Article about how incidents outside of work can provide just cause for dismissal in some circumstances: http://www.thestar.com/business/2014/10/29/private_life_can_be_cause_for...
Unsurprisingly, the only relevant and wholly accurate comments in that piece come from the very reputable Sack Goldblatt Mitchell firm:
The onus is on the employer to prove the employee’s personal activities harmed the business, said Howard Goldblatt, a partner in the Toronto law firm Sack Goldblatt Mitchell.
“I had a case where there was a domestic abuse issue to which the individual pleaded guilty. It had no impact on their employment. The arbitrator ordered them reinstated,” Goldblatt said.
The rest of the article is a mishmash.
Here's a pretty powerful example of what it takes to fire a unionized employee (or in Québec, any employee) based solely on criminal activities unrelated to the workplace (emphasize: Ghomeshi hasn't been charged):
[url=http://www.scc-csc.gc.ca/case-dossier/info/sum-som-eng.aspx?cas=32763]Co... scolaire de Montréal v. Alliance des professeures et professeurs de Montréal, et al.[/url]
In 1991, the Respondent Jean-Alix Miguel was convicted of manslaughter after killing his wife during a psychotic episode. He was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment and was paroled a few years later. In 1998, Mr. Miguel was hired by the Applicant school board to teach construction electricity to adults. In 2004, Bernard Rochon, a personnel management advisor in the Applicant’s human resources department, learned of Mr. Miguel’s past and advised the authorities at the school where Mr. Miguel was teaching to cease employing him.[...]
The arbitrator ruled in the union’s favour on the basis, inter alia, that the only real reason for the employer’s decision was the criminal conviction. According to the arbitrator, in the circumstances, that conviction was not connected with the employment within the meaning of s. 18.2 of the Charter of human rights and freedoms, which meant that the employer’s decision could not be upheld. The Superior Court dismissed the school board’s motion for judicial review, and a majority of the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
However, had he made some racist or sexist comments to students or colleagues, maybe after one or two warnings, or slapped someone, he could have been fired quite easily.
This will be interesting.
