I was dismissed can i contest it?
Short answer
In Quebec, an employee with 2 years of uninterrupted service with the same business who believes they were dismissed without good and sufficient cause can file a written complaint with the CNESST (Quebec's labour standards, health and safety board) within 45 days of the dismissal, unless another equivalent remedy exists (s. 124 of the Act respecting labour standards).
In detail
The 45-day time limit runs from the date of the dismissal. What counts is the date the CNESST receives the complaint. The CNESST offers mediation, and the file may then be transferred to the Tribunal administratif du travail (TAT, Quebec's labour tribunal), which decides whether the dismissal was justified.
The word “equivalent” matters: a person covered by a collective agreement that provides for arbitration of a grievance against the dismissal must generally use that remedy rather than section 124.
If the Tribunal concludes that the dismissal was not justified, it may order reinstatement, payment of the wages and other benefits that were lost, and make any other decision that appears fair and reasonable in the circumstances. With less than 2 years of service this remedy is not available, but others may be — in particular a complaint for a prohibited practice or a civil action based on notice of termination.
What to document
The exact date of the dismissal and of the moment you were told, the letter or message you received, your hire date, the reasons the employer gave and how they changed over time, your performance reviews, the disciplinary warnings you received and their dates, and your exchanges with management in the preceding months. A chronology is what reads best.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
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Official sources
- Act respecting labour standards (CQLR, c. N-1.1) — Légis Québec
- Tribunal administratif du travail — Dismissal without good and sufficient cause
- CNESST — Recourses and grounds for complaints under the labour standards (PDF)
Related questions
- I was dismissed after one year of service what can i do?
- Can my employer fire me because i was on sick leave?
- My employer cut my salary in half is that constructive dismissal?
- When should i receive my final pay and my record of employment?
- Does my employer have to give me a reference letter?
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What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.