Rubicon Point Partners Announces First Close of Rubicon Point Fund II
Fund II marks a return to Rubicon's roots, investing in dislocated markets with the goal of generating outsized returns. Building on experience gained in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, Rubicon aims to capitalize on current pricing dislocations fueled by the effects of COVID-19 and sharply rising interest rates.
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Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Toronto Sun
CHAUDHRI: Terminations during COVID pandemic continue to cost employers
Five years later, the courts continue to deal with cases arising from the early COVID-19 era Businesswoman closing her business activity because of COVID-19. Photo by Stock photo / Getty Images Five years after COVID-19 began, much of Canada is finally returning to a five-day work week. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account COVID-19 didn't just leave a mark, it completely transformed the way we look at workplaces and how people should work. Part of the major transformation created by the pandemic included widespread restructuring that left many employees without work and hefty wrongful dismissal claims. Five years later, the courts continue to deal with cases arising from the early COVID-19 era. Take for example the recent case of Joanna McFarlane, an executive vice president at King Ursa. The company promoted McFarlane in quick succession during her short tenure – no doubt in recognition of her strong ability. As an EVP, McFarlane earned a base salary of $300,000 and also received a phantom share allocation of 5%. While McFarlane enjoyed a swift rise up the ranks, King Ursa's business suffered during the pandemic, which it responded to by rolling out a major restructuring of the workforce. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In July 2022, McFarlane took maternity leave. About a week into her leave, she was advised of King Ursa's extreme cash flow problem. Over the course of 2022 and early 2023 the company asked McFarlane twice to extend her maternity leave to relieve the cost of employing her. When McFarlane finally returned to work in April 2023, she was presented with a letter reducing her salary to $210,000 and demoting her to a blend of positions she held previously. Read More McFarlane refused to sign the new contract, and instead resigned and alleged constructive dismissal, seeking reasonable notice, human rights damages, and moral damages. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At trial, Justice R. Lee Akazaki found that King Ursa's actions breached McFarlane's employment agreement and constituted a constructive dismissal entitling her to wrongful dismissal damages. The court found that the return-to-work discussions, including the two deferrals, exerted pressure on McFarlane to accept the new terms or leave her employment. The judge found that although the employer's financial difficulties were understandable from a business context, they did not excuse their legal obligations as an employer. McFarlane was awarded 12 months reasonable notice, with the availability of comparable positions being the most heavily weighted factor. The judge considered the fact that McFarlane had been promoted rapidly by King Ursa on the basis of her hard work and entrepreneurial energy, but she had been unable to secure a comparable position following her dismissal. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. While the court did not find that King Ursa discriminated against McFarlane for taking a maternity leave, the court was not as sympathetic with respect to imposing a demotion on her return. RECOMMENDED VIDEO The court stated, in part, ' I appreciate the attempt to impose a salary cut was not to push her out but to implement a cost reduction scheme. However, there was no justification of imposing a demotion.' The court went on to say, 'Any employee, especially one whose executive status is closely tied to her identity and self-esteem, would react negatively to a document containing a demotion.' McFarlane was awarded $40,000 in moral damages in addition to the $290,615.81 for wrongful dismissal damages. While many businesses suffered financial losses during COVID, this decision makes it clear that the impact of the pandemic on business did not curtail employee entitlements on termination. If anything, this case reinforces how important it is for employers to preserve the status, tenure and reputation of executive employees – even during hard financial times. Have a workplace problem? Maybe I can help! Email me at sunira@ and your question may be featured in a future column. The content of this article is general information only and is not intended to be legal advice. Toronto Blue Jays Columnists Sunshine Girls Editorials Sunshine Girls
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Milieu Market refills clean need
Wolseley's newest bar is self-serve. However, ales and stouts don't gush from its taps. Laundry detergent, dish soap and fabric softener flow out. Milieu Market opened its first Winnipeg storefront over August long weekend. It's a sharp turn from the United States expansion owner Jules Plett had envisioned. 'We needed to focus on staying in Canada,' Plett said, recalling early-2025 tariff threats from our southern neighbour. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Founder Jules Plett at Milieu Market, a refill station for health and wellness products in Wolseley which opened over the weekend. The store got its start in Steinbach four years ago, and this is the first Winnipeg location. Instead of unrolling her company's lotions and soaps in the U.S., she's filled dispensable jugs and stocked 992 Portage Ave. Free containers are stacked in one corner. One-gallon bottles of hand sanitizer gel and body wash sit on shelves near natural deodorants and skincare products. Plett, 28, began her refill business four years ago. She'd begun using refill stations while travelling in an effort to reduce waste; upon returning to Steinbach during the COVID-19 pandemic, she found her options limited. Milieu Market's first storefront appeared in Steinbach. It now has a refill station in Altona Mall. Wolseley holds the third shop, with spouts for household products protruding from a refill bar. 'I'm just excited to be here,' Plett said. U.S. President Donald Trump's warnings kept her focused on Canada; the spring closure of Planet Pantry, a similar business at The Forks, led her to see a gap in the Winnipeg market. (Another refill company, Refill Market, operates at 634 Notre Dame Ave.) Milieu Market sold wares at the Wolseley Farmers Market in past years. 'The people, the community in this area, they're just so passionate about what I'm doing,' Plett said. 'I want to be closest to where the customers are.' So when the 900-sq.-ft. space opened — with a kitchenette in the back for soap making — Plett leapt. Nearly all the items inside Milieu Market are Canadian-made. Plett launched her in-house brand, Greenland and Co., in 2022. She began selling Greenland and Co. shampoo and conditioner bars on Aug. 1, in part, because U.S. products have become too costly. 'Tariffs are bouncing on and off, but not for personal care,' Plett relayed. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Plett aims to open more refill shops, or help others to do so, to help reduce waste and pass the savings on to customers. She'd been working with a formulator for roughly a year on shampoo and conditioner bars. She hadn't found a Canadian product she loved, she said, and the U.S. brand she stocks has since increased in price through Canadian counter-tariffs. What was a roughly $42 bar has jumped to a cost of $50. 'We didn't want to cut them from our line, but it did get really expensive,' Plett said, noting she hasn't added the full 25 per cent cost increase to the customer price. Prism Kombucha joins the local businesses represented within Milieu Market. It has its own refill station in a corner. 'We're excited to be part of Milieu Market,' said co-owner Colin Rémillard. 'It's an awesome way to have people consuming more kombucha… but it's also reducing packaging.' Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Milieu Market is a welcome addition to the Portage Avenue strip, said Heidi Bao, an employee at neighbour business Brite Agencies. 'It makes more convenience for the community,' Bao said. Plett aims to open more refill shops — either her own or by helping others. 'Any way we can do that, that's definitely my goal,' she said. Gabrielle PichéReporter Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle. Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Toronto Star
2 days ago
- Toronto Star
Questerre reports second quarter 2025 results
THIS NEWS RELEASE IS NOT FOR DISSEMINATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR UNITED STATES PERSONS CALGARY, Alberta, Aug. 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Questerre Energy Corporation ('Questerre' or the 'Company') (TSX,OSE:QEC) reported today on its financial and operating results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2025.
