Restaurant & Bar Employment Law: Knowledge & Experience at Work
The employees of a restaurant or bar are the lifeblood of the establishment, such the appropriate legal arrangements need to be put in place and enforced for the protection of the establishment.
Contact Neufeld Legal PC for restaurant/bar legal matters at 403-400-4092 / 905-616-8864 or Chris@NeufeldLegal.com
Employees are essential in the restaurant business, yet they can also be a great source of legal aggravation. As laws are generally drafted in favour of employees, as opposed to employers, it places the employer in a very precarious position, even when the employees are not meeting reasonable expectations. So even though you may theoretically be in the right, due to the general nature of the law, it is entirely possible to find yourself on the wrong side of the law when an employee is misperforming or underperforming.
The preferred method for dealing with any employee situation is to clearly define their role at the outset, whether they are employees or independent contractors, have a contractual agreement that clear spells out their role and obligations, and have a signed operations manual. Yet in most employment situations this is not the case and there is an ad hoc scenario, wherein the employer-employee relationship is not clearly defined. In such situations, it becomes even more important to consult a lawyer prior to undertaking any controversial employment action, as a fewer minor adjustments to the employer's approach could save the employer a considerable amount of money and aggravation.
As an experienced business lawyer experienced in the operational side of the restaurant business, we can provide invaluable practical experience and knowledge when advising restaurant clients, both franchised and independently owned. There is simply nothing better than first-hand experience when providing restaurant clients with professional business and legal advice.1
For knowledgeable and experienced legal representation in starting, operating and managing a restaurant or bar, together with a raft of legal intricacies and dilemmas that may arise, contact restaurant lawyer Christopher Neufeld at 403-400-4092 [Alberta], 905-616-8864 [Ontario] or Chris@NeufeldLegal.com.
Contact us via email at chris@neufeldlegal.com or call 403-400-4092 / 905-616-8864.
1. We do not undertake employer legal representation in disputes or litigation with their employees where the employer has contravened the Alberta Employment Standards Code or the Ontario Employment Standards Act. We are committed to instituting statutory compliance across Canada by employers as to the applicable employment standards legislation, with numerous lawsuits against various employers related to their failure to adhere to the applicable employment standards legislation, and instead having placed their reliance upon payroll practices and payroll software that is consistent with the laws and practices of the United States of America, as opposed to the distinct laws and legislation of Canada. As such, if our legal representation would in any way require our legal team to support a violation of the applicable provincial employment standards legislation, as we interpret that legislation, we will not undertake such legal representation and we require our immediate release from any legal representation in that regard. At the same time, if your restaurant or bar business is looking to bring its employment practices into conformity with the applicable provincial employment standards legislation, we would welcome the opportunity to work with yourselves in undertaking such statutory compliance.