While it might seem like an awkward conversation to have with your boss, non-unionized workers in Ontario can ask for a raise.
Unfortunately, it’s common for employers in the province to terminate staff shortly after they request a pay increase. Even though many people consider this cruel and inappropriate, companies are within their legal right to do so.
Employers can fire workers for any reason, as long as they are provided full severance, which can be as much as 24 months’ pay, and the reasons for their dismissal aren’t discriminatory. This is known as a termination without cause.
However, many Ontarians are unaware of their rights to severance when they are fired or let go, which puts them at risk of receiving less compensation than they are entitled to.
If you are terminated shortly after asking your boss for a raise, here are three things you shouldn’t do.
1. Don’t sign your severance offer immediately
In Ontario, the amount of severance pay non-unionized employees are entitled to is calculated using several factors, including age, length of service, position at the company and their ability to find new work.
To bolster their bottom line, some employers pressure staff to immediately accept severance offers that provide them with far less compensation than they are owed.
READ MORE: 5 ways to determine if your severance package is fair
Once you receive your company’s offer, hold off on signing anything until you speak with an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP. You don’t have to accept it before leaving a termination meeting or even a few days after you received it.
As long as you didn’t sign the offer and return it to your employer, you legally have two years from the date of your dismissal to pursue full severance pay.
Our firm can review your severance offer and determine if it falls short of what is legally appropriate.
If your company didn’t provide you with the correct amount, we can help you obtain proper compensation through a wrongful dismissal claim.
2. Don’t lose your temper
After working up the courage to ask your boss for a raise, it can be extremely infuriating to learn that you are being let go following the conversation.
Losing your temper during your termination meeting or doing something to negatively affect the company can put your right to severance at risk. Remaining calm and professional will ensure that you receive the compensation you are owed.
READ MORE: The most common myths about severance pay, according to an employment lawyer
Unless your employer can justify firing you for cause, you are entitled to full severance pay.
However, this type of dismissal is reserved for the worst kinds of workplace offences, such as serious insubordination, theft or assault.
Your company would have to prove progressive disciplinary measures were applied and that a less severe punishment wouldn’t be suitable, which is very hard to do.
If you are fired for cause, contact our firm immediately. We can confirm if this type of dismissal was appropriate in your situation and help you secure the compensation you are owed if it wasn’t.
3. Don’t respond to negative claims about your job performance
A common tactic used by employers to get rid of staff who ask for a raise is to suddenly claim that there are issues with their job performance.
One of the firm’s clients, a senior marketing manager, was put on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) shortly after she spoke with her boss about increasing her pay.
While she did her best to complete the goals outlined in the company’s PIP, she was unable to do so within the timeframe given by her employer.
Roughly a week later, her boss informed her that she was being fired without severance pay because she didn’t complete the company’s PIP successfully.
READ MORE: Fired after a performance review in Ontario? 4 things to know
Instead of responding to her employer, she contacted Samfiru Tumarkin LLP to determine if the company had grounds to terminate her for cause.
When our lawyers reviewed the PIP, they found that the goals set by the business were unrealistic and the employee wasn’t provided with the proper support to improve her work.
As a result, the firm was able to secure full severance pay for the former manager because she didn’t meet the conditions necessary for this type of dismissal.
Let an employment lawyer fight for you
If you are fired or let go for any reason, contact an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP.
Our firm has helped numerous non-unionized individuals across Ontario resolve their workplace issues.
READ MORE: 5 of the most common work situations where getting an employment lawyer can help
We can review your situation, enforce your rights and ensure that you receive the compensation you are legally entitled to.
Fired after asking for a raise? Boss pressuring you to accept a severance offer immediately?
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 and Jeremy Herman are employment lawyers at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP, Canada’s most positively reviewed law firm specializing in employment law and long-term disability claims. The firm provides free advice through Canada’s only Employment Law Show on TV and radio.