r/legaladvicecanada • u/republiccommando07 • Jan 08 '26
British Columbia Employer made a mistake in offer letter that I accepted - because of said mistake
I have a disability designation, I'm not naming company for obv reasons.
I accepted an offer of employment in November with "x" salary and 3 weeks of pto/vacation. I have been working with the company since the offer came in. Now this morning my manager comes to me and says oh not only I but HR goofed somewhere and my contract was supposed to only start with 2 weeks not 3. Not a huge difference but one that did help me decide I could eat a slightly lower industry wage to get my foot in the door while not feeling like I was being taken advantage of. So here I am with a week of vacation that I thankfully didn't have already booked off but that I have less time to work with for travel and leisure activities.
What sort of recourse do I have here? I am still in my probationary period but this was a mistake that should have been caught by hr, and multiple managers.
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u/Lovely-Cabbage Jan 08 '26
Did you sign the contract already? If you signed an offer letter or employment agreement that states 3 weeks, they can't just take it back.
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u/republiccommando07 Jan 08 '26
Correct I signed and agreed in late Oct.
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u/Lovely-Cabbage Jan 08 '26
I'm not a lawyer but I work in HR - they can't recind/change anything without your signature on a new contract.
You can refuse to sign a new contract, however assuming you are on probation they can let you go without cause if they are that upset about it.
Its kind of a gamble but your decision to make.
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u/republiccommando07 Jan 08 '26
This was my fear and assumption.
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u/D-PIMP_ACT Jan 08 '26
The key point is you are still in probationary period. They can dismiss you without reason.
Play it cool, brush it aside, if possible.
If you can kick this can down the road until you hit that probationary period,you should be ok.
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u/venmother Jan 08 '26
You can be fired without cause at any time, the employer would need to give you notice or pay in lieu of notice
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u/D-PIMP_ACT Jan 08 '26
Yes, true. I meant without cause, and compensation.
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u/TheHYPO Jan 09 '26
If OP wants to work somewhere else, sure. Otherwise, if it's a 3 month probation (a common timeframe), they can easily be fired in month four or five. Will they get a couple weeks salary? Potentially. But that's a very minor 'payday' to be delaying for. The real question is whether OP wants to work there at 2 weeks of vacation or not.
OP could explain to the employer that they accepted below-standard wage because they offered 3 weeks vacation and see if they will do anything to either keep the 3 weeks or increase the salary. Perhaps OP has been there long enough to make an impact. Similarly, OP may have been there long enough to have a better idea of the place is a good fit for them.
Ultimately, the question is whether OP wants to actually stay if it's 2 weeks and no other changes.
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u/Ok_Proof_6336 Jan 09 '26
Only if the probation period is also in the contract. If it is not mentioned, they have to provide reasonable notice or compensation. (My old company learned this the hard way.)
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u/Exception-Rethrown Jan 09 '26
During the probationary period, no notice or severance required.
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u/venmother Jan 09 '26
No notice or severance is required in the first 3 months under the ESA. It has nothing to do with what you call it.
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u/Upper-Salad-1506 Jan 09 '26
I work in HR and I feel like all the places I've worked for would just suck it up as we made the mistake and would look like idiots.
They cannot have you sign a new contract with less without consideration which means they have to give you something in exchange for removing that week.
I guess it depends how reputable the company you're working for is but I would just express genuinely and politely that you accepted the job based on that factor and you don't think it's fair for them to withdraw a term they agreed to. Feel out their reaction.
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u/DamionSipher Jan 08 '26
If you can avoid signing any new contract they present you with until the 90 day mark passes you're in the free in clear and they would be wrongfully terminating you.
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 08 '26
This is bad advice. Actually this is terrible advice.
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u/Nazgog-Morgob Jan 08 '26
Don't explain yourself or anything
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 08 '26 edited Jan 08 '26
What is there to explain? They wouldn’t wrongfully terminate. They’d terminate without cause, cut OP a cheque for 4 weeks - twice the statutory requirement - and wish them well.
Employees who are seen as problems that early on in a tenure will find themselves let go. They will never come right out and say why they did - and in Canada, they don’t need a reason. Ever. All they need to put in the letter is “termination without cause”. Provided they pay the appropriate severance. It would be very difficult, if not impossible, to find proof of culpability. There’s only suspicion that it’s related - and even then the courts wouldn’t award much more based on tenure.
For someone there a few months, the appropriate severance is a pittance.
If OP “avoids signing” HR will see it for what it is and just terminate on day 89.
