The following circumstances also constitute serious cause for an adult leaving suitable employment if the adult has no reasonable alternative to leaving or taking leave:
Sexual or other harassment:
- This is the case of a worker who is pressured (by words or actions) or threatened in a way that humiliates, belittles or embarrasses him or her by the employer or a colleague at work, thus making the atmosphere at work unbearable for the worker. A worker may have serious cause for leaving his or her employment if the harassment has become intolerable and no solution is possible in the very short term.
- Discrimination prohibited under the Quebec Charter of human rights and freedoms:
- Discrimination is based on race, colour, gender, sexual orientation, pregnancy, marital status, age, religion, political convictions, language, ethnic or national origin, social condition, disability or the use of a device to deal with a disability or judicial records.
- Significant modification of terms and conditions respecting wages or salary (for example, an unjustified and unilateral decision by the employer to lower remuneration for a worker or group of workers. However, agreements signed as part of a collective agreement are accepted.
- Antagonism with a supervisor, if the adult is not primarily responsible for the antagonism:
A situation may be sufficiently serious to justify a voluntary departure (an employer who unjustly leaves some doubt as to a worker’s honesty). The action taken by the worker to resolve the conflict must be taken into account.
Discrimination with regard to employment because of membership in an association, organization or union of workers (a worker who is given inferior treatment because of his or her membership in a union or a political or other organization).
Undue pressure by the employer to leave the employment:
- This may involve a disguised dismissal (because of pregnancy or age) or actions (physical actions or words) whereby the employer pressures the worker in order to encourage him or her to resign (an employer uses tactics that make the work atmosphere unbearable).
- Therefore, it may be reasonable in certain circumstances to leave an employment in order to end a situation that has become unbearable and for which there is no short-term solution.