New owner fired long-term employee after heated meeting following unexpected change in ownership
A Saskatchewan hair salon did not have just cause to fire an employee because of rumoured negative comments and an outburst in a meeting, the Saskatchewan Provincial Court has ruled.
Lenna Bohay was a hair stylist for Image 1 Hair Team, a salon in Regina. Over 22 years of employment with the salon, Bohay didn’t receive any negative feedback on her work from the two owners of the business.
At the end of a week-long vacation, Bohay was told the owners of Image 1 had sold the business to one of the employees, Kelly Brown. Apparently, Brown had been negotiating with the owners for some time but it had been kept secret until it was made official on Jan. 1, 2009. Bohay was shocked and upset about the sudden change in ownership because though she had once been friends with Brown, she felt that was no longer the case.
When Bohay returned to work after her vacation on Jan. 7, she also learned she would lose her health benefits under the new ownership. This further upset her because she had chronic back problems. It added to stress Bohay was already feeling from family illnesses. Over the next couple of days Brown heard from another employee that Bohay was making negative comments about her and the salon.
On Jan. 10, Bohay and Brown met at the end of Bohay’s shift, with one of the previous owners who still worked at the salon present. Brown told Bohay they knew she was unhappy and they wanted to know why. Bohay told them it was because of personal problems, as well as the loss of her health plan, but she would continue to do the best she could. Brown asked for details of her personal problems but Bohay refused. She got emotional and used vulgarities a few times during the meeting.
Three days later, on Jan. 13, Bohay received a letter of termination from Brown that warned her not to contact any clients from Image 1. Brown felt Bohay’s insubordination at the meeting combined with her negative comments destroyed their working relationship.
The court found Brown did not have just cause to fire Bohay. The negative comments about Brown and the salon were reported to Brown second-hand and were not confirmed. It also found Bohay’s behaviour in the Jan. 10 meeting was the result of stress from her personal problems combined with the sudden news of the change in ownership and was not sufficient cause for dismissal. Bohay had an unblemished employment record with the salon and her outburst at the meeting was out of character. It may have warranted a warning, but not outright dismissal, especially after only four days of work under the new ownership, said the court.
