Funeral for a Job

by BRAM A. LECKER B.A. LLB.  BARRISTER & SOLICITOR

It's another morning at work. Through the elevator door that needs oil, past that infernal clock that runs too fast, the faint smell of bitter coffee and carpet freshener wafting in from the kitchen, where the muffled laughter of office banter begins to overcome the soft hum of the computers. You are home - away from home; warm, familiar and secure, until you see the note politely requesting you to attend an unscheduled meeting in the boss's office, you never saw it coming. Read more about Funeral for a Job..

The Ill and Disabled employees are bearing the brunt of corporate Canada's economic restructuring.

by BRAM A. LECKER B.A. LLB.  BARRISTER & SOLICITOR

Remember those insurance commercials featuring the "Good Hands" people. Those were the days when a cup of coffee was 50 cents, the milkman delivered and people expected to retire from the same company where they had come up from the Mail Room.

But this is the 21st century; It costs 50 cents to fill up your tires, your doctor answers by voicemail, and your chances for freedom at 65 seem about equal to winning the provincial lottery. Competition is in, fairness, out; especially for the ill and disabled. It seems that in this age of rapidly developing trends, a dark side has emerged from the corporate obsession with downsizing, restructuring and competitiveness.

More and more employees who find themselves unable to work due to serious illness, accident or stress find that between their employer and group disability insurer, the race is on to show them the back of the hand, and the door. Read more about disability and work...
 

If It Looks Like It and It Smells Like It…Lay-off or Dismissal, under Ontario Law --It All Amounts to the Same Thing.

by BRAM A. LECKER B.A. LLB.  BARRISTER & SOLICITOR

Somehow, it has a better ring to it. For most Employees being “Laid-off” is a great deal easier to swallow after long and faithful years of service than a pink slip with the words “Terminated”, “Dismissed” or “Fired”. Certainly, the term “Laid-off” has connotations that the decision was reached due to circumstances beyond the control of the Employer and with no fault of the Employee. The lack of cash flow and shortage of work are the causes of doom, not the Employee’s performance, or so the story is told. However, this cloud has so silver lining. In fact, many Employers prefer to characterize the termination of employment as a “lay-off” out of genuine sincerity and an attempt to lessen the emotional pain of losing one’s job. Read more....

Articles on Employment Law and Your Job.