The opening words of the trial judge’s reasons for decision
in Plester v. Polyone Canada Inc., 2011 ONSC 6068 (CanLII), affirmed by the
Court of Appeal for Ontario earlier this week (2013 ONCA 47 (CanLII)) might leave some
employers with the impression that the case would be one where the court would
find just cause for dismissal: “Mr. Plester made a serious mistake at work.” Those
impressions would be mistaken.
In a decision released in late November 2011 and affirmed on
appeal on January 28th of this year, the Honourable Justice Bonnie J.
Wein held that the breaking of an employer’s “Cardinal rule” was not just cause
for dismissal.