Human Resources Policy (Employee Handbook Overview)

Purpose

This is the starting point for everyone who works at NEO, a licensed paralegal firm. It explains how employment at the firm works, who to ask about HR matters, what you receive when you start, and where to find each HR policy. The detailed rules are in the policies listed at the end.

Who it applies to

Employees of the firm. Where a section also applies to independent-contractor paralegals or students on placement, it says so. Contractors are governed by their contractor agreement and our Independent Contractor Paralegals Policy, and students by their placement agreement and our Students and Placements Policy.

The employment relationship

1. Written terms. Every employee receives a written employment agreement or offer letter before they start. As good practice, we give every new employee, in writing and before their first day where we can: the firm's legal and operating name and contact details, where the work is done (office, remote or hybrid), the starting wage, the pay period and pay day, and a general description of the expected hours.
2. Probation. Your agreement may set a probationary period, so both you and the firm can confirm the role is a good fit. Probation doesn't remove any right under the Human Rights Code or the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). Under the ESA, the right to written notice of termination (or termination pay) begins once you have been employed continuously for three months; your agreement may give more.
3. Job duties. Your job description sets out your main duties, which may change reasonably as the firm's needs change. Only licensees give legal advice, accept matters, set fees or appear for clients, under our Supervision and Delegation Policy. NEO provides only the services a licensed paralegal may provide, under our Scope of Paralegal Practice Policy; anything outside that scope is referred to a lawyer.
4. Confidentiality. Every employee signs a confidentiality agreement and follows our Confidentiality Policy, during and after employment.
5. The ESA is the floor. No agreement or policy gives you less than the ESA requires. Where your employment agreement gives you more than a policy does, the agreement applies.

Your HR contact

The principal, Mo. Farooqui, Licensed Paralegal, is the HR contact for every employee: questions about pay, hours, leave, accommodation, records or any policy. Email info@neolegalservices.com or speak to the principal directly. If your concern is about the principal, the policies on workplace violence and harassment and reporting misconduct explain other routes.

Equal treatment

Everyone has the right to equal treatment in employment, without discrimination or harassment because of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability, as the Ontario Human Rights Code provides. Licensees are also bound by Rule 2.03 of the Paralegal Rules of Conduct. See our Anti-Harassment and Anti-Discrimination Policy and Workplace Accommodation and Return to Work Policy.

What you receive and where it is posted

• "Employment Standards in Ontario" poster. You receive a copy of the most recent version within 30 days of starting. If you ask for it in another language, we check whether a translation has been published and, if it has, give you a copy.
• Health and safety postings. The "Health & Safety at Work: Prevention Starts Here" poster, a copy of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), and our health and safety, workplace violence and workplace harassment policies are posted in the office or in a readily accessible electronic format, and we tell you where to find them. The WSIB's "In case of injury or illness at work" poster (Form 82) is displayed in the office.
• Accommodation. You are told about our policies for supporting employees with disabilities when you are offered the job and as soon as practicable after you start, and whenever they change.
• Written policies. You receive copies of our disconnecting from work and electronic monitoring policies within 30 days of starting, and within 30 days of any change.

Training when you start

1. Health and safety awareness training under O. Reg. 297/13, as soon as practicable (supervisors within one week of starting to supervise). We keep a record and give you written proof on request.
2. Workplace violence and harassment: information and instruction on our policy and program.
3. Accessibility: training on the AODA's accessibility standards and on the Human Rights Code as it applies to people with disabilities, and again when our policies change.
4. Privacy, confidentiality and security: client confidentiality, client identification, privacy and the firm's systems, under our Professional Development and Competence Policy.

Contractors and students receive the training that applies to their work.

Hiring and job postings

Our Fair Hiring and Employment Policy explains how we recruit. Since January 1, 2026, Ontario's job-posting rules require employers with 25 or more employees to include in publicly advertised postings the expected pay or a pay range, say whether the job is an existing vacancy, disclose any use of AI to screen, assess or select applicants, not require Canadian experience, tell interviewed applicants within 45 days whether a hiring decision has been made, and keep posting records for three years. NEO follows these rules as good practice. A requirement to hold a Law Society licence is still allowed. Applicants are told that accommodation is available during recruitment.

Outside work and conflicts

• Tell the principal before taking on outside work that could conflict with the firm's interests or clients, or that would use firm time, information or equipment.
• Only licensees may provide legal services in Ontario, under the Law Society Act (with limited exceptions in the Law Society's by-laws). Employees who are not licensed assist licensees under supervision at work. They must not provide legal services on their own, at work or outside it, unless a Law Society by-law exemption clearly applies and they have told the principal first.
• Licensees must not let an outside interest affect their integrity, independence or competence (Paralegal Rules of Conduct, Rule 2.01).
• Tell the principal about any personal connection to a client, an opposing party or a matter, under our Conflicts of Interest Policy.
• NEO doesn't ask employees to sign non-compete agreements, which the ESA prohibits for most employees. Confidentiality duties still apply.

References

Only the principal gives references on the firm's behalf, and only with your consent, including simply confirming your position and dates of employment, as our Employee Privacy and Personnel Records Policy explains. Employees shouldn't give references in the firm's name.

Pay at a glance

Employees are paid semi-monthly by direct deposit on the 1st and the 16th of each month, into an account you choose in your own name. Each pay day pays for a half-month that has already ended: the 1st pays for work from the 1st to the 15th of the previous month, and the 16th pays for work from the 16th to the last day of the previous month. If a pay day falls on a weekend, a public holiday or another day banks are closed, you are paid on the business day before. You receive a pay statement on or before each pay day. See our Payroll and Pay Days Policy.

The HR policies

Working at NEO

• Office Rules and Premises Policy
• Hours of Work, Overtime and Attendance Policy
• Vacation, Holidays and Leaves Policy
• Remote and Hybrid Work Policy for Staff
• Payroll and Pay Days Policy
• Expense Reimbursement Policy
• Employee Privacy and Personnel Records Policy
• Electronic Monitoring of Staff Policy
• Disconnecting from Work Policy
• Workplace Violence and Workplace Harassment Policy and Program
• Workplace Accommodation and Return to Work Policy
• Performance, Discipline and Ending Employment Policy
• Licensee and Staff Wellness Policy
• Workplace Health & Safety and WSIB Policy

Conduct, clients and the profession

• Staff Code of Conduct and Fair Hiring and Employment Policy
• Anti-Harassment and Anti-Discrimination Policy and Accessibility Policy
• Confidentiality Policy and Information Security and Data Breach Response Policy
• Acceptable Use of Technology Policy and Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence Policy
• Recording of Calls and Meetings Policy and Social Media and Online Conduct Policy
• Supervision and Delegation Policy and Remote and Virtual Services Policy
• Trust Accounting and Client Money Policy and File Closing and Retention Policy
• Gifts and Hospitality Policy and Conflicts of Interest Policy
• Professional Development and Competence Policy and Professional Indemnity Insurance Policy
• Business Continuity and Succession Policy and Reporting Misconduct Policy
• Scope of Paralegal Practice Policy and Law Society Regulatory Compliance Policy
• Books and Records Policy and Cash Transactions and Anti-Money Laundering Policy
• Independent Contractor Paralegals Policy and Students and Placements Policy

Review

This policy and the policies it lists are reviewed at least once a year, and whenever the law or the Law Society's By-Laws or rules change. The principal approves every change, and employees are told about changes that affect them.

Questions

Email info@neolegalservices.com, call 647-200-3526 or toll-free 888-519-2435, or write to us at Unit 236, 1099 Kingston Road, Pickering, Ontario L1V 1B5.