Lior Samfiru on employment laws and workplace relationships with 640 Toronto

Interview Summary

The mayor of Toronto John Tory recently made headlines due to his resignation and the motivation behind it. Tory admitted to a workplace affair with a subordinate and apologized for his behaviour. Can employees engage in workplace relationships without legal consequences? Should all workplaces have a policy regarding relationships?

Lior Samfiru, a Toronto employment lawyer and co-founding Partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP joined Maggie John on 640 Toronto to answer these questions and more.

Interview Notes

• Employment laws on workplace romances in Ontario: In Ontario, and in most provinces, there are no employment laws that prevent employees from engaging in workplace relationships. Many workplaces could have policies in place that do not encourage relationships.
• Ottawa city council code of conduct policies: Employers in the private sector often do have policies in place that require employees to disclose their workplace relationships. Ottawa city council’s new policy decision seems to be wise and follows many private work sector policies.
• Big employers’ workplace romance rules: It is uncommon for large corporations not to address workplace relationships and the potential for imbalances in power. It is surprising that the city of Toronto did not have a policy in place to address this specific issue.
• The power imbalance in John Tory’s workplace relationship: The biggest problem and question arisen after Tory’s announcement has been whether or not this relationship could truly have been consensual as it was with a subordinate. There is currently provincial legislation that details the importance of safety in the workplace, and environments free from discrimination and harassment. This situation could call into question human rights violations.
• Rules surrounding employer and employee relationships: Employers could benefit from having a detailed policy in place that specifically addresses an employer and employee relationship as it would protect the employer from future liability.
• Employee resigns after relationship: In many situations, employees feel that they have to leave the workplace as a result of workplace relationships. Employees that feel that they have no choice but to leave their employment could consider constructive dismissal.