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McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
True/False Questions
1) Advertising a job position is risk free because there is no employment relationship at that
time.
a. True
b. False
2) A job description is a human resources document with no legal implications.
a. True
b. False
3) Big Brother Inc has instituted a new email policy for the workplace. In addition to
outlawing the viewing of pornography and the dissemination of defamatory material, the
policy also states that all email, both personal and otherwise, will be monitored by the
corporation. In some provinces, this entire policy would be void since employee monitoring
violates the human rights or privacy rights of the employees.
a. True
b. False
4) Statements made by both parties during hiring can have an effect on the employment
contract.
a. True
b. False
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
5) All workers even independent contractors are entitled to certain minimum employment
standards.
a. True
b. False
6) An employee acting in the course of her assigned duties who causes injury to a third
party is vicariously liable for damages.
a. True
b. False
7) Since positive reviews increase employee morale and are more pleasant to conduct,
employers and managers should always give a positive review when appraising an
employee’s work habits.
a. True
b. False
8) A promotion entails new duties and not necessarily an increase in pay.
a. True
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
b. False
9) Chloe lives in Quebec. Her employer recently asked her to work on Canada Day. If she
takes the shift, she is entitled to additional pay.
a. True
b. False
10) Jerry is a 21-year-old waiter in Ontario. He is entitled to the same minimum wage as he
would be if he lived in Quebec.
a. True
b. False
11) The purpose of human rights legislation is remedial rather than punitive in nature.
a. True
b. False
12) Ji has failed to live up to his employer’s expectations. The employer tells Ji that she has
to learn to perform as well as Shawna. Ji responds by saying that she completes assigned
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
tasks carefully and thoroughly but at her own pace. Nevertheless, since the employer can
show that another employee can do a better job, she is justified in dismissing Ji.
a. True
b. False
13) Employees (as opposed to independent contractors) are always entitled to reasonable
notice or money in lieu regardless of the circumstances of their dismissal.
a. True
b. False
14) An employer found by a court to owe its employee money in lieu of notice will never
owe more than the amounts set out in employment standards legislation.
a. True
b. False
15) Tomaj is fired by his employer without reasonable notice and without cause. He is
likely entitled to a severance package.
a. True
b. False
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
Multiple Choice Questions
1) Which of the following items may be required in an employment application without
offending human rights legislation concerned with employment standard?
a. Specify an emergency contact and your relationship to that person.
b. Are you legally entitled to work in Canada?
c. Please specify marital status.
d. What church do you go to?
e. What clubs do you belong to?
2) Which of the following best highlights the distinction between employees and
independent contractors?
a. Employees owe a higher degree of loyalty.
b. Independent contractors can quit whenever they want without consequence.
c. Employees need not remit some of their pay to workers’ compensation.
d. Independent contractors do not need to pay income tax.
e. Independent contractors do not need to follow directions from the entity they contracted
with.
3) Which of the following entitlements are employees but not independent contractors
provided for by statute?
a. reasonable notice of termination
b. severance pay
c. overtime pay
d. vacation pay
e. human rights laws
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
4) Mr Plumber regularly carries out services for Big Irv’s Plumbing supplies. Which of the
following factors will the court consider when seeking to determine whether Mr Plumber is
an employee or independent contractor of Big Irv’s Plumbing?
a. Mr Plumber’s prior work experience
b. whether Mr Plumber owned the tools used to carry out services
c. Big Irv’s annual profit
d. how long Mr Plumber has known Big Irv
e. Mr Plumber’s family relationship to the owner of Big Irv’s
5) Sonya is an independent contractor, working for Diamond Dave’s Deliver-All. While
delivering mini-donuts, Sonya inadvertently runs into the back of a parked car and smashes
the bumper and back windshield. Luckily no one is hurt. Still, the owner of the car has
decided to sue Diamond Dave to collect for the damages done to the car. Under which of
the following circumstances will the owner succeed?
a. if she is able to prove that the accident happened while Sonya was working
b. if she is able to prove that the accident was sufficiently connected to Sonya’s deliveries
c. if she is able to prove that Dave told Sonya to drive on that busy street during rush hour
d. if she is able to prove that Sonya has a string of previous accidents on her record
e. if she is able to prove that Sonya is not an independent contractor but actually an
employee, and therefore Diamond Dave would be vicariously liable for her actions
6) Employment policy manuals
a. are merely cosmetic and play no actual role in employee supervision.
b. are not enforceable unless their content has been approved by a workplace advisory
group.
c. are a means of expressing the conduct that is expected of employees during the course of
their employment.
d. are established under the Employment Standards Act.
e. are always binding contracts.
