Labour & Employment

  • September 05, 2025

    Carney pauses 2026 EV mandate amid tariff stress, announces comprehensive Buy Canadian policy

    Prime Minister Mark Carney has paused the 2026 electric vehicle (EV) mandate target for automakers and auto importers as part of a strategy to support sectors impacted by U.S.-imposed tariffs. The automobile sector in Canada has been one of the hardest hit by the imposition of U.S. tariffs, with Canadian cars facing 25 per cent tariffs in the U.S. Carney said that protectionist measures put in place by the U.S. were fundamentally reshaping all its trading relationships but noted that Canada currently has the best deal of any U.S. trading partner, with 85 per cent of trade between the two countries being tariff-free.

  • September 05, 2025

    Court finds foreign service union did not adequately consider grievance on children’s education

    The Federal Court of Appeal has upheld a decision by the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board, finding that the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers failed to adequately consider a grievance related to an education allowance for a member’s stepdaughters, thereby breaching its duty of fair representation.

  • September 05, 2025

    Hicks Morley adds 6 new associates

    Hicks Morley has welcomed six new associates to its Toronto office. According to the firm’s announcement, the lawyers include:

  • September 04, 2025

    B.C. Appeal Court rules workplace assault claims need arbitration

    The British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed a surveyor’s civil action against Surerus Pipeline Inc. arising from an alleged workplace assault and subsequent termination (Gabriel v. Surerus Pipeline Inc., 2025 BCCA 194). The court overturned the chambers judge’s ruling, holding that the wrongful dismissal claim must be pursued through arbitration under the collective agreement rather than in court.

  • September 04, 2025

    Can foreign nationals work remotely in the U.S.?

    While people have wanted to and sometimes enjoyed the opportunity to work while they are spending time outside of their home country, this practice became much more prevalent and common since the COVID-19 pandemic. With remote work far more normalized in the pandemic’s wake, it is now easier and sometimes necessary to work from wherever you are — regardless of physical boundaries or limitations.

  • September 03, 2025

    Ottawa concludes budget consultations covering tariffs, AI, affordable housing

    The Department of Finance Canada announced on Sept. 3 that it has concluded nationwide consultations ahead of Budget 2025.

  • September 03, 2025

    Ontario introduces ‘first-in-Canada labour mobility changes’

    On Sept. 1, the Government of Ontario filed regulations that will “support the removal of interprovincial barriers for Canadian workers coming to Ontario.” According to a government release, this “historic change” will assist “in-demand professions such as architects, engineers, geoscientists, land surveyors, electricians and more.”

  • September 03, 2025

    Legal experts & advocates push PM Carney for urgent action to secure Canada’s ‘digital sovereignty’

    Legal experts, advocacy organizations and prominent Canadians are asking Ottawa to urgently legislate and implement measures to counter the digital risks to Canada’s autonomy and democracy posed by artificial intelligence (AI), foreign interference and U.S. tech giants’ dominance of domestic digital infrastructure.

  • September 03, 2025

    Dal law school thrown into uncertainty due to labour dispute: professor

    Dalhousie University’s law school has been thrown into start-of-the-year chaos due to an ongoing labour dispute at the East Coast postsecondary institution. The dispute, which pits unionized faculty against the Nova Scotia university in a fight over various labour issues, hit a major bump when the university locked out members of the Dalhousie Faculty Association (DFA) last month.

  • September 03, 2025

    Federal Court rejects racism class action by civilian defence, armed forces employees

    The Federal Court has denied certification of a proposed discrimination class action against the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) by civilian employees who claimed they experienced systemic racism.