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Atlantic Employers’ Counsel – Fall 2015

THE EDITORS’ CORNER

Michelle Black and Sean Kelly

Trick, Treat or … Taunt? Workplace Bullying and Harassment

Fall has arrived! The leaves are changing colours, families are stockpiling Halloween candy (some of which will actually last long enough to be distributed on the 31st), and warm knitwear is being dragged back out of the closet. But what is happening at your workplace? Are all of your employees “playing nice” with each other or do you have some ghouls in the group?

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BULLYING ISN’T JUST FOR KIDS ANYMORE: ACTUALLY, IT NEVER REALLY WAS…

Ellen Oakes Thompson

The recognition that bullying occurs far beyond the playground is now so widespread that an entire episode of The Simpsons was dedicated to the topic earlier this year. However, despite the recognition of its occurrence, even the most seasoned human resources professionals often still shy away from dealing with serious interpersonal conflicts between coworkers or between superiors and subordinates.

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WHEN HARASSMENT IS NOT HARASSMENT

Stephen Carpenter, CHRP and Patti Wheatley

There is more and more discussion today about harassment and bullying in the workplace. This has led to assertions of harassment and bullying in situations even where the claims are unwarranted. Discipline is one of the most frequent areas where we see claims of harassment from employees – employees claim that they are being harassed but managers feel they are simply doing their job.

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TOP 10 CONSIDERATIONS FOR WORKPLACE (AND THEREABOUTS) SEXUAL MISCONDUCT

Twila Reid

Over the past year Jian Ghomeshi went from being the “King of Spain” to eating “Humble Pie” (if you are too young/old to know what this is referring to, search Moxie Früvous). Whether it’s the CBC or Bill Cosby, issues of sexual misconduct have been dominating the headlines. Even off-duty conduct is up for scrutiny – consider the worker who yells “FHRITP” to a reporter during a live broadcast or heckles a female comedian off the stage during a work party.

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FALSE/UNFOUNDED ALLEGATIONS: WHAT ABOUT THE UNSUBSTANTIATED COMPLAINTS?

Rick Dunlop

As long as there are harassment and respectful workplace policies that provide employees an opportunity to file complaints against their fellow employees, there will be, periodically, false or unfounded allegations. Employers can put themselves in a better position to avoid the liability associated with such false or unfounded allegations if they abide by the following:

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Archive

Relief (potentially) in sight – The availability of remission under the Canadian retaliatory tariff regime (Part III)

BY Michelle Chai

By Michelle Chai In Parts I and II of this series, we discussed the remission guidelines and template for submissions published by the Department of Finance Canada (the “Guidelines”) for those…

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Relief (potentially) in sight – The availability of remission under the Canadian retaliatory tariff regime (Part II)

BY Michelle Chai

By Michelle Chai In Part I of this series, we discussed the industries and goods eligible for remission.  In Parts II and III, we attempt to provide a framework for importers…

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Relief (potentially) in sight – The availability of remission under the Canadian retaliatory tariff regime (Part I)

BY Michelle Chai

By Michelle Chai Government has implemented some processes which they hope will provide Canadian businesses and importers with some much-needed relief.  Update: An earlier version of this article was published before…

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Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal sends tort of “Intrusion Upon Seclusion” back into seclusion: Mount Pearl (City) v. Power, 2025 NLCA 16

BY Joe Thorne & Danielle Harris

By Joe Thorne and Danielle Harris After a brief two years of recognition in this province of a common law claim for breach of privacy, it seems its time has…

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Preparing for Canada’s “Modern Slavery Act”: reporting deadline May 31

By Colleen Keyes, K.C., Christine Pound, ICD.D, and Harper Metler The 2024 reports under the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act (the “Act”) are due…

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New harassment prevention obligations for Nova Scotia employers

By Sean Kelly, Katharine Mack and Tiegan Scott Effective September 1, 2025, amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act passed last year will require employers in Nova Scotia to…

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Non-disclosure agreements: A sword or a shield?

Murray L. Murphy, K.C., CPHR, Katharine Mack and Kate Profit Non-Disclosure Agreements (“NDAs”), legal contracts in which the parties agree to keep information outlined in the agreement strictly confidential, have been the subject…

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What are deceptive design patterns (DDPs)?

Charlotte Henderson and Kaitlyn Clarke Interested in understanding the impacts of AI on your business? Looking to understand how these intersect with concerns around privacy? Curious about the impacts of…

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Effectively identifying and navigating subtle discrimination: A must-do list for employers

By Lynn Iding, CPHR, CCIP and Sheila Mecking Interested in understanding the impacts of subtle discrimination on your business? Curious about the latest legal developments in racial discrimination? Looking to…

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Summary of Bill 14 – Act to Amend the Fair Registration Practices in Regulated Professions Act

By Sheila Mecking and Danielle Bailey-Heelan On March 25, 2025, Bill 14 was introduced by the Acting Minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour to amend the Fair Registration Practices…

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