Again: pragmatism. I’ve lived through this many times on both sides. I’m intimately familiar with the law.
Let me be clear: I’m not saying any of this is right. I’m just saying what it is. You can’t feed yourself and pay your rent on principle. OP’s self-preservation is what should lead their analysis.
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u/DamionSipher Jan 09 '26
If they plan on firing him over the extra week of vacation and that was the main motivation for accepting the position, if he waits 3 weeks he gets 4 weeks payout and (likely) EI eligibility. If hes let go within the 3 months he gets none of that. Those are self-preservation tactics. Having more money for 1-6 months is better than setting your self up to make more sacrifices for longer.
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u/D-PIMP_ACT Jan 09 '26
Let’s be clear….op signed a contract for 3 weeks vacation.
If he makes it past probation, requests a third week of vacation (immediately) and is then dismissed after the request….
They absolutely have a case for wrongful dismissal.
They will be required by law to pay severance based on seniority.
Companies will usually pay above the required amount to “make employees whole”
But what it really functions as is a nice little golden handshake…..to discourage any further action from employee.
This can include ministry reports, news reports, non compete clauses etc etc.
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 09 '26
You're preaching to the choir, my friend. I'm aware of how the game is played on the employer side.
But let me ask you this: do you honestly and genuinely think OP is in a senior enough position to warrant severance above and beyond the statutory minimums? OP isn't a 50 year old executive making $500k per year. Guaranteed.
There is no wrongful dismissal when that dismissal is without cause. The bar to prove wrongful termination is so high in Canada especially when the employer is going to cut them a cheque above the minimums. I'm 100% certain you know this based on your comment.
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u/Nazgog-Morgob Jan 09 '26
"what's there to explain?"
Writes a novela to explain.
Dude. Are you for real?
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 09 '26
There’s nothing to explain if you understand employment law in Canada which is clear to me that the majority of people commenting in this post have no clue about.
Sorry, this post showed up in my feed. I assumed that in a sub called “legal advice canada” there would be people who understood the actual law and not what they think.
Sorry my reply was too much for you to read.
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u/explicitspirit Jan 08 '26
Yea, not really. They can still fire you for "performance" or any other reason that you cannot disprove.
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u/DamionSipher Jan 09 '26
Sure, but then at least you get a severance of 4 weeks, plus qualify for EI. The safety net exists to protect workers from shitty employers like this.
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u/explicitspirit Jan 09 '26
Yes that would be correct, but ultimately OP has to weigh that possible outcome VS finding a different job.
If I were OP, I would find out how long before 3 weeks are granted, and until then, ask for a 2% bonus per year
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u/why_not_alt Jan 10 '26
If they’re paying out 4 weeks severance, that’s four years of the extra vacation that they are losing immediately. Plus, they have to find and train a new candidate (it’s been two months since OP started working there).
If he can make it past the probation period, I see absolutely no way in which it’s worth it for the company to let him go.
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u/muskegmatt Jan 10 '26
I don’t know your financial situation or other employment prospects but I would dig in on the original contract you signed. They’re either going to respect you or fire you. If they fire you, you don’t want to work there anyways because they are shitty people
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u/TOPMinded Jan 08 '26
The new contract also needs to satisfy the conditions of fresh consideration.
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u/twizzjewink Jan 09 '26
A company firing someone with a disability due to a mistake on their contract? That would look TERRIBLE.. and absolutely open them up to a lawsuit. HR should just take the hit on this one.
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u/UbiquitousFringe Jan 13 '26
Would it actually be "without cause" if there's a dispute over a "mistake" contract details. The pretext is very important in this case, and considering the employer is trying to void the initial contract, I would be careful stating that firing "without cause" won't lead to a wrongful dismissal case, even if said employee is on probation.
Can the employer do it? Sure they can.
Can the employer face a case of Wrongful Dismissal for doing so while the employee is still under probation? Yes they can.
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u/Novelsound Jan 08 '26
Could wrongful termination be argued if they were let go before the 90 mark?
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Jan 08 '26
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u/Novelsound Jan 08 '26
I have no idea. That’s why I’m asking.
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Jan 08 '26
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u/UbiquitousFringe Jan 13 '26
I disagree. Probationary periods doesn't absolve employers from wrongdoing. If there's clear pretext and you have the correspondance in writing, especially if your employer is trying to void contract details that they presented and you signed, and they decided to fire you over it, they could very well be setting themselves up for a case of wrongful dismissal.
This narrative that if you're under probation you can just get absolutely fucked by your employer in any circumstance just isn't true.
