2 total
The court upheld a constructive dismissal finding based on the revocation of a work-from-home arrangement and awarded bonus compensation throughout the notice period.
An employee who began working for a predecessor company in 1995 with an arrangement to work from home three days per week was informed in January 2017 that she could no longer work from home effective March 1, 2017.
The employee took the position that she had been constructively dismissed.
The motion judge found constructive dismissal based on two grounds: the breach of an essential term regarding work-from-home arrangements and the arbitrary setting of the employee's fourth quarter 2016 bonus.
The motion judge awarded 20.5 months of salary (less a 10% contingency), compensation for the underpaid bonus, and lost benefits.
The employer appealed; the employee cross-appealed regarding bonus entitlements during the notice period.
Unilateral revocation of a 22-year work-from-home arrangement constitutes constructive dismissal.
The plaintiff brought a summary judgment motion claiming constructive dismissal after 22 years of service.
Following a corporate acquisition, the defendant unilaterally revoked the plaintiff's long-standing arrangement to work from home three days a week, placed her on a performance improvement plan, and arbitrarily reduced her bonus.
The court found that the ability to work from home was an essential term of the employment contract and its unilateral removal, along with the bonus reduction, constituted constructive dismissal.
The plaintiff was awarded damages based on a 22-month notice period, subject to minor deductions, plus compensation for the underpaid bonus.
