Former N.S. call centre workers await $194K payout two years after layoffs
Debra Lalonde is still fighting for the $2,893 she is owed. She was one of 74 employees laid off in March 2024 when Global Empire Corporation closed its call centre in Liverpool, N.S.
Global Empire Corp. has appealed provincial order to pay 69 employees
Debra Lalonde is still fighting for the $2,893 she is owed.
She was one of 74 employees laid off in March 2024 when Global Empire Corporation suddenly closed its call centre in Liverpool, N.S.
More than two years after losing their jobs, Lalonde and her former co-workers have yet to see any of the money a provincial regulator ruled they are owed.
Last May, the Nova Scotia Labour Standards Division ordered the Alberta-headquartered company to pay nearly $194,000 to 69 of those terminated employees, finding GEC failed to provide proper notice. GEC appealed the decision, and the dispute remains unresolved.
"I keep pushing it because it's the principle of it," Lalonde said. "What good are rights if they can't be upheld?"
GEC opened the Liverpool call centre in 2022, but its relationship with its largest client, Lifeline Systems Company Inc., ended two years ago.
Relationship breakdown
GEC claimed in a letter to Lifeline that it was owed nearly $2.4 million and that it had a pattern of late and unpaid invoices. Shortly after, Lifeline ended the agreement.
On March 1, 2024, Lifeline eliminated GEC's digital access.
"Everyone's screens just shut down, we were locked out, no one could sign in," Lalonde said.
Employees were told to report to the building but wait in an empty room for two weeks to receive temporary pay. On March 15, GEC CEO Moe Nashman issued a formal letter terminating their employment immediately.
Legal battle
GEC argued to provincial regulators that it was exempt from the requirement to provide eight weeks' notice, or pay in lieu, because the sudden shutdown was outside its control.
Lifeline countered that GEC violated their contract first by failing to staff the centre with the 130 employees required to meet its obligations. Neither company responded to requests for comment.
The Labour Standards Division rejected GEC's argument last year. It ruled that the layoffs were within GEC's control and violated the Labour Standards Code.
Because GEC appealed the ruling, the province says its hands are tied. Laura Todesco, a spokesperson for the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration, said it would be inappropriate to comment while the appeal is pending.
For Lalonde, the delay reveals a breakdown in accountability.
"This is workers' rights that the government has not been able to uphold," she said. "They can't even enforce the director's decision."