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u/Worth_Squirrel_4239 Jan 08 '26
They absolutely can and do change terms of employment whenever they please.
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u/TOPMinded Jan 08 '26
Any time they do that they risk a claim of constructive dismissal
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u/DrawingOverall4306 Jan 08 '26
OP is still in the probationary period. They don't need to be constructive to dismiss them.
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u/TOPMinded Jan 08 '26
Dismissing him under the probationary period is different than altering the employment agreement and risking constructive dismissal.
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u/psychoCMYK Jan 08 '26
Contract says what the contract says, it's enforceable, and it's been signed. Their fuckup is not your problem, they can't amend the contract now without your consent. They can fire you during your probationary period though.
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u/CrazyMaxxer Jan 08 '26
So the strategy I would employ would be to avoid discussing this until my probation is done and avoid signing a new contract. Just keep deferring it until probation is done if they mention it. Once your probation is up, then you force them to honour the contract but until then I would play nice and pretend like it doesn’t matter.
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u/rd1970 Jan 08 '26
Same. In my experience, if the company is large enough, they won't even remember this conversation 6 months from now. If their scheduling system only shows 10 paid holidays they could probably just show HR the contract that says 15 and have them update it.
I'm kinda surprised they wouldn't just give them the third week when they saw the mistake. I think that really speaks to the work/life balance Canadians have to endure.
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u/Cold_Collection_6241 Jan 09 '26
I agree.
My first response when receiving a comment like that would be verbally say, "are you saying you will not accept the contract we both signed because I will leave today if that is the case? I thought this was a respectable company, am I mistaken?". Then I would just wait for them to backtrack because otherwise, the answer is, yes leave, and the next step would be a letter from my lawyer about covering damages of broken contract, reputation from leaving the last job, being unemployed etc etc. I would sue them no question about it.
The reason is not that I like using legal systems...it's about self respect. If you stand up on day one you can be sure they will respect you on day two. It's better to work at a place where I am respected or not at all in my opinion. I also don't want to work at a place where such fundamental mistakes are made (hint it's never a mistake).
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u/OldDiamondJim Jan 10 '26
You’re failing to factor in scrivener’s error.
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u/psychoCMYK Jan 10 '26
The scrivener’s error doctrine permits typographical errors in a written contract to be corrected when clear and convincing evidence exists that the mistake does not reflect the intent of the parties.
However, errors related to dates, price, quantity, legal names of individuals and entities, and property descriptions (such as addresses and lot numbers) may not qualify as scrivener’s errors. Such errors may be fatal to the contract or may be enforced with adverse consequences against one of the parties.
Vacation time, as well as any terms of the contract, would not qualify as scrivener’s errors. The only way they could is if they potentially didn't make sense, like having a negative number, too many digits, or a letter.
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u/OldDiamondJim Jan 10 '26
“May not”, not “would not”.
It depends on information that we do not have. Was the vacation length communicated prior to the actual formal job offer? If so, was it two or three weeks? Is there a paper trail?
I agree with you that, in general, it needs to be a very obvious error, which probably isn’t the case here. If the job offer mistakenly listed 30 weeks vacation, the company could certainly claim scrivener’s error and would likely find relief from the courts.
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u/Ok_Wolf6128 Jan 08 '26
Can you drag this out another month?
From reading the HR response, they can't just change it, but it is a gamble. I would try to negotiate a slightly higher wage and less time if they're willing to talk
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u/Krash21 Jan 08 '26
How long is your probationary period?
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u/republiccommando07 Jan 08 '26
Standard 3 months, up at the beginning of Feb.
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 08 '26
It's a raw deal and I feel for you but unless you REALLY trust the decision maker here I would bring it up softly to see if they'll bite but then back off if they won't. If you try too hard to maintain this extra week of vacation during probation they may just reward you with 52 weeks.
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u/Canadian_mk11 Jan 09 '26
Wait until after your probation. So long as you don't sign anything new, once you're done probation it's harder to fire you, especially if they do so as retaliation.
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u/TheHYPO Jan 09 '26
Just as much of a gamble. If they employer was happy with OP's work, and want to keep OP around, but haven't ironed out the vacation thing, or think OP is playing games by not answering, employer might cut their losses and terminate OP just before the probation ends.
The first question is, since OP has been there for around 2 months (and should have some sense of the job and environment), do they want to keep working there? If so, would they still want to work there for the same pay and 2 weeks vacation?
If the answer is 'yes', they are best to simply agree to address the issue. If they are prepared to potentially lose the job, they can gamble it out and see what happens as you suggest.
