On June 7th, David Yazbeck and James Cameron will speak on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder at a conference organized by REACH Canada. REACH has offered lawyer referrals and public education for individuals living with disabilities since 1981. Ravenlaw is a long-term, proud supporter of REACH.
For more information, and to register for the conference, please visit the REACH website: http://www.reach.ca/?action=site.show&lid=26&comaction=view&eid=NAXRU-6L6T4-QY6T6
Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne and Yazbeck LLP is pleased to announce the launch of the Alison Dewar Scholarship in Women’s Equality, Labour and Human Rights Law.
This scholarship was created by the firm in partnership with the National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL), in memory of our dear friend and colleague who died on October 17, 2013. The scholarship will be available annually to a female student at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law who demonstrates a commitment to pursuing a career in women’s equality and union-side labour, workers’ rights or human rights law. Alison devoted herself to this work and our firm is excited to support future lawyers who share her passion for these issues.
For more information on the scholarship please visit the University of Ottawa’s scholarship and bursary webpage <https://bourses.uottawa.ca/p/a/13364/> or contact the Financial Aid Administrator at the University of Ottawa’s Common Law Section. The deadline to apply is November 30, 2014.
A recent decision of the Federal Court of Appeal overturned a decision by the Canadian Artists and Producers Professional Relations Tribunal. A majority of the court held that the refusal of the National Gallery to discuss minimum compensation to artists did not constitute bad faith bargaining on the part of the Gallery, as the imposition of minimum fees for use of existing works fell within the sphere of copyright, and not within the scope of negotiable terms as defined by the Status of the Artist Act.
The case, found at this link, was argued by David Yazbeck and Wassim Garzouzi of our firm: http://decisions.fca-caf.gc.ca/en/2013/2013fca64/2013fca64.html
Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck is pleased to announce that David Yazbeck has been appointed to a working group established by the CSA Group to develop and publish a whistleblower guideline for Canada. The CSA Group (formerly the Canadian Standards Association) is a world leader in establishing standards in a variety of areas. Recently, CSA Group, together with the Bureau de normalisation du Quebec, established a national standard of Canada in relation to psychological health and safety in the workplace.
David Yazbeck is one of the leading practitioners in the area of whistleblower law. He is one of many experts or interested persons who have been appointed to the CSA Group working group to establish a whistleblower guideline.
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal recently released its groundbreaking decision in Johnstone v. Canada Border Services Agency. In its ruling, the Tribunal held that Fiona Johnstone’s employer failed to accommodate her family status obligations and, in particular, her need to provide child care for her children.
Fiona Johnstone, a Border Service Officer with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), requested a fixed shift schedule to allow her to arrange child care for her child. Like her husband, who also works at CBSA, Mrs Johnstone worked an irregular rotating shift schedule – 24 hours a day, seven days a week – which made it impossible to find a child care provider. The employer stated that it would provide a static shift for Mrs Johnstone, but forced her into part-time status.
Mrs Johnstone presented a complaint in 2004 under theCanadian Human Rights Act, which was ultimately referred to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal for a hearing. Mrs Johnstone was supported throughout this process by her union, the Public Service Alliance of Canada.
In its defence, the employer argued that the test for family status discrimination should be higher than that of other grounds of discrimination. In particular, the employer argued that family status discrimination should only be found where there is a “serious interference” with a “substantial parental obligation.” Mrs Johnstone, with legal representation from our firm, maintained that the threshold for demonstrating discrimination in a family status case should be no different than for any other ground of discrimination. The Tribunal agreed with Mrs Johnstone, stating that “an individual should not have to tolerate some amount of discrimination to a certain unknown level before being afforded the protection of theAct.” The Tribunal found that Mrs Johnstone had established aprima facie case of discrimination.
