Lay-Off Definition: A temporary discharge of an employee. In Air-Care Ltd., Justice Dickson of Canada's Supreme Court adopted this definition: "Lay-off, a period during which a workman is temporarily discharged." In 1998, that same high court reiterated the definition by using these words at ¶73 of Canada Safeway Ltd. v RWDSU: "While in common parlance the term layoff is sometimes used synonymously with termination of the employment relationship, its function in the lexicon of the law is to define a cessation of employment where there is the possibility or expectation of a return to work. The expectation may or may not materialize. But because of this expectation, the employer-employee relationship is said to be suspended rather than terminated." French: mise à pied. REFERENCES: Air-Care Ltd v United Steel