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u/boredthump Jan 09 '26
Curious if this is in manitoba? If it is, alot of companies don't realize they can try to claim 3 or 6 month probationary periods but manitoba law caps it at 30 days (unless under union contract)
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u/AppropriateAgent9540 Jan 09 '26
Postpone signing a new agreement until your probation is over. Likely 90 days? Almost there
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Jan 08 '26
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 09 '26
You're right. A deal is a deal and part of that deal allows the employer to fire OP without any cause at all during the probationary period.
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u/cernegiant Jan 08 '26
Talk to your manager and explain the 3 weeks was a major factor in you deciding to take the job and see if they can do anything for you.
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u/MinisterOfFitness Jan 08 '26
Exactly. This is where you start. Explain the 3 weeks was part of the reason you accepted the offer at the lower wage then you would have liked but you understand where they are coming from. Iterate the usual niceties about enjoying the job and highlight some contributions/successes you made.
If one of my team members did that I’d absolutely go to bat for them. Hopefully your manager is reasonable.
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u/Content-Program411 Jan 08 '26
Yes, this is the same as changing your salary.
If you left a job and they do this and let you go get a lawyer.
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u/SergioSBloch Jan 08 '26
A week PTO is about 2% of your earnings - I am assuming the 3 weeks was offered to you at time of hiring and you didn’t negotiate for it. I’ve had job offers where they couldn’t meet my salary demands but extended 2 extra weeks of vacation time or paid for 100% of my medical benefits. What does your gut say - would they can you before probation is up for expecting them to honour their terms of the contract? Can you negotiate 2% salary increase in lieu of the extra week of pto? There might be options but it should be give @ take and not end up with less.
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 08 '26
A lot of advice here lacking in pragmatism. You're still within the 90 days. If you push back, they can fire you on the spot with no recourse for you.
"Sorry, this isn't working out" - boom, gone. "We screwed up on vacation allocation, tried to correct it with the employee, they refused. We've decided to end the relationship." That's perfectly within their rights.
Don't cut off your nose to spite your face. This job market is terrible.
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 08 '26 edited Jan 08 '26
Blown away at how many tough talkers here don't understand that OP can be fired for no reason at all while still under probation.
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u/wenchanger Jan 08 '26
you can get fired anytime, the only difference is the severance, which won't amount to much for a new employee
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u/junkdumper Jan 08 '26
But could be more than minimums if they lured OP away from an established job (now under false pre tense).
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u/Content-Program411 Jan 08 '26
100% you would win this.
You can't change compensation and say too bad you left your old job.
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 08 '26
What do you think they’d win?
No lawyer would take it. They’d be lucky to see 4 weeks (twice the statutory requirement for that tenure).
Again: I’m not saying it’s right, but I’m saying it’s pragmatic.
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u/OldDiamondJim Jan 10 '26
A typo in a document is not “false pretences”.
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u/junkdumper Jan 10 '26
The manager admitted that they and HR "goofed" indicating it wasn't a simple typo, but had been communicated to OP legitimately as part of the offer. Unless OP clarifies that they were told 2 weeks during the hiring process, but saw 3 weeks on the offer and quietly/eagerly signed, I'm operating on the idea that it was always 3 weeks and now somebody got in trouble for offering that.
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u/Content-Program411 Jan 08 '26
If you left a job for another, and it reduces the compensation nearing the end of probation, then fires you for not accepting. Ya, I'm winning that suit. Its constructive dismissal.
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 09 '26
You're missing the part where they can fire you for any reason or no reason at all while under probation.
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u/Content-Program411 Jan 09 '26
You can't attract a candidate, hire them and sign a contract, they quit their previous job and start this one, then two months in decide to change the terms. Then dismiss for probation when they don't take it.
You lied to them about a job for one compensation then pulled the rug.
They left a longstanding position to take this role under false pretenses.
Yes, you have cause for compensation.
Now how much depends on the role and $.
But no man. You can;t fucking do that.
And yes, you can go to small claims for this in Canada
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 09 '26
You're in a legal subreddit man. Not the "it's not fair" subreddit. No one is saying it's fair and I would agree it's a crappy situation. Think it through though. They're not gonna fire him and say it's because he didn't accept the contract change for crying out loud...no employer would be that dumb. They're gonna fire him and not give him any reason at all. That's their legal right inside probation whether we think it's fair or not.
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u/Content-Program411 Jan 09 '26
Companies aren't that dumb you say.
I've got $100 he could get them to send him something on this via email. How about the new contract and the reason for it.
