the employee “reasonable notice” or payment in lieu of “reasonable notice” under the common law (See here the link to our blog on common law notice Common Law Notice in British Columbia – Carter Litigation).
There are three main exceptions to that rule. These are:
- The employee quits and voluntarily leaves their employment;
- There is a written employment contract that limits the amount of notice that must be given to the employee; or
- The employer has just cause to terminate the employee.
Just cause has a specific legal definition, it is not just any reason the employer thinks it is reasonable to terminate an employee for. Also, the employer has the burden to prove allegations of just cause at trial, where usually the burden of proof is on the person making a legal claim.
There are two main types of just cause:
The first type of just cause is where an employee commits one act of misconduct that is so contradictory to the employment relationship that the employment cannot continue. The classic example of this type of just cause would be where an employee is caught on camera stealing money from the till. There is just no way an employer could continue on working with an employee if they cannot trust their employee not to steal from them.
The second type of just cause involves lesser acts of employee misconduct, such as insubordination or chronic lateness or absenteeism. With these lesser types of misconduct, the law requires the employer to sit down with the employee, tell them clearly what they are doing wrong, tell them clearly what the behavioural expectations are or what the employee can do to improve behaviour, and make it clear that if the behaviour continues or if the issue does not improve that the employee could lose their job. A lawyer’s preference would be that this process would occur in writing and occur over several meetings with progressive discipline before the employee is actually terminated. Only if these steps are carried out will the employer have any sort of chance of proving just cause for this sort of more minor misconduct.
Just cause cases are extremely difficult for employer’s to win, so it is generally best to consult with a lawyer first before terminating an employee, especially if the employer is considering relying on just cause.
If you have questions about Employment Law, please contact one of our lawyers to see how we can help you.