Employee Misconduct and Dismissal for Cause: Evidence from Canada

James D. Grant
Terry H. Wagar

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DOI: 10.2190/689C-TNXL-Q22E-DN06

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine factors influencing a court's decision that an employer had just cause for dismissal on the grounds of employee misconduct. Based on an analysis of 140 Canadian dismissal cases over the period 1975 to 1989, the results indicated that employers won about 47 percent of the cases. In addition to the nature of the misconduct, a number of factors including employer condonation, circumstances negating intent, the record of the plaintiff and whether the employee had obtained a new job were related to case outcome.

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