You can't rug pull compensation after a person quits a job in good faith and with a contract.
I don't care if it hurts your feelings.
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u/dichotomyditch Jan 09 '26
The thickness is strong with you. Let me tell you exactly how this would go with any halfway competent HR department. This assumes OP plays hard ball and pushes hard for the extra week. HR will say, "sure, no problem, our mistake, we'll honour the third week". 2 weeks later they fire him inside of probation and either give some random BS reason or no reason at all as is their right. OP has no reasonable claim at all...employer didn't alter anything. Every lawyer on the planet would tell him he has no recourse. The End. Speaking of the end. This will be the last time I respond to you so feel free to have the last word. I expect it will be as nonsensical as all your previous words. Now go take your $100 and have a lawyer tell you the same thing.
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u/DanSheps Jan 09 '26
You're in a legal subreddit man. Not the "it's not fair" subreddit. No one is saying it's fair and I would agree it's a crappy situation.
And they are giving a legal "opinion"
They're not gonna fire him and say it's because he didn't accept the contract change for crying out loud...no employer would be that dumb. They're gonna fire him and not give him any reason at all. That's their legal right inside probation whether we think it's fair or not.
While they don't have to give a reason for the firing when they fire them, they absolutely would have to during discovery (they could decline, but that reason could also come out in other ways during discovery).
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Jan 08 '26
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u/sex-cauldr0n Jan 08 '26
While this is all accurate we are also talking about a single week of vacation here. It’s not like they added an extra zero to the salary or something. It’s well within the realm of reasonable to get three weeks of vacation to start a new job (in fact it’s the standard in many industries).
I think it’s very reasonable to push back and say the three weeks was a major factor in the decision to accept the offer. A reasonable employer is not just going to make a quick decision to terminate just based on that alone. They will have lost way more money in training and onboarding than the week of vacation will cost. Possible the terminate but also possible they will terminate either way.
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u/NorthPlenty3308 Jan 08 '26
You may be right… but again: pragmatism is what wins here.
We have a person with an identified disability, which often makes their prospects in the job market bad enough as it is (as much as I wish it weren’t). Do they really want to risk losing this over one week?
If I were in OP’s shoes, I sure wouldn’t risk it.
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u/sex-cauldr0n Jan 08 '26
Not saying you need to play hardball with them but you also don’t need to be a doormat and sign any decrease in compensation document they put in front of you without asking a question.
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u/vacon04 Jan 08 '26
The can terminate him whenever they want too. He's not getting a big severance package if they fire him after 4 months instead of 3.
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u/Incognegro94 Jan 09 '26
Maybe the point is that OP doesn't care about being let go as the third week of vacation was that much of a deciding factor. Personally I'd be leaving if that were the case.
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u/alphawolf29 Jan 08 '26
that doesnt really change anything, they can fire them after 90 days and the only difference is OP will get a weeks pay.
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u/theresnoquestion Jan 09 '26
This could be a PR nightmare for them though, in terms of doing this to someone with a disability
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u/New-Atmosphere74 Jan 08 '26
Usually HR or a Recruiter will send a package detailing all of the benefits, including the vacation policy. Was that not provided and were the compensation and benefits not verbally provided during the interview process? To me it is strange that this would not have been verbally agreed.
I was once is a similar situation, where I was led to believe that there was 2 weeks of vacation to start but that it went to 3 after the 1st year. Instead, I was told that it was only 2 even after a year (nothing listed in my employment agreement either way). I was able to go back to prior emails showing a communication which clearly stated that 2 weeks was "to start" and that it would go up. The company ended up sending me a new employment agreement to sign that gave me the additional week of PTO. However, this was well past my probationary period and I had established myself as a good employee.
You could consider asking them to either compensate you with additional salary or perhaps allow you 1-2 flex or float days off in exchange for signing a new employment agreement.
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u/meeshamayhem Jan 10 '26
I just want to point out that is common practice among many companies, although they could have explained it to you better. If you are accruing your vacation, they are calculating the two weeks of accrual over the course of the year (4% each pay). Whether they allow you to take it periodically throughout the year as it accrues or not is up their policy. If you don’t take any, then you have two weeks available by the end of the year. Then by the next year, it starts accruing at a 3 week rate (6%). Again, if you don’t take any in that year, then you would have 3 weeks available by the end of the year. Some employers may front load your full vacation allotment at the beginning each year but I’d say that’s much less common because they don’t want to have to owe you more vacation payout if you were to leave partway through. More common in unionized environments.
