Think twice before you quit

A recent decision by the Superior Court of Ontario might make employees think twice before leaving their jobs abruptly.

The case is described in an article entitled “I Quit! — Not Yet, You Don’t,” by Brian Silva of CC Partners, published April 1.

Silva’s article explains that while we often hear about employees successfully suing their former employers  for compensation when they are dismissed, in this case the boot was on the other foot: the company successfully sued the employee for not giving enough notice.

The case involved a company called Gagnon & Associates who sued after one of its top salesman left the company in 2006 without giving any notice at all. The salesman had been with his employer for 10 years and was bringing in approximately 30 per cent of the company’s sales.

After he left to join the competition some of his clients took their business to his new company, so Gagnon lost revenue. It also had difficulty replacing him.

The court decided that the salesperson (he was not management, but earned $180,000 in salary) should have given his employer two months notice. It awarded the employer over $35,000 for the loss of sales.

To read Silva’s article, click here