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
7) Tracy has been on the job for six months now, but is failing to live up to her employer’s
initial expectations. From the perspective of risk management, what is the prudent course of
action?
a. Fire Tracy immediately while she is still in the probationary period.
b. Suspend Tracey with pay and ask her to spend the time away from work redefining her
job description.
c. Promote Tracey into a different position.
d. Conduct and document a performance review.
e. Commence a program of progressive discipline.
8) From a risk management perspective, the value of a performance review is enhanced if
a. the employer provides the employee with two notarized copies of the review.
b. the employer posts the review in a public area.
c. the employer gives a day off to employees that receive outstanding reviews.
d. the employer conducts the review in accordance with some objective standard, usually a
form that both parties can sign upon completion of the review process.
e. the employer tailors the review differently for each individual.
9) Employees are NOT entitled to leaves from the workplace under Employment Standards
legislation for which of the following circumstances?
a. pregnancy
b. child-rearing
c. vacation
d. bereavement
e. birthdays
10) Daphne has worked for Eddie for two years. Last year, she elected to take her vacation
during the winter so that she could fly south with her significant other. This year, she has
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
asked to take a holiday in the summer. Eddie refuses, telling her that she must take her
holidays at the same time of year from now on. Which of the following is true?
a. Eddie’s refusal is most certainly a human rights violation.
b. Daphne’s complaint will be dealt with by her local workplace advisory committee.
c. Eddie is within his rights to refuse Daphne’s request.
d. Daphne has the right to take her vacation whenever she likes.
e. Eddie and Daphne have no choice but to enter binding arbitration to resolve their dispute.
11) La Batootski Sandwiches Inc is hiring a sandwich maker (due to the enthusiastic
response they receive each year from Italian tourists visiting for the summer). In addition to
the requirement of being able to make a mean turkey and provolone, which of the following
characteristics might be justified as a bona fide occupational requirement?
a. ability to converse in Italian
b. proof of Italian ancestry
c. proof of an Italian post-secondary education
d. 20/20 vision
e. single or married status, but not divorced
12) Indirect discrimination in the workplace
a. occurs when someone outside the employment setting behaves in a discriminatory
fashion.
b. does not involve adopting a rule or practice that treats a person differently.
c. is an acceptable practice in some provinces.
d. can be distinguished from direct discrimination on the basis of the wrongdoers intention.
e. has an adverse effect on at least one employee.
13) Which of the following is the clearest example of sexual harassment?
a. the employer paying women a lower rate to do the same work
b. the employer requiring all women sales personnel to attend an evening cocktail party
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
c. the employer intentionally asking a female colleague rather than a male colleague to
attend a business dinner
d. one colleague joking with another for the third time about going on a romantic weekend
getaway together
e. a worker complimenting another worker on that worker’s new clothes
14) Which of the following adaptations to the workplace would not be required of an
employer in order to comply with a duty to accommodate?
a. creating wheelchair access
b. installing ergonomic workstations
c. outfitting an office with a speaker-phone
d. allowing dogs into the workplace
e. Building a new office building at a cost of $1 billion to accommodate a single employees
sneezing caused by her non-medically diagnosable adverse reaction to “something” in the
old building.
15) Hermann is a hair products distributor who works out of his second-storey walk-up
apartment. His business has expanded, making a profit of $136 000 last year. He decided to
hire someone to answer the phones on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon while he does
deliveries. After interviewing Waldzell, he offers her the position. After one week on the
job, Waldzell returns from a ski weekend with a badly broken hip and foot. It turns out she
will need reconstructive surgery and, though mobile, she will be in a body cast for almost a
year. She will be able to get around by wheelchair. Unfortunately, the elevator in
Hermann’s building has been broken for over a year. Herman inquires into the cost of repair
and finds out that it will be more than a million dollars. After an inquiry to his telephone
provider, Hermann finds out that he is able to forward his calls and offers Waldzell to keep
the job and work from home. She becomes indignant and claims a right to the same
working conditions as before her accident. Seeking accommodation, she decides to bring a
human rights complaint. Which of the following is true?
a. Waldzell will win because in this case it is possible for the employer to make adaptations
to the workplace by fixing the elevator.
b. Waldzell will not be able to compel Hermann to fix the elevator but she will get
compensatory damages in lieu thereof.
c. Hermann will claim undue hardship and will likely succeed.
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
d. Hermann could be forced to close his business if he doesn’t comply.
e. Although Hermann cannot be compelled to fix the elevator, the owner of the walk-up
most certainly will.
16) When a safety standard has been breached in the workplace, the employer will be
subject to a corresponding fine
a. no matter what.
b. only if it has not put into effect a workplace advisory committee.
c. only if a worker was hurt as a result.
d. depending on whether it is able to prove due diligence.
e. only if the safety standard is proved to be a reasonable standard of safety.