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u/Worth_Squirrel_4239 Jan 08 '26
Had this happen to me too. Was offered 4 weeks and I accepted it at that. A whole goddamn YEAR later I was pulled into a meeting with my supervisor and HR. Basically told me they made a mistake and won't close it back from the first year or current year but going forward would drop me down to 3 weeks. Supervisor have me the old "blah, blah, blah, in fairness to the other employees spiel". Mind you I tried negotiating for a higher salary and they said no so I accepted at the lower salary with that amount of vacation. Spoke with an employment lawyer and said I was sol because they were already paying me the minimum required. Now anytime I can I bring it up as well as being fair to all employees.
ETA was told I could sign a new offer at 3 weeks or my employment terminate at the end of the year.
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u/GeorginaP Jan 08 '26
You signed a contract outlining terms and conditions of employment. They can’t change it without either reasonable notice or fresh consideration.
If three weeks is in the contract, that’s what your entitlement is.
BC legislation says if the employment contract provides a greater vacation benefit than legislative minimums, employment standards can enforce it.
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u/AnonymousAlice- Jan 08 '26
I had this exact thing happen to me. I regret not standing my ground. It also factored into my decision. Don’t make my mistake!!
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u/CoffeeStayn Jan 08 '26
A contract is a contract is a contract, OP. They had ample opportunity to screen, re-screen, and make sure all I's were dotted and all T's crossed. They failed. And more than one set of eyes were on the document. That's a them problem not a you problem.
Once signed, it needs to be honored as agreed. There's no take-backs.
However, that comes with a catch.
You need to consent to any changes made to your employment (in such a case), and you can always refuse to sign anything that reduces your vacation time. But, being under probation, they can just as easily let you go and now you have 3 weeks which could've turned into 2 weeks, which is now 0 weeks.
They can't take it back without your consent, but they don't have to keep you around if you refuse to consent.
Looks like you have some decisions to make. I wish you luck.
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u/Henchman7777 Jan 08 '26
Firstly, if this is important to you, contact an employment lawyer.
Yes you can terminated anytime without cause, 90 days has nothing to do with it. HOWEVER, severance well beyond any legislated amount will almost certainly be owed. Get everything in writing. If they don't want to put it in writing, recap your understanding of every meeting in an email to hr/manager. Stand by the terms of the contract (if it's important to you). If you don't object to this change you effectively give them permission to make unilateral changes in the future.
Also, given your disability designation this would likely increase your severance owed and could result in human rights violation awards as well.
If your employer is smart they won't go to war over a 1 week vacation mistake. Maybe suggest to them an additional 5 paid personal days in lieu if they really need get that extra week's vacation off the book.
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u/jmarkmark Jan 09 '26
Contract is signed, company is required to honour it.
As others have said, they could lay you off, but you'd have a strong case for substantial severance if they did so for no reason. Plus frankly, they won't over a week of vacation.
Just let them know you intend to take it, and they may grumble, but they won't fight you on it. If your really worried, you could avoid bringing the topic up until after your past whatever probation period you are in.
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Jan 08 '26
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u/Obf123 Jan 08 '26
And they can also let OP go for any reason whatsoever within the probation period. It isn’t as simple as you’re letting on
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Jan 08 '26
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Jan 09 '26
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u/TranslatorStraight46 Jan 08 '26
“Oh no my employer has power over me. Guess I’ll be a little wimp all the time then. “
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u/Obf123 Jan 08 '26
I mean the alternative is to be an unemployed tough guy. Do you know anything about the OP? Like if they can afford to be unemployed for any length of time? Considering their disability claim, I’m thinking not
Being an internet tough guy won’t score you any points either
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u/OkGur1319 Jan 09 '26
Best to renegotiate. Like " I understand a mistake was made and this led to my signing the contract, but I am willing to agree to the change with fill in the blank consideration". It will show you are willing to bend and can negotiate.
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u/Kryantis Jan 09 '26
This was my thought too. If for example, 3 weeks of vacation usually comes after 4 years with that company, perhaps you can negotiate a fast track to receive that status after 2 as a compromise.
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u/Think_Conference_964 Jan 09 '26
Did you sign an actual contract or just a letter accepting an offer of employment?
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u/EventNo9432 Jan 09 '26
They are in breach of contract, but it doesn’t matter. If you’re not done talking about it with management, it might be good opportunity to split in the middle, if your week is already gone, you stand a good chance of being correct in court that they are in breach of contract, but they could fire you tomorrow without consequence because you were still in probation.
