'Mean and cheap' employer must pay $250,000 to short-term worker

An Ontario company must pay a short-term employee more than $250,000 for bad-faith conduct in concocting unfounded allegations of just cause when tensions arose over an adjustment to the price of the sale of the employee’s business to the company.

Alan Gordon sold the assets of his own business to Altus Group on Nov. 1, 2008. Altus hired him to continue in his position with a written employment contract for a three-year term, though there was a provision for termination with specified payouts if it was without cause.