OK to Fire Probationary Employee Because She Doesn’t Fit In

A medical evacuation pilot terminated during her 6-month probation period sued for wrongful dismissal. The gist of her case: My pilot skills are just as good if not better than the other pilots. But the company didn’t take issue with her skills; it fired the pilot because she didn’t fit in with the other employees or accept responsibility when things went wrong. This might not have been enough to justify firing a regular employee for just cause, the court acknowledged. But because the employment in this case was probationary, the company could terminate the pilot for not being suitable [Langford v. Carson Air Ltd., 2015 BCSC 1458 (CanLII) Aug. 19, 2015].