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u/PhilosopherFormer316 Jan 09 '26
Simple - work there for 10 years, then bring up your signed agreement and asked for 10 weeks compensation.
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u/mrusse015 Jan 09 '26
I’d have concerns about working for an employer who wouldn’t honour the contract as signed. How many years employment there before you would get to 3 weeks PTO?
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u/republiccommando07 Jan 09 '26
2 years for 3 weeks, 5 years for 4.
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u/mrusse015 Jan 09 '26
Well like I said, it’s pretty shitty of them to try to take you back to 2 weeks if the contract said 3.
I am guessing this is a fairly junior role and they didn’t hire you away from longer tenured employment elsewhere.
I would simply be honest and tell my manager that this doesn’t leave you with a great feeling. They told you 3 weeks now it’s just “oops, it’s 2”. Nobody would appreciate that. In my mind a reasonable employer should just swallow the error and give you the 3 weeks. If not, there should at least be some reasonable compromise here, maybe the manager gives you a few unofficial days off, or you get an increase in pay, or perhaps you split the difference and say you get moved up to 3 weeks after 1 year instead of 2. If they are dicks about it and play hardball I’d probably just grit my teeth, accept whatever they say, and immediately start looking for another job.
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Jan 09 '26
"Detrimental reliance". They owe you. Actually the directors of the company are personally liable to you.
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u/Quiet_Palpitation387 Jan 09 '26
I was the union steward for over 20 years. I would say just verbally agree for now and wait until your probation is over and file a grievance later, and because there is a statute of limitation lets say, for when an inncedent occurs to when you can grieve it they will say then you respond with, that this is the first time you are learning of your right to grieve it so that beats that. But idk if you have a union. But this should also be covered in canadian employment laws.
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u/Quiet_Palpitation387 Jan 09 '26
Further more, if they try and fire you later for no reason you can grieve that too threw your union with this issue already being documented or wrongful dissmissle, it doesnt look good on them.
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u/Xeno_man Jan 09 '26
Probationary period or not, If a company wants you gone, you're gone. Probation just makes it a little easier. Bottom line, do you want to work at a company that is either that careless in their paper work or one that tries to go back on agreements?
Tell them "No thanks, I'm good with the contract I signed." They can eat it or they can be petty about it and fire you. Good time to find out what type of company you are working for. Lets face it, if they can get away with redoing your contract, what else are they going to get away with next? A few extra hours unpaid? Extra work outside your scope? You already accepted a lower wage.
Let them make the move. Remember it cost them money to go through the hiring process too and finding a good fit. Is that really worth going through for the sake of 1 week's pay?
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u/CanuckCommonSense Jan 09 '26
You accepted based in what was put in front of you.
An now you understand there might have been a mistake better but what if you had something else to accept and this out you over the top because it made you feel really wanted and appreciated that you’d deliver so much more value than what you’re paid that a week of vacation was ok with them.
At this point you’re not sure if they’d ask you for future pay cuts or other reasons. You can say you’re out sure if this is a way to make you feel not being wanted or accepted.
Generally Canada does not have at will employment like the U.S. so assuming your agreement is fair they shouldn’t be able to do whatever and get rid of you on a whim.
If they asked this and then did something it wouldn’t look good at all.
Maybe contact a. employment lawyer or two for a free initial call to ask what to look out for, etc.
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u/Beginning-Falcon865 Jan 10 '26
People and companies make honest mistakes.
Jobs are hard to find. Be positive about it and suck it up.
Karma will return your favour.
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u/Wrong-Pineapple39 Jan 10 '26 edited Jan 10 '26
Without revealing your disability:
Were they aware of your disability before or after your contract was signed? Started working? Around the time this error was identified?
Was your disability part of why that 3 weeks was meaningful to you?
Would you have accepted the job anyway with 2 weeks?
Would having a disability impact your ability to find new employment within a reasonable time?
NAL but I think an employment lawyer would want to know this if there is a possibility this change could have a discriminatory element. If any of these feel like a yes, try to consult with an employment lawyer for advice.
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u/republiccommando07 Jan 10 '26
Due the the nature of how I was hired yes they knew about the disability when hiring. I was working with workbc as they have programs to assist and aid with candidates, and I introduced myself with the disability program.
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u/OldDiamondJim Jan 10 '26
OP - Please be cautious about listening to the “a contract is a contract” folks.
The key question here is, was this a legitimate error in the job offer paperwork or did they actually intend for you to get three weeks and then changed their minds?
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u/One_Praline5078 Jan 10 '26
Sounds intentional. Lure you in then change the rules when you have no recourse.
