Industrial Alliance layoff hits small capital markets division

iA Financial Corp (Industrial Alliance) is laying off staff and making changes to its capital markets division, adding to the recent job losses on Bay Street.

As part of these changes, 17 employees in the capital markets division, mainly in investment banking, have been let go. iA has stated that over 30 employees will remain in the division, focusing on areas like bond trading and foreign exchange.

The decision comes as a response to challenging market conditions in the past two years, marked by increasing interest rates, limited new offerings in the primary market, and a decline in corporate deal flow volume, according to spokesperson Pierre Picard.

iA’s capital markets division is relatively small compared to the major banks and large independent dealers like Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. Nonetheless, these job cuts add to the recent layoffs on Bay Street, which have affected companies such as Canaccord Genuity, BMO Nesbitt Burns, and other giants in the banking industry.

Earlier this week, RBC Dominion Securities also reduced its workforce, particularly in its fixed-income division, following its announcement last month of further staff reductions of one to two percent.

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• Where are layoffs happening in Canada?

Severance agreements for Industrial Alliance employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees at Industrial Alliance are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing, corporate restructuring, or the closure of the business.

This includes individuals working full-time, part-time, or hourly in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C.

People working “on contract” or as a contractor may also be owed severance pay — given that many employees in Canada are often misclassified as independent contractors.

Severance can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a number of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Rights to severance for federally regulated employees
• Severance entitlements during mass layoffs
• Severance packages in a recession

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains what rights employees have if they are being fired or let go on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract.

We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper severance if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you don’t receive the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.

In some cases, employers pressure staff into accepting poor severance packages, such as imposing a deadline for accepting the offer.

Non-unionized employees in Canada have up to two years from the date of their dismissal to pursue a claim for full severance pay.