The BC Court of Appeal recently released decisions in two cases that were the subject of previous Work Place Post articles.

In the September 2012 issue, we discussed the Allen v. Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. decision. In that case, Ainsworth Lumber advised the employee that he would be terminated in 15 months. The employee was not required to report to work during that 15 month period, but was paid his full salary and benefits. At trial, the BC Supreme Court held that putting the employee on a “garden leave” constituted a wrongful dismissal and awarded the employee 15 months “pay in lieu”.

The Staley v. Squirrel Systems of Canada Ltd. decision was discussed in our January 2013 issue. In that case, the Court held that an employee was not entitled to insist on transferring his place of work, absent a contractual provision granting such a right.

The BC Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal by Ainsworth in the first case and the appeal by the employee in the second case.