No solution in sight for N.S. workers owed thousands of dollars by former employer

Two Halifax-area workers still haven't seen the thousands of dollars in unpaid wages and other pay they're owed by their former employer, despite rulings in their favour from the provincial body that handles these issues.

In June 2024, Akira Arruda and Teri Boates filed complaints with the province's Labour Standards Division against Halifax-based marketing company Arbuckle Media, claiming they were owed various forms of pay.

But after the company stopped operating and months of waiting for a decision, it now seems unlikely the money will reach the workers, who were laid off.

"My trust in the system has completely failed me," Arruda said. The money could have helped pay the bills, especially considering the high cost of living now, she added.

According to decision documents obtained by CBC News, the Labour Standards Division found in both cases that Arbuckle Media had violated the Labour Standards Code.

On April 11, the division ordered the company to pay more than $10,000 owed to Arruda in unpaid wages and pay in lieu of notice. Arbuckle Media was also ordered to pay more than $6,000 owed to Boates in unpaid wages, vacation pay and pay in lieu of notice.

But on May 2, a labour standards officer emailed both workers, saying the division was closing the cases, deeming them "uncollectible," according to emails provided by Arruda and Boates.

"We are very tired," said Boates, who suffered a stroke in 2023. After being laid off by the company in July 2024, she said not having health insurance or the money she was owed made it harder to pay for things like medications during her recovery.

"It feels like we shouldn't have to work this hard for something that has been deemed owed."

In the emails, the labour standards officer said their office had sent a "demand" to TD Bank.

"Unfortunately, at that time, TD confirmed that while they had an account for Arbuckle Media, there were no funds available in the account," the officer wrote.

The officer went on to say they contacted another financial institution, Wealthsimple, and received the same response. 

"These demands place a hold on the account for some time but eventually do expire," the officer explained. "If funds are deposited into either account while the hold is active, the funds will be sent to our office."

The emails also say that Arbuckle Media did not appeal the decisions to the Labour Board.

Arruda called the more than $10,000 owed to her a life-changing amount of money.

"I went through the stages of grief with the money that I was owed and I've accepted that I'm never going to get it," she said.

Despite that acceptance, Arruda said she's troubled by what she's learned about how little protection there is for her.

"I … consider it a complete failure of the system to have dealt with it for nine months and for nothing to come of it." 

Evidence in both cases was provided by the workers. The decision documents detail how the president of the company, Joel Arbuckle, acknowledged the company was no longer operating, but that he "has not responded to communications from the Labour Standards Division" for further information.

In an emailed statement, Arbuckle said that Arbuckle Media ceased operations after unsustainable financial losses.

"Like many small businesses, we did our best to navigate difficult conditions, but ultimately could not meet all obligations before closing."

Arbuckle said the company is "functionally insolvent" and has no assets to satisfy the Labour Standards Division order. He said he has made efforts to support former employees in "transitioning to new roles."

The executive director of the Halifax Workers' Action Centre said these cases are emblematic of a larger issue.

"Our current Labour Standards Division has very weak enforcement policies and not a lot of mechanisms in order to get justice when the employer doesn't want to play ball," said Sydnee Blum.

Blum said Nova Scotia should implement measures like those in British Columbia, where employers who violate labour standards and are ordered to pay wages must pay fines that increase for subsequent violations within three years of each contravention. 

In a statement, Nova Scotia's Department of Labour said most labour standards complaints are resolved without a formal decision and that employers voluntarily comply in most cases when there is one.

The Labour Standards Division has "several tools" to try to collect pay when an employer does not comply, the statement said.

"That said, if an employer is no longer operating, having financial trouble and has no identified assets that Labour Standards can use to recover owed pay, there is no ability to satisfy the decision."

In Nova Scotia, Blum said, "Even when workers take the prescribed steps by legislation, they follow all of the things that they're supposed to they're still not able to access justice."