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Employment Insurance - Voluntary Leaving. Adegoke v. Canada (Attorney General)
In Adegoke v. Canada (Attorney General) (Fed CA, 2025) the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed a JR, this brought against "a decision of the Appeal Division of the Social Security Tribunal of Canada" dismissing an "appeal from a decision of the Tribunal’s General Division in which it found that he had left his job voluntarily without just cause and was therefore not entitled to employment insurance benefits".
Here the court considers a 'voluntary leaving' EI issue:[2] By subsection 30(1) of the Employment Insurance Act, S.C. 1996, c. 23, "“[a] claimant is disqualified from receiving any benefits if the claimant […] voluntarily left any employment without just cause […].”" By paragraph 29(c) of the Act, "“just cause for voluntarily leaving an employment […] exists if the claimant had no reasonable alternative to leaving […], having regard to all the circumstances […].”" The non-exhaustive list of circumstances includes discrimination on a prohibited ground; working conditions that endanger health and safety; significant modification in the terms and conditions of wages; significant changes in work duties; antagonism with a supervisor; and undue pressure by the employer to leave the employment. . Green v. Canada (Attorney General)
In Green v. Canada (Attorney General) (Fed CA, 2020) the Federal Court of Appeal considered a judicial review application from the Appeal Division of the Social Security Tribunal of Canada on the issue of when an EI applicant was disentitled for 'voluntarily left his employment without just cause':[7] I see no reviewable error on the part of the Appeal Division. On the hearing of this application the applicant confirmed that the Appeal Division correctly articulated, at paragraph 26 of its reasons, the factors that led him to quit his job. I am of the view that the Appeal Division committed no reviewable error when it found that these factors, whether considered individually or cumulatively, did not amount to just cause because the applicant had reasonable alternatives to leaving his job which included:1. discussing his concerns with his employer more thoroughly and exploring different types of accommodation (as opposed to asking on arrival at the worksite to not work on the night shift);
ii. requesting medical leave, seeking consultation with a doctor or obtaining a doctor’s note regarding his medical issues; and
iii. continuing to work until he found other employment.
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