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The Employment Insurance Act now lists the following thirteen circumstances that have historically shown just cause. In these circumstances, claimants must still show that they had no reasonable alternative but to leave their job. Please keep in mind that this list is not exhaustive. It is possible that one could have just cause without these reasons (see a list of 40 possible reasons for just cause). It is also possible to quit for one of these reasons and still not have just cause. One must have no reasonable alternative to quitting.
**IMPORTANT** This information is intended to explain the concepts of just cause and reasonable alternatives and provide some general guidelines. Remember that each person’s case is different and must be examined on its own merits. One cannot know definitely if he or she will qualify for benefits until he or she applies.
Harassment of any kind is considered just cause if it is intolerable for any period. You must show that other reasonable alternatives such as discussing the situation with the employer, requesting a transfer, contacting the union, or using the provisions of the collective agreement are not possible or have not been successful.
2. Obligation to accompany a spouse or dependent child to another residence.
Spouses are defined as couples that are married or have been cohabitating for more than 12 months. If the couple has been cohabitating for less than 12 months, the partners must show that they have a child together or will be married in the near future. If one spouse needs to move to another location, the other generally will have just cause in quitting to follow. Reasonable alternatives to quitting might include:
Factors such as distance between residences and the length of stay in the new location may all be considered when determining just cause.
3. Discrimination on prohibited grounds
Prohibited grounds include race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, marital status, family status, disability, conviction for which a pardon has been granted, and sexual orientation. Reasonable alternatives include:
4. Working conditions that constitute a danger to health or safety
Provisions of the federal and provincial legislation, such as refusing to carry out dangerous work, should be utilized before quitting. Other reasonable alternatives to quitting include:
If the working conditions have already resulted in health problems, a doctor should confirm the illness in writing, indicate that it was caused by working conditions or because the working conditions pose a threat to your health, and recommend quitting the job.
5. Obligation to care for a child or member of the immediate family
Reasonable alternatives to quitting in this case might include seeking help from friends or family, finding alternate childcare, trying to change the work schedule, or requesting a leave of absence. The obligation to care for the child or family member must be a necessity—rather than a deliberate personal choice—to be considered just cause.
Note: Claimants that cite this reason for quitting may be disentitled because their obligation to care for their child or family member means that they are not available for work. Claimants must then show that they are available because they have solved the problem by finding someone to care for their child or family member.
6. Reasonable assurance of another employment in the immediate future
A claimant must have had a genuine promise of a job from an employer before leaving their current job. The fact that this employment did not come about will not count against the claimant. The promised employment must be scheduled to begin immediately following the present job so there is no more than a short break between the jobs. Changing from full-time or permanent employment to part-time, temporary, or on-call employment is not just cause. Also, searching for work after quitting is not sufficient. A reasonable alternative would be to withdraw the resignation or try to get the old job back.
7. Significant modification of terms and conditions respecting wages or salary
Some examples of significant modifications are:
Reasonable alternatives to quitting might be to try to reach an agreement with the employer, contact the union, trying to find other employment, or use the provisions of a collective agreement.
8. Excessive overtime work or refusal to pay for overtime work
Reasonable alternatives to quitting might be discussing the situation with the employer, contacting the union, using the provisions of a collective agreement, or filing a complaint under employment standards legislation.
9. Significant changes in work duties
Significant changes in work duties include an increase in work duties without a proportionate rise in salary, and situations where an employer unilaterally changes an employee’s work duties. The scope and duration of the changes, and their impact on an employee’s pay all play a role in determining their ‘significance’. Reasonable alternatives might be to discuss the situation with the employer, contact the union, use the provisions of the collective agreement, or find other work prior to quitting.
10. Antagonistic relations between an employee and a supervisor
Reasonable alternatives to quitting might be to discuss the situation with the employer, request a transfer, contact the union, use the provisions in the collective agreement, or look for another job.
Claimants must show that they did not cause or aggravate the situation and that they did everything they could to resolve it before quitting.
11. Practices of an employer that are contrary to law
Employees have the right to oppose practices that are contrary to law, professional ethics, or established business practices. However, before quitting, the employee must have no reasonable alternatives such as discussing the situation with the employer, contacting the union, contacting a relevant government agency or using the provisions of the collective agreement. Claimants will be required to prove that the employer’s activities were illegal.
12. Discrimination with regard to employment because of membership in a union
Employees have the right to belong to an association or union of workers. They would have just cause for quitting if that right was infringed upon by the employer and reasonable alternatives such as contacting the union, using the provisions of the collective agreement, and considering recourse under labour rights legislation, were exhausted. Pressure by the person’s own union, rather than the employer will not be considered just cause.
13. Undue pressure by an employer or employees to leave their employment
For many reasons, an employer may wish to get rid of an employee and force him or her to quit by using tactics that make the situation intolerable. Threats, intimidation, or changing work duties may all lead to just cause, provided that reasonable alternatives such as contacting the union, using the provisions of the collective agreement, or looking for another job are exhausted.