LAW 4110: Final Assignment - Constructive Dismissal (35%)

This assignment relates to the following Course Learning Requirements:

CLR 1: Relate the Canadian legal framework to the issues impacting the workplace and human resources practitioners CLR 3: Organize and implement policies and procedures that address the human resources legal issues within an organization in order to reduce liability and risk CLR 4: Outline how current and unique legal proceedings impact applications of the law in the workplace CLR 5: Identify and implement the legal best practices surrounding all human resources activities in the workplace

Objective of this Assignment:

This case study assignment will provide you with an opportunity to practically apply the legal principles, case law, legislation and policy framework learned through the course to a fact situation involving an employment law issue.

Instructions

Step 1:Read the following scenario:

BACKGROUND Debbie Biggs has been an employee at FUN Packaging for 8 years. She started in the organization as a customer service representative and 2 years ago was promoted to customer services manager. Ms. Biggs has an excellent work record with no infractions. Since the start of her employment, Ms. Biggs has been very open with her Employer that she was being treated for depression but there was no indication that it would adversely affect her work. With the new promotion, Ms. Biggs now reported to the Director of Customer Service, Jason Brown. FUN Packaging is a small organization which started as a mom and pop shop. It was recently sold to a new employer and has expanded drastically. The new owners have been creating and updating HR policies for the organization. They currently have a "Whistleblower" Policy which encourages employees to confidentially report any concerns at the workplace. They also have a short "Bullying and Harassment" Policy whose purpose is to prevent and address incidents of bullying and harassment. This policy asks employees to report incidents and guarantees an investigation into any allegations. INCIDENTS

#1- THE REPORT As part of Ms. Biggs duties, she is to do a random audit every month of customer service calls. This entails her shadowing the representatives and providing feedback on their customer service. This report goes to Mr. Brown who reports it to his superior. Mr. Brown uses the report to identify any issues with the customer service being provided. It is a representation of his management abilities and his boss values positive reports. On the week that Ms. Biggs was to do the audit, she was ill due to her depression and was off work for a period of 1 week. As the reports were monthly, and this leave took place at the end of the month, there was no opportunity to do the report upon her return. When she came back, Mr. Brown immediately approached her and demanded that she see him in his office. His office is located next to the customer services representatives and is a glass wall office. Ms. Biggs went to meet with Mr. Brown. Mr. Brown did not close his office door and immediately began to berate Ms. Biggs about the report. He stated that she didn't care about her job, was useless, and was a failure for not controlling her illness. This conversation was overheard by many other employees. Ms. Biggs was incredibly shaken up and was unable to respond. She left the office crying and returned to her station.

#2- CONTUNIUED ACTIONS Since this incident, Mr. Brown subjected Ms. Biggs to unrelenting and increased verbal abuse. He regularly used profane language when speaking to her and was vocal in front of other staff. He belittled her and even made a point of bringing other employees to form an audience when he bereted her and showed his disdain for her. These culminating incidents devastated Ms. Biggs and spiralled her into further depression. She reported these incidents to the Vice President. He assured her he would look into these allegations.

THE FINAL INCIDENT

A month later, she was called into the Vice President's office for the outcome of the investigation. She was told that the complaints were unsubstantiated. He also told her that she would be held accountable for making false statements and undermining her supervisor. She received a written warning for this. Mr. Brown however, received no discipline or caution. One morning, Mr. Brown received a call from head office stating that a serious customer service complaint had escalated. It stated that the call was taken at his location and they were unable to resolve the issue. As the customer services manager, Mr. Brown immediately went to address and blame Ms. Biggs for this incident. He called her stupid and lazy, among many other names. Ms. Biggs left the building crying and went home immediately prior to the end of her shift. As she walked out, Mr. Brown yelled after her stating, "If you leave, you are walking off the job and you might as well not come back!".

Four days later Ms. Biggs sent an email to the Vice President stating that she did not quit but will not come back to work until her complaints about Ms. Brown are properly investigated and resolved to her satisfaction. They never were, and she never returned to work. A month later, Ms. Biggs received a registered letter stating that her employment was terminated with just cause for walking off the job. Ms. Biggs proceeded to file a lawsuit for constructive dismissal and damages.

Step 2:As the hired legal counsel for FUN Packaging, you have been made aware of the above scenario. You are asked to draft a risk report on the situation. In this report, you will:

• Summarize the facts of the case
• Analyze whether the organization had just cause to terminate Ms. Biggs' employment
• Analyze the strength and weaknesses of Ms. Biggs' claim of constructive dismissal
• Present the risk to the organization of this lawsuit
• Offer a suggested resolution to the case.

Step 3:

The organization has also retained you to review their organization's policies. In particular, the Workplace Bullying and Harassment Policy. You have been asked to draft a brand new policy to ensure instances such as the above do not occur again.

Remember that there are many different forms and aspects of business communication, including writing effective policies. Every policy document must be reviewed for legal implications, since any and all written documents in a business environment may be used as evidence in a legal dispute (e.g. court case, grievance, arbitration). For all documents, it is important to use professional language and tone. When writing any policy document, pay attention to your audience. Ensure all policies are clear and easy for all workplace parties to understand.