My team at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP gets thousands of questions about employment law every week, whether through our Employment Law Show on radio and TV, our weekly livestreams or direct calls.
Many of these queries concern terminations that have already happened, but may need a closer look to ensure that proper severance packages have been provided.
Other questions, though, revolve around situations that have developed in someone’s workplace that serve as an indication that an employer is up to something.
Here are five employment law red flags to watch out for.
1. Your employer cuts staff and shifts their workload to you
If your employer lays off coworkers, but asks you to add their responsibilities to your list of duties, that is a red flag — even if the company offers more pay as a trade-off.
If you accept a notable modification to your job without objection, you are likely giving up your ability to push back in the future if you determine the change is to your detriment. You may also give the company the ability to make additional changes at their discretion.
I’ve spoken to employees who took on unwanted duties, only to find that their workload became unmanageable within a matter of months. The result was that their jobs hardly resembled the ones they had when they started the employment relationship, and in some instances, the employees took stress leave just to cope with the changes — or resigned altogether.
When an employer makes a significant change to your job, duties or pay that you do not want to accept, it can be treated as a constructive dismissal, or a form of termination. In this scenario, you can leave your job with full severance pay through assistance from an employment lawyer, like the team at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP.
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2. Your employer puts you on a performance improvement plan
A performance improvement plan (PIP) can be a legitimate way for an employer to address an employee’s performance issues and work with the employee to correct them.
A PIP becomes a red flag when it is unwarranted and becomes a tool used by a company to terminate an employee without severance.
READ MORE: Does a performance improvement plan mean you’re getting fired? What employees need to know
If you’re put on a PIP and you don’t agree with it, you may be able to protect yourself by putting your objections in writing and sending it to your employer in an email. You should explain why you disagree with it and outline where you have met the expectations laid out in your job description.
By speaking up, you will make it a lot more difficult for your employer to let you go for cause — and without severance.
3. Your employer refuses to let you take a medical leave because they don’t think you are sick
Your employer can’t refuse your request to take a legitimate medical leave of absence. It is not up to an employer to determine whether an employee is truly sick or not.
If your doctor has diagnosed you with an illness and recommended in writing that you take a medical leave, your employer can’t argue with that. Any employer who threatens to retaliate against a leave of absence, including by firing the employee in question, could face consequences for a human rights violation.
4. Your employer brings you back from a temporary layoff and puts you on a probation period
If your employer puts you on probation when they bring you back from a layoff, there is a strong chance they may soon terminate your employment.
A company can use probation phases to fire an employee with severance if they have thoroughly proven that the individual is not a good fit for the job. But a probation period is only valid at the outset of a job if it is directly referenced in an employment contract. Your employer doesn’t have the right to put you on one at their leisure during the work relationship.
If they try to put you on probation or ask you to sign an agreement that states you agree to a probation period, you can refuse the attempt in writing and talk to an employment lawyer immediately.
READ MORE: What you need to know before you sign a contract — even if your employer asks you to
5. Your employer ignores complaints of harassment or bullying
Workplace harassment has the potential to create a poisoned work environment and pose a serious health risk to employees. Employers have a legal obligation to provide a safe and healthy environment for all staff. They are also compelled to address complaints of harassment or bullying and prevent it from happening to the best of their abilities.
READ MORE: Can you get compensation if you face harassment at work?
If you witness or experience harassment on the job or in an incident that involves a colleague or manager, report it to the appropriate person within the company.
If your employer fails to appropriately address your grievance, you should speak to an employment lawyer at my firm. We will review your situation and determine if you can resign from your job with full compensation.
Have you come across these or other red flags at work? Do you need help from an employment lawyer?
Contact the firm or call 1-855-821-5900 to secure assistance from an employment lawyer in Ontario, British Columbia or Alberta. Get the advice you need — and the compensation you deserve.
Lior Samfiru is an employment lawyer and partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP, Canada’s most positively reviewed law firm specializing in employment law and long-term disability claims. He provides free advice as the host of Canada’s only Employment Law Show on TV and radio.