Know Your Worker Rights!
December 16, 2024
A friend recently brought me an employment offer contract to review since she knows about my interest in law, specifically in contractual agreements and employment rights. She valued my perspective because she trusted my understanding of the subject and my career aspirations in the field.
Her job offer was for a teaching position at an independent academic facility. While my friend felt confident that her expertise fit the job requirement, she wanted to ensure the contract contained legitimate offers and didn’t hinder her employee rights before signing.
Upon reading the contract, I realized she did the right thing by reading it over. The beginning of the contract was formal, like any other: assuring exclusivity in not soliciting other teachers and safeguarding the academy's intellectual property. However, I noticed something odd under its Termination/Resignation section.
The contract stated that:
The employee must offer a notice of termination at least one month in advance.
The employee must complete all the student's course credits before termination.
The employee must work all required hours.
The catch is that any violation of these clauses is said to entitle the employer to prevent them from paying the employee for that month.
This is a gross violation of employee rights.
The Termination/Registration section clearly and directly contravenes the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), which entitles employees in Ontario to terminate their employment at any time without forfeiting wages earned. While providing two weeks' notice as a professional courtesy is customary, it is not a legal requirement under the ESA.
The clause stipulating the forfeiture of wages, if notice is not provided, creates an unlawful barrier to employees exercising their right to resign freely under the ESA. Such conditions effectively undermine statutory protections by imposing punitive consequences that are not supported by law, and any attempt to enforce this provision would likely be deemed invalid and unenforceable by a court.
Moreover, employers are prohibited from withholding earned wages as a penalty for an employee's decision to resign without notice. The ESA guarantees that employees are entitled to complete payment for work performed, irrespective of the circumstances of their departure.
Ultimately, my friend didn't sign the contract and brought these concerns to the employer. Contracts like these, which attempt to circumvent established legal protections, highlight the importance of approaching agreements with a critical eye. This instance should remind us that even seemingly standard clauses can infringe upon basic entitlements and make it essential to thoroughly review and understand every agreement before signing.
However, not everyone is aware of their rights or equipped to identify unlawful provisions, which leaves many vulnerable to exploitation. Expanding our access to justice and legal resources and promoting a greater awareness of our rights is important. When people are empowered with knowledge, they can better advocate for themselves and recognize when their rights are infringed. Efforts to create more accessible legal education and resources can help bridge this gap and ensure that individuals are aware of their protections and have the tools to act upon them.
And with that being said, always read your contracts!