University of Calgary Faculty of Law ABLawg.ca logo over mountains

Category: Labour/Employment Page 8 of 12

End? of a “Twenty-two-Year Odyssey” for Delorie Walsh

By

On July 30, 2013

In Human Rights, Labour/Employment

PDF version: End? of a “Twenty-two-Year Odyssey” for Delorie Walsh

Case commented on: Walsh v Mobil Oil Canada, 2013 ABCA 238.

While several blogs have been written on the Walsh v Mobil Oil Canada case (see here, here and here), I was hoping not to have to write yet another one, and I really hope that the matter has come to a final conclusion, but I almost hesitate to so state. As noted by the majority of the Alberta Court of Appeal (Justices Paperny and McDonald, with Justice O’Ferrall concurring in the result), Ms. Walsh could not have known that when she filed her discrimination complaint against her former employer in 1991, it would lead to the termination of her employment and to a “22-year odyssey” to seek a remedy for her situation. As noted by the Court, Walsh appeared before the Human Rights Tribunal four times, the Court of Queen’s Bench twice, and this current case is Ms. Walsh’s second time before the Alberta Court of Appeal.

Read More

Under the Influence: The Alberta Court of Appeal and the Test for Discrimination

By

On April 24, 2013

In Constitutional, Labour/Employment

PDF version: Under the Influence: The Alberta Court of Appeal and the Test for Discrimination

Cases commented on: Wright v College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta (Appeals Committee), 2012 ABCA 267, leave to appeal denied, 2013 CanLII 15573 (SCC); Lethbridge Regional Police Service v Lethbridge Police Association, 2013 ABCA 47, leave to appeal application filed, April 15, 2013, SCC

On March 28, 2013 the Supreme Court of Canada denied leave to appeal in the case of Wright v College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta. Linda McKay-Panos blogged on that case here; it involves a claim of discrimination by two nurses with opioid addictions who were disciplined by their professional association after stealing narcotics from their employers. A majority of the Alberta Court of Appeal (per Slatter, JA, Ritter JA concurring) held that there was no discrimination and thus no duty to accommodate the nurses, using an approach that focused on stereotyping, prejudice and arbitrariness. Writing in dissent, Justice Berger undertook a traditional prima facie discrimination analysis and decided that the nurses had experienced discriminatory treatment. This split reflects a wider uncertainty about the appropriate test for discrimination under human rights law, and in particular the extent to which the approach to discrimination under section 15 of the Charter should have an influence. In the Supreme Court’s most recent human rights judgment, Moore v British Columbia (Education), 2012 SCC 61 (per Abella J), the Court declined to explicitly clarify the proper test, yet implicitly indicated that the traditional prima facie approach to discrimination is correct. Perhaps that is why the Court decided not to hear the appeal in Wright, which was decided before Moore.  A more recent Court of Appeal decision, Lethbridge Regional Police Service v Lethbridge Police Association, was decided after Moore, yet Justices Martin, Watson and Slatter maintained a focus on stereotyping as the defining feature of discrimination. Worse, Lethbridge Police seems to impose additional burdens on complainants in human rights cases. This post will critically consider the Alberta Court of Appeal’s approach to discrimination and argue that the Supreme Court should grant leave to appeal in Lethbridge Police to clarify the proper test.

Read More

Random Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy Implicates Safety, Privacy, Human Rights and Civil Liberties

By

On November 29, 2012

In Constitutional, Labour/Employment

PDF version: Random Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy Implicates Safety, Privacy, Human Rights and Civil Liberties

Case commented on: Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union, Local 707 v Suncor Energy Inc. 2012 ABCA 307 (“CA”)

The issue of random drug and alcohol testing in the workplace has now reached national importance.  The Supreme Court of Canada recently granted leave to appeal in such a case.  See:  Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada, Local 30, v Irving Pulp & Paper Ltd., 2011 NBCA, leave to appeal to Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) granted: 2012 CanLII 14844 (SCC), (“Irving”).  It is likely the SCC will hear this case in December 2012 (Jeff Gray, “Supreme Court to rule on random alcohol testing” The Globe and Mail 08 May 2012).  Alberta has a keen interest in the outcome of this case as it has its own pending cases.

Read More

Addictions, Human Rights and Professional Discipline – Will the SCC Wade In?

By

On November 1, 2012

In Human Rights, Labour/Employment

PDF version: Addictions, Human Rights and Professional Discipline – Will the SCC Wade In?

Case Commented on: Wright v College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta (Appeals Committee), 2012 ABCA 267

In this recent case, the majority (Justice Frans Slatter, concurred with by Justice Keith Ritter) and the dissent (Justice Ronald Berger) of the Alberta Court of Appeal fundamentally disagreed on the approach to be taken when there are human rights principles at issue in professional discipline matters.  Genevieve Wright and Mona Helmer were nurses who were disciplined by the College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta (“CARNA”) for stealing narcotics and for falsifying related records.  Both argued that their addiction to narcotics amounted to a disability under the Alberta Human Rights Act, RSA 2000, c A-25.5 (“AHRA”).  Thus, they argued that their employer had a duty to accommodate such that a modified disciplinary procedure was required under the Health Professions Act, RSA 2000, c H-7 (“HPA”).

Read More

Hockey Night in Alberta

By

On October 19, 2012

In Labour/Employment

PDF version: Hockey Night in Alberta

Decision commented on: National Hockey League Players’ Association v Edmonton Oilers Hockey Corp, 2012 CanLII 58944 (AB LRB)

In the interests of full disclosure, I am a hockey fan, although I would prefer to play shinny or watch my son’s beer league playoffs rather than watch an NHL game. I have much more sympathy for agricultural workers who continue to be excluded from Alberta’s Labour Relations Code, RSA 2000, c L-1, and for the workers recently laid off by XL Foods, than I do for locked out NHL players (although I have even less sympathy for the owners).  So it was with some interest but not a lot of sympathy for either side that I read the recent decision of the Alberta Labour Relations Board in National Hockey League Players’ Association v Edmonton Oilers Hockey Corp, 2012 CanLII 58944.

Read More

Page 8 of 12

Previous

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén