Employment Law: Bargaining, Hiring and Disputes

Students will examine the statutory requirements and common law principles within the employment relationship. Students will analyze the application of contract law to individual contracts of employment; the modification of contract by way of statutory rules governing the employment relationship in the areas of health and safety, employment standards, human rights, workplace injury compensation and privacy; and the replacement of an individual contract of employment by a collective agreement in a unionized workplace. The minimum standards of the Employment Standards Act, including overtime, statutory leaves and entitlements on the termination of employment are discussed. Students will examine the collective bargaining regime, including the role of the trade union, the scope of collective agreements and the grievance process with a view to assessing differing legal rights, processes and entitlements in a unionized workforce.