Understanding Unfair or Unjust Dismissals

Losing your job can be a challenging experience– affecting your livelihoods and overall well-being. Even more so if you think your termination was unfair or unjust. Many employers do not understand the requirements of the common law obligations when terminating an employee and proceed with doing so in a manner that is considered unlawful or unfair.

In this blog, we’ll explain what constitutes an unfair or unjust dismissal, explore your rights as an employee in BC, and discuss the steps you can take if you believe you’ve been unfairly let go from your job.

What does an unfair or unjust dismissal look like?

An unfair dismissal happens when an employer terminates an employee’s contract contrary to law. This can include situations of constructive dismissals or where an employer discriminates against the employee based on protected characteristics such as gender, race, or disability.

Common Scenarios of Unjust Dismissal

• Wrongful Dismissal occurs when you are let go from your job without being provided proper notice of termination or pay in lieu of notice. Read more about wrongful dismissal here.
• Discriminatory Dismissal occurs when your employment is terminated due to any of the factors protected under human rights legislation including but not limited to your age, gender, religion, or other protected characteristics. Read more about discrimination contrary to the human rights legislation here.
• Retaliation occurs when you are terminated in retaliation for whistleblowing, such as reporting unsafe working conditions, violations of occupational health and safety laws, or attempting to enforce your rights under employment standards, human rights, or occupational health and safety legislation. In such cases, the employee may be entitled to compensation or reinstatement by filing a complaint for retaliatory conduct by the employer. Read more about whistleblowing here.
• Constructive Dismissal occurs when your employer has breached significant aspects of the employment agreement or has significantly altered the employment terms without your consent, but your employment has not been terminated. Read more about constructive dismissal here.

Steps to Take If You’ve Been Unjustly Dismissed

If you believe that you have been unjustly dismissed, you should speak to an employment lawyer to discuss what your options are in addressing your situation. The knowledgeable and experienced lawyers at Labour Rights Law can assist you in this process by reviewing your information, explaining the law to you in simple terms, and setting out your options so that you can move forward with your claim with full confidence. Contact Labour Rights Law today to set up an initial consultation.

DISCLAIMER: The content of this article, and this website generally, is not intended as legal advice and cannot be relied upon as legal advice.  To provide legal advice on your problem, a lawyer must first understand your specific situation.

To book a consultation, please give us a call toll-free 1 (877) 708-8350 or locally 604-245-3169. You can also book a consultation online here.