When Does an Employer Owe Notice?

Many Canadians work under seasonal or fixed-term employment contracts, particularly in industries such as tourism, education, agriculture, recreation, and construction. A common question arises when a contract ends, and the employer decides not to bring the employee back: Is the employee entitled to advance notice or severance pay?

The answer depends on whether the employment relationship is truly a fixed-term arrangement or whether it has evolved into something more permanent.

The General Rule: No Notice Required at the End of a True Fixed-Term Contract

Under Canadian employment law, a genuine fixed-term employment contract ends automatically on its specified end date. Because both parties know from the outset when the employment will conclude, employers generally do not have to provide notice when the contract expires. The employment relationship ends in accordance with the agreement.

British Columbia's Employment Standards Act (the “ESA”) also exempts employees hired for a definite term from statutory notice requirements that would normally apply when an employee is terminated.

For example, if a ski resort hires an employee from November through April under a clearly defined seasonal contract and elects not to renew it after the season ends, notice may not be required.

When Fixed-Term Contracts Aren't Really Fixed-Term

The issue becomes more complicated when an employee works under a series of consecutive seasonal or annual contracts over many years.

Courts increasingly look beyond the wording of the contracts and focus on the reality of the relationship. If an employee has been repeatedly rehired, receives ongoing benefits, experiences little or no interruption in service, or reasonably expects to return each season, the relationship may be viewed as continuous or indefinite rather than a sequence of separate fixed-term contracts.

In these situations, courts have warned against allowing employers to avoid employee protections simply by repeatedly using fixed-term contract language.

Key Factors Courts Consider

When determining whether a worker is truly on a fixed-term arrangement or has effectively become a permanent seasonal employee, courts may consider:

• the length of the employment relationship;

• whether contracts were routinely renewed;

• whether there were meaningful renewal discussions each year;

• whether Records of Employment were issued at the end of each term;

• whether the employee received ongoing benefits or other indicators of continuing employment; and

• whether the employee reasonably expected to be recalled or rehired.

A long history of uninterrupted seasonal work can support a finding that the employment relationship is indefinite in nature, even if the contracts are labelled "fixed-term."

What This Means for Employers and Employees

For employers, simply calling an agreement a fixed-term contract may not be enough. Courts require clear and explicit language and will closely examine how the relationship functioned in practice.

For employees, a non-renewal may not always be the end of the story. If years of recurring employment created a reasonable expectation of ongoing work, the employee may have rights to statutory or common-law notice despite the contract wording.

The Bottom Line

A true seasonal fixed-term contract can generally expire without notice. However, where seasonal contracts have been renewed repeatedly over many years, and the overall relationship resembles ongoing employment, courts may treat the employee as indefinitely employed and require notice or severance when the relationship ends. The key question is not what the contract is called, but what the employment relationship looked like in reality.

If you have questions about fixed-term contracts, please contact Dominique Legendre at 778-871-9791 or dl@dwslaw.ca.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to serve as, or should be construed as legal advice, and is only to provide general information. Employment law is fact-specific. Should you require legal advice for your particular situation, please get in touch with us. The information for this article was compiled on July 21, 2026.