The Tribunal also rejected the employer’s argument that it would suffer undue hardship if it was required to accommodate Mrs Johnstone. In particular, the Tribunal rejected the employer’s submission that there would be health and safety concerns associated with Mrs Johnstone working 13-hour shifts and also rejected the expert evidence tendered by the employer that providing accommodation to Mrs Johnstone would open the floodgates to other requests for family status accommodation at CBSA. The Tribunal noted that, other than the expert report that was prepared for litigation and expressly rejected by the Tribunal, the employer had undertaken no analysis or consultations concerning the possibility of accommodating Mrs Johnstone’s child care needs.
The Tribunal ruled that CBSA’s conduct was willful and reckless in depriving Mrs Johnstone of her employment opportunities. The Tribunal ordered CBSA to pay Mrs Johnstone for lost wages and pension benefits, as well as damages totalling $35,000.
The full text of the Tribunal’s decision is available here.
Our firm is renewing its partnership with the University of Ottawa and continues its commitment and funding to the Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck LLP/s.r.l. Human Rights/Social Justice Internship which provides a student with an opportunity to work full time over the summer as an intern in the areas of social justice and human rights.
This is a program that we are very proud of as it gives students excellent experience in these areas but also provides legal support to social justice organizations. This year, the host organizations are the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women (OCTEVAW) and the Council of Canadians.
If your organization works in the areas of social justice and human rights and you are interested in having an intern in the future, please contact David Yazbeck at 613-567-2901.
Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck was a proud sponsor of the Ottawa Folk Festival again this year. In particular, we were delighted to support Jim Bryson and The Weakerthans, who performed as part of an exciting Saturday night line-up on the Main Stage and participated in several workshops during the festival.
Acclaimed Ottawa singer-songwriter Jim Bryson teamed up with iconic Winnipeg band The Weakerthans, who took their name from a line in the well-known union anthem Solidarity Forever: “yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one.” Given our work with employees and unions in labour and human rights matters, it was a pleasure support artists who share our passion for and commitment to social justice and equality.
Being part of the Ottawa Folk Festival was a wonderful experience — and one we hope to continue in the future!
Andrew Astritis recently participated as a panellist in the Lancaster House Audio Conference entitled Lying, Cheating and Stealing: What Acts of Employment Dishonesty Warrant Automatic Discharge.
The Audio Conference dealt with a wide range of issues including a review of recent case law regarding the discipline of dishonest conduct, the penalties for theft and abuse of sick leave, and situations in which an employee can be punished for off-duty conduct. The Audio Conference also examined the approach to be applied where misconduct may be attributable to a disability.
For further information, please visit the Lancaster House website.
Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne and Yazbeck is representing Donna Mowat before the Supreme Court of Canada, challenging the Federal Court of Appeal’s decision which held that successful complainants are not entitled to compensation for legal costs under the Canadian Human Rights Act.
Ms Mowat, who had substantiated a claim of sexual harassment before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, was awarded $47,000 in legal costs by the Tribunal. In quashing this decision, the Federal Court of Appeal held that the Tribunal’s authority to order compensation for “expenses” incurred as a result of discrimination did not include legal expenses. Ms Mowat maintains that legal expenses fall within the definition of expenses given the broad and liberal interpretation to be accorded to human rights legislation, the broader legislative context which supports this interpretation, and the underlying purpose of the Act, which is the eradication of discrimination.
The Appeal will be heard by the Supreme Court on December 13, 2010.
Our firm recently presented arguments to the Supreme Court of Canada in a significant case involving the removal of the over $28 billion surplus that had built up in the federal Public Service, RCMP and Canadian Forces pension accounts.
Advancing arguments on behalf of the Public Service Alliance of Canada and a number of associations representing current and former members of the Armed Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, our firm maintained that employees had an equitable right to the significant portions of the surplus that were directly attributable to contributions by workers and that this right had not been extinguished by legislation passed in 2000. This is the first case to be heard by the Supreme Court with respect to the rights workers have to a surplus in a statutory pension plan.
PSAC and the above-noted associations were represented by Andrew Raven, James Cameron and Andrew Astritis of RCBY. The Court reserved judgment on the matter.