Employee rights when dealing with service provider outages

Telecommunications giant Rogers has experienced a Canada-wide service outage beginning sometime in the early hours of Friday, July 8, 2022. Wireless, cable and internet customers have been impacted across the nation.

Other companies that are extensions of Rogers including Fido and Chatr have also been impacted by the outage, along with emergency services, travel and financial networks.

This outage is preventing many employees from being able to fulfil their job duties, especially those working remotely.

Can I be fired if my internet or phone service is down?

An employer can fire an employee if they are unable to work because their internet or phone connection is down, as in the recent issue impacting Rogers customers. This is called a termination without cause. A worker can be fired in this manner for any reason as long as they are provided full severance pay, and the reasons for the termination aren’t discriminatory.

What an employer can’t do is fire an employee for just cause for not being able to connect to work when the network is down. A company would have to prove that they applied progressive disciplinary measures and that there was no lesser sanction available – terminating an employee with cause for not being able to connect to the network would be a grossly disproportionate response.

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Can my employer fire me by text or email?

Are employees obligated to make up any missed time when experiencing connection issues when working remotely?

It ultimately depends on the type of work and compensation structure an employee is on. For instance:

• Hourly rate employees: you simply wouldn’t put in for the time that you were disconnected and you wouldn’t be paid for it
• Salaried employees: If you are expected to work 8 hours a day, you would have to make up the working time that is lost.

Can I be penalized for missing work because of a connection issue?

Your employer cannot make significant changes to your job because connection issues are preventing you from fulfilling specific duties remotely. It is illegal, and any major modifications to your employment can be treated as a termination of your relationship with the company. An employment lawyer at my firm can pursue a constructive dismissal claim to ensure you receive full severance pay.

Dealing with a workplace issue due to network outages? Talk to an employment lawyer today

If you are a non-unionized employee in Ontario, Alberta, or British Columbia that has been affected by or fired due to a service provider outage and have questions about your workplace rights and entitlements, contact an employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP today.