In my employment law practice, I’ve found that one of the biggest misconceptions Canadians have about their employment is that their employer needs a good reason to legally fire them.
There is a common — but misplaced — belief that the only way your boss can end your employment is if you’ve done something wrong or the company is experiencing financial hardship.
Many people are shocked to learn the reality of the situation through one of my employment law firm’s radio, television or livestream programs. Here’s what employees need to know about being legally fired.
Your employer doesn’t need to have a valid reason to fire you
Contrary to popular belief, your employer does not need to have a strong or well-documented reason to let you go.
READ MORE: Do you lose severance if you don’t sign by the company’s deadline?
While you can be dismissed due to restructuring, poor performance or a corporation’s financial difficulties, there is no law that requires an employer to have a legitimate purpose for firing you.
Your employment can be terminated without warning for any number of arbitrary reasons, including not being the right fit for the position, arriving five minutes late for work one day or simply because you wore red socks to work when your manager only tolerates white ones. Our legal system calls this a termination without cause.
READ MORE: Severance pay for contractors: What to know and what to do if you think you’re an employee
You’re owed severance if you’re fired without cause
If you are dismissed without cause, your employer must provide you with a full severance package.
Severance typically consists of one-time or regular payments designed to keep you financially stable until you can find a new source of income. Depending on the unique circumstances of your job, you could be entitled to as much as 24 months’ pay.
READ MORE: Do you lose severance if you don’t sign by the company’s deadline?
You must get correct compensation
A company must consider all the factors that determine a typical termination package, such as age, position, income, time spent working for the employer, ability to get a new job and what an employment contract says.
Many employers initially extend a lowball severance offer in the hope that the employee will accept it without talking to an employment lawyer at my firm.
If you aren’t given the correct amount of severance pay, however, you can file a wrongful dismissal claim to legally force the employer to provide the full amount of compensation you are owed. While this option might sound daunting, the process is relatively straightforward when pursued with the help of an employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP.
You can use my firm’s free Severance Pay Calculator tool to get a quick grasp on how much severance pay you could receive.
You can’t be fired for discriminatory reasons
A termination without cause doesn’t give your employer carte blanche to fire you for just any reason. There are certain protected grounds that you can’t be fired over. These include age, race, ethnicity, gender and disability.
If your layoff is tied to one or more of those reasons, your employer may be in violation of your human rights and will have to give you additional compensation.
Not all cases justify termination for cause
While an employer must issue a proper severance package in a termination without cause, they are not required to do so if they fire an employee for cause. This type of termination is reserved for workplace offenders who engage in serious misconduct, such as theft, insubordination or dishonesty.
READ MORE: Reasons to fire an employee for cause or not?
This kind of dismissal is often misused by employers, who apply it to firings that don’t come close to meeting that for-cause threshold. Several steps and disciplinary actions may need to be taken first before a company can resort to a firing for cause.
Lost your job for no reason? Not sure how much severance pay you should get from your employer?
Contact the firm or call 1-855-821-5900 to secure assistance from an employment lawyer in Ontario, Alberta or British Columbia. 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.