Pierre-Olivier Lessard

• Labour and Employment Law
• Human Rights and Discrimination
• Labour Relations
• Strategic HR Advice
• Employment Law
• Education Law
• Federal Labour and Employment Law
• Public and Administrative Law

• Governments, Public Services and Organizations
• Manufacturing
• Energy and Natural Resources

Defended employers in connection with grievances

• Represented employers in grievance arbitrations in matters involving dismissal, disciplinary and administrative measures, psychological harassment and outsourcing.

Represented employers before the Administrative Labour Tribunal

• Represented employers before the courts and advised on requests for certification by a union, decertification requests, complaints of interference, bad-faith negotiating, applications for an order to put an end to illegal strikes and in essential services matters.

Negotiation

• Spokesperson in connection with renewals of collective agreements in both the public and private sectors. Relevant experience in conciliation procedures before the Ministry of Labour and in preparing for and managing labour disputes.

Injunction

• Represented employers to prevent or contain pressure tactics in connection with labour disputes and to protect the interests of an employer dealing with unfair competition by a former employee.

Charter of rights

• Represented employers in lawsuits involving issues of privacy, discrimination, reasonable accommodation, electronic surveillance (GPS, cameras), investigations and surveillance, alcohol addiction, last chance agreements, etc.

Unfair competition

• Acted in connection with proceedings to obtain an order for the seizure of confidential documents, orders to enjoin the illegal solicitation of employees and clients, and damages. Relevant experience in drafting non-compete and non-solicitation clauses.

Psychological harassment investigation

• Acted as investigator in psychological harassment matters and drafted investigation reports for employers.

• Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, 2022
• Member of the winning duo at Université Laval Dean’s Cup mooting competition, 2024
• Best Pleader award for the semi-final of Université Laval Dean’s Cup mooting competition, 2024

• Centre international de séjour de Québec (part of the Hostelling International – Canada network):
  • Member of the Board of Directors, 2009-2015
  • Vice-chair, 2014

• Collaborator: Le droit du travail du Québec [Employment law in Québec], 8th Edition, Éditions Yvon Blais, 2022.
• Co-author: "Will all your employees be needed when businesses reopen? If not, the legal framework for collective dismissals should be considered”, May 8, 2020.
• Author: “Understanding the criteria for admissibility of a surveillance operation as evidence”, November 25, 2019.
• Co-author: “Replacing a Contractor’s Key Employees During a Project and the Penalties for Doing So: How to Reduce the Risks?”, November 29, 2016.
• Author: “Employers’ Disciplinary Power Regarding Conduct Outside the Workplace”, November 9, 2016.
• Co-author: “Physical and Verbal Aggression on the Part of a Teacher May Result in Dismissal”, June 9, 2016.
• Co-author: “Work Life Balance: Do Employers Have a Duty to Accommodate?”, May 13, 2016.
• Author: "Le cyberconsommateur averti" [The Smart Cyber-consumer], 2004.

• Speaker: Le rôle de l’employeur dans un dossier de manquement au devoir de représentation du syndicat [The employer's role in a case of breach of the union's duty of representation], Langlois Knowledge, webinar, November 8, 2022.
• Co-speaker: L’année en rafale – droit scolaire [Education Law – Review of the 2021 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, webinar, April 26, 2022.
• Co-speaker: L’année en rafale – droit scolaire [Education Law – Review of the 2019 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, webinar, November 20, 2020.
• Speaker: Le Licenciement collectif [The collective dismissal], Association hôtelière de Québec, webinar, May 21, 2020.
• Co-speaker: Revue jurisprudentielle 2018 [Education Law – Review of the 2018 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 5, 2019.
• Co-speaker: Que faire lorsque c'est l'employé difficile qui se plaint de harcèlement? [What to do when it's the difficult employee who complains of harassment?] and Lors du départ d'un employé-clé : quels sont les bons réflexes à avoir? [What are the right reflexes to have when a key employee leaves?], as part of the Colloque 2019 – Droit du travail et de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 27, 2019.
• Co-speaker: 3^e formation | Défi de la tolérance zéro en matière de harcèlement, [Third Continuing Legal Education Symposium on Labour and Employment Law 2018 | The Zero-Tolerance Challenge for Harassment], as part of the workshop series Huit formations en droit du travail et de l’emploi 2018, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, April 26, 2018.
• Co-speaker: Droit scolaire – Revue jurisprudentielle 2017 [Education Law – Review of the 2017 Case Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, March 28, 2018.
• Co-speaker: 1^re formation | Développements récents en non-concurrence et obligation de loyauté [First Continuing Legal Education Symposium on Labour and Employment Law 2018 | Recent Developments in Non-Competition and Duty of Loyalty Obligations], as part of the workshop series Huit formations en droit du travail et de l’emploi 2018, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, March 1, 2018.
• Co-speaker : L’invalidité sous toutes ses formes [All forms of disability], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, November 16, 2017.
• Speaker: 3^e formation | Légalisation du cannabis : les impacts pour les employeurs [Legalized Cannabis: Impacts for Employers], third workshop of the series 360^o de l’emploi : sept formations en droit du travail et de l’emploi 2017, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, June 7, 2017.
• Co-speaker: La fin d’emploi : obligation de loyauté, non-concurrence et non-sollicitation : où en sommes-nous? [Termination of employment: duty of loyalty, non-competition and non-solicitation: where do we stand?], as part of the Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi : 360^o de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 13, 2017.
• Co-speaker: Lumière sur le processus décisionnel : du Conseil des commissaires à l’arbitrage [Light on the decision-making process: from the Board of Commissioners to arbitration], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, November 14, 2016.
• Speaker: Conciliation travail-famille Y-a-t-il un devoir d'accommodement de l'employeur? [Work-life balance Does the employer have a duty to accommodate?], as part of the Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi : le choc des générations sur le marché du travail, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 9, 2016.
• Co-speaker: Les dix principaux jugements de 2014 [Top 10 judgments in 2014] and Arbitrage simulé [Simulated arbitration], as part of the Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi, Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 10, 2015.
• Co-speaker: Conférence-LKD en collaboration avec la SODES [LKD-Conference in collaboration with SODES], Langlois Knowledge, Montréal, March 13, 2014.
• Co-speaker:  Colloque de droit du travail et de l’emploi [Symposium on Labour & Employment Law], Langlois Knowledge, Québec City, February 7, 2014.

LL.B., Université Laval, 2004