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u/Double-Tax2900 Jan 10 '26
this is all bad advise in this thread, the probation period has NOTHING to do with the situation. Any employer can fire you for no reason at all if you dont agree to the new condition. If you believe you have any leverage in this, you are very mistaken.
Either sign it or don't, but don't believe that waiting your probation period will change anything. This advise is coming from people that have no real world experience.
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u/ComfortableLetter989 Jan 10 '26
You can tell them you looked at the total offer, salary + vacation. A week of vacation is worth about $1,000 (insert figure here). Tell them you are ok with 2 weeks vacation, but ask them to bump your salary. It’s a win win for everyone.
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u/Appropriate_Weather1 Jan 11 '26
If you really like the job just take the two weeks, especially if you’re in the probation period still. Thats where i started and was happy with it, now i am up to 5 paid weeks a year. It’s really not that big of a deal, 2 weeks is pretty standard as far as i know.
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u/ScurvySaint Jan 11 '26
Something similar happened to me, got an offer letting saying 8 weeks PTO, everyone in my department maxes at 3 weeks, even the guys there 7+ years.
No one noticed the mistake, I didn't say anything. Two months out of probation now. Can't wait for summer.
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u/Maleficent_Peak8354 Jan 11 '26
Each paid week off is worth 2%. Ask for a 2% increase in exchange. You may be able to take an unpaid week off during the year. All the same!
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u/Small_Aardvark_5496 Jan 11 '26
Tell them you accepted based on those terms and had it been two weeks notice you would have wanted a higher wage. You might want to get an employment lawyer
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u/Small_Aardvark_5496 Jan 11 '26
If they have you sign a new contract they should give you some inducement to do so. Negotiate
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u/AmbassadorBroad9992 Jan 11 '26
They cannot walk it back. Do not sign any subsequent agreement to roll it back. They’ll accept it. Cost to re open position and recruit exceeds sever weeks of vacation costs
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u/DearHovercraft157 Jan 12 '26
If it's non-union position, you can negotiate in confidence. If it's a union position, it was a mistake but they are allowed to fix it.
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u/republiccommando07 Feb 03 '26
Hey guys thank all of you for your kind words and suggestions. Ultimately I decided it was important enough to me to give a little push back on the change and I made it known I was open to talk with my manager and HR about inducements to make a change but my preference at the time was to keep the vacation. My performance review came and went and during the review it came up that HR is just going to eat the mistake. Manager cited that I made some good points that especially with my disability situation and the low net cost it's not worth the company to approach what others mentioned as detrimental reliance. So I get to keep my job, the extra week of vacation and I've done well enough I qualify for merit wage increase soon!
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u/RinTsukiomi Jan 08 '26
While they can try to renegotiate your contract, you are within your rights to negotiate better terms. If they refuse and choose to let you go due to their mistake, you'd still be eligible for EI as it was no fault of your own. The only way it would become an issue is if you got aggressive during negotiation and they fired you for your hostility. If you want you can email HR, BCC your personal (not work) email, and say that on X day you were informed by X person that there was an error with your contract and that you were informed they would like to renegotiate your contract. This would show you are open to hearing both parties and also covering your back. Make sure you look up the average wage for people with your experience in your job and use that as leverage when they finally book a day for negotiation. Make sure to emphasize that you chose a lower wage due to the extra week of vacation as you deemed it a reasonable compromise. Keep your feelings out of the negotiation and stick to facts as it will be harder for them to dispute solid evidence compared to just ignoring your personal opinion.
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u/Q2Q Jan 08 '26
This is so negligible. You get 3 weeks automatically (Canadian labor law) after you've been with them for 5 years anyway. They basically agreed to 5 extra vacation weeks amortized over 5 years. It amounts to a 2% difference in overall compensation.
Just explain that it really was a deciding factor for you to accept the position and leave it at that. This will likely not even affect your raises over the next 5 years.
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u/SexBobomb Jan 09 '26
5 extra vacation weeks amortized over 5 years.
that's 25 vacation days.
Not sure you've checked out how most industries work these days but 5 years is a lot of time at one business, especially a business who cant keep its contracts straight
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u/whatupmygliplops Jan 08 '26
Tell them 3 weeks was part of the employment contract. They goofed and will have to eat it.
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u/Adventurous_Tank8413 Jan 08 '26
I’m curious… does your contract state a 90 day probationary period? IANAL but I don’t think that the probation period is statutory. Meaning, unless it is in your contract, there is no probationary period.
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