First published on Thursday, February 5, 2026
Last updated on Thursday, February 5, 2026
Welcome to HR Heartbeat, where we take a look at the week’s most pressing HR and employment law stories. With over a decade of experience working within the HR and employment law industry, I give my opinion on current trends impacting your business, as well as my own personal commentary on all things HR and legal.
Misconduct is seemingly on the rise
Employers can learn about more than taxes from the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) latest misconduct report.
Data from the report highlights a growing trend of workplace integrity issues that HR professionals and business owners may need to be on the lookout for in their own organizations.
The major risks exposed were:
Data snooping & privacy: A staggering number of cases involved staff accessing sensitive files (including employees checking their own or relatives' tax data) without authorization.
Time theft: "False attendance" was rampant. Some employees manipulated systems to make it seem like they were active or submitted timesheets with hours they didn’t work.
Reputational damage: There was also a good amount of conduct issues from "ghosting" shifts to "poisoning" the work environment with aggressive language.
If you’re dealing with issues like these in your workplace or want to stop them before they even begin, discipline should always be the first step. If progressive discipline doesn’t work, then you can explore options like suspensions and even terminations.
Other ways I recommend managing misconduct include implementing robust monitoring, clear codes of conduct, and reporting policies.
Tip sharing lessons for Ontario Employers
Recent legislation in Ontario tightened employer obligations around tips, but a ruling from the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) has really solidified things for many employers.
It serves as a stark warning that if you manage a tip pool, your records must be watertight.
A Mississauga restaurant was ordered to pay over $16,000 to two former servers after failing to prove its tip-sharing policy was lawful.
The Board found several critical failures that any employer with tipped staff should note.
The restaurant paid a flat monthly "tip bonus" regardless of actual customer gratuities. The Board ruled this counted as distributing general revenue, not actual tips, which isn’t in line with the Employment Standards Act (ESA).
Also, almost a third of the tip pool went to managers and the owner. Another violation of the ESA.
Employment standards dictate that owners/directors can only share tips if they perform the same "hands-on" work as tipped staff. So the owner taking a share of the tips for themselves was against the law.
The final nail in the coffin was the employer’s failure to provide reconciliation statements or post their tip-sharing policy in a visible place which has been a mandatory requirement as of June 2024.
As an employer, the legal burden is on you to prove your policy is an "exact fit" for ESA exceptions. Without clear contracts, posted policies, and transparent tip tracking, "stolen" tip allegations can quickly turn into expensive "wages owing" debts.
A $3,400 lesson in Alberta labor law
A recent Alberta Employment Standards Appeal Board ruling proves that poor paperwork can sink even the strongest "just cause" defense.
A business was ordered to pay over $3,400 to a former employee after its disciplinary records were deemed a "documentation disaster”.
Here’s where they got it wrong.
Altered records: The company submitted discipline forms that appeared to have been altered. Some parts of it were "whited out," and the employees’ name was spelled incorrectly. It also contained conflicting dates. In one instance, a record claimed the employee was late at the exact time he was attending a company safety meeting.
Retroactive wage cuts: The employer slashed wages from $30 to $20 per hour mid-pay period. Under Alberta law, wage reduction notices must be given before the pay period begins.
"Handshake" deductions: The company deducted rent for an RV parking spot based on a verbal agreement. The Board ruled this as illegal, because the Employment Standards Code requires all deductions to be authorized in writing.
If your interactions with employees aren’t in writing and accurate, then they didn’t happen. To win a dismissal appeal, your evidence must be consistent, signed, and contemporaneous.
And that’s a wrap from me. Come back next time for my take on the latest headlines and employment law stories, helping keep your business ahead!