17) Which of the following descriptions of workers’ compensation schemes is true?
a. Compensation for partial disability is based on the difference between pre-accident
earning capacity and post-accident spending capacity.
b. Workers who suffer a partial, though temporary, incapacity are paid the same as they
were prior to the accident during the length of their recovery.
c. If a worker is killed during employment, no money comes out of the accident fund.
d. Worker compensation schemes are funded through employer on an opt-in basis.
e. Worker compensation funds are funded though compulsory contributions from
employers.
18) Summary dismissal
a. is the same thing as wrongful dismissal.
b. means that the employee is dismissed without notice.
c. means that the employer had just cause.
d. means that the employee is dismissed with notice.
e. means that the employee is dismissed with reasonable notice.
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
19) Roy has missed 10 days of work this year as a result of a reoccurring viral illness.
Although he has never missed more than two days of work in a row, his productivity has
definitely been affected. Roy’s employer has done the math and figured out that his absence
from work has prejudiced its business interests. Which of the following is true?
a. The employer has just cause for dismissing Roy.
b. Roy can be dismissed without notice on the basis of his repeated absenteeism.
c. Roy’s absenteeism is just cause so long as the employer documents the number of days
missed and the lost productivity as a result.
d. In order for absenteeism to be a just cause for dismissal, the employer must demonstrate
that the employee was dishonest about his or her absence.
e. The facts do not demonstrate just cause for dismissal without notice.
20) Claire stretches crusts at a local pizzeria. One day, Claire showed up 10 minutes late
with beer on his breath. (He had a couple of beers a few hours before coming to work.)
When asked by his supervisor whether he had been drinking, he told the truth and said that
he was not drunk but only energized. And he proved it by stretching pizza crusts twice as
fast as either of his two co-workers. Concerned that others would think that drinking before
work was an acceptable behaviour, his supervisor decided to make an example of Claire.
He sent him home about an hour into the shift and told him that he would receive his final
cheque in the mail. Which of the following is most likely true?
a. Firing Claire was justified whether or not he posed a serious threat to the safety of the
workplace.
b. Firing Claire was not justified because his job performance was unaffected.
c. Firing Claire was justified because to do otherwise would have been to condone Claire’s
behaviour.
d. Firing Claire was justified because Claire drank alcohol within 48 hours of a shift.
e. Firing Claire was justified only if he was a known abuser of alcohol.
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
21) Percy seems to lack the basic skills necessary to do her job. Which of the following is
true?
a. To prove incompetence, her employer need only show that her job could have been done
better.
b. To claim this as the ground for summary dismissal, her employer must demonstrate that
she once had the skill.
c. To manage risk, her employer should tell her that her work is substandard, develop a
process for improvement, and tell her that she will be fired if she is unable to improve.
d. To increase profitability, she should be moved into an easier job—even if that means
promoting her.
e. To increase profitability, she should be fired immediately.
22) Which of the following examples of employee behaviour would most likely be seen as
disobedience warranting dismissal?
a. a repeated failure to follow instructions
b. criticizing the ways that the employer does business
c. refusing to carry out duties because of illness
d. refusing to do as instructed out of a concern for safety
e. missing work for a day to look after the employee’s sick child
23) Which of the following is the best example of a conflict of interest?
a. teaching a college course based on skills learned at the workplace
b. accepting gifts from competitors
c. giving common sense advice to a friend who is trying to get a job with your employer
d. not telling your employer that you have been accused of a criminal offence
e. taking a part-time night job unrelated to your full-time employment
24) Wrongful dismissal occurs when an employee is
a. summarily dismissed for wrongful conduct in the course of employment.
McInnes/Kerr/VanDuzer: Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business, Fourth Edition
Chapter 26: Individual Employment
b. dismissed with just cause but without reasonable notice or money in lieu.
c. dismissed without just cause but with reasonable notice (or money in lieu).
d. dismissed without just cause and without reasonable notice (or money in lieu).
e. dismissed for being drunk while at work.
25) The notion of bad faith is relevant to wrongful dismissal in that a court will use it to
a. lengthen the period of notice required of an employer.
b. award damages to an employee, whether or not the employee has actual proof of mental
distress.
c. reinstate the employee in his or her former position.
d. put the employer out of business.
e. determine that wrongful conduct caused foreseeable mental distress and the employee
suffered actual psychological damages (if the employee can show the employer acted in
bad faith in the dimissal process)
26) Which type of dismissal occurs when an employer fundamentally changes the nature of
an employee’s job?
a. constructive
b. wrongful
c. conflict
d. severance
e. summary
27) Which of the following best distinguishes constructive dismissal from summary
dismissal?
a. In the case of constructive dismissal, the employee is offered a settlement package in
exchange for a resignation letter.
b. In the case of constructive dismissal, the employee is dismissed without notice.
c. In the case of constructive dismissal, the employee is not actually fired.
