Helping Employers in the National Capital Region
Employers have many competing obligations to juggle: responding to the needs of their customers, remaining competitive within an ever-shifting marketplace, and building and maintaining successful and motivated workplaces.
As a busy employer, keeping abreast of your legal obligations can be a constant challenge.
At Vey Willetts LLP, we help employers by simplifying processes and creating efficiencies. We offer practical and responsive advice to help our employer clients structure their operations in a way that works for them, while ensuring legal compliance and allowing their focus to remain on what matters: their business. We help our employer clients navigate the employment relationship from start to finish. Our expertise includes drafting employment offers and policies, helping resolve workplace disputes, responding to allegations of workplace harassment and/or violence, managing employee performance and guiding employers through the dismissal process (whether due to operational concerns or as a result of employee misconduct). We strive to offer frank and practical legal advice to both minimize costs and foster positive work environments.
We have extensive experience working with a wide range of public and private sector employers in both the unionized and non-unionized context:
Automotive Dealerships
National Banks
Service Sector Companies (restaurants and retailers)
Technology Companies
Financial Management Companies
Property Management Companies
Hydro-electric Companies
Police Departments
Municipalities
Food and Beverage Producers
Universities
Mining Companies
Hospitals
An Ounce Of Prevention
Sometimes, our employer clients come to us after a situation in the workplace has already become a cause for concern. At times, the employer will have received a letter from a lawyer representing a current or former employee, or perhaps been served with a Claim as part of a lawsuit. Often, disputes of this nature arise over severance entitlements, harassment allegations, allegations of workplace discrimination or another alleged breach of contract (i.e. bonus/commission payments, vacation pay or overtime entitlements). We help our employer clients resolve disputes through mediation, or when necessary advocate on their behalf in litigation through the courts. We also represent employer clients in administrative proceedings before the Ontario Labour Relations Board, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, the Canada Industrial Relations Board and at private arbitration.
It is often far more efficient for us to give advice and assistance before problems arise in the workplace. Employers can save themselves an enormous amount of time and money by taking simple proactive steps to put in place (and apply) effective policies and carefully-drafted employment agreements.
As part of our services for Ottawa employers, our employment lawyers offer legal advice and representation in a number of areas such as:
Employment contracts, including proper application and use of restrictive covenants; the characterization of contractors versus employees; and carefully-drafted termination clauses
Any matter related to the Ontario Human Rights Code such as allegations of discrimination and/or harassment in the workplace on the basis of a protected ground (such as age, sex or disability)
Statutory compliance with employment standards such as breaks, public holidays, vacation pay and overtime
Workplace policies, addressing workplace harassment and violence, workplace relationships, employee privacy, use of company assets and alcohol/drug use
Workplace investigations
Workplace training
Collective agreement advice and interpretation
We also apply a proactive approach to limiting employers’ liability around termination, including discussing disciplinary methods, termination letters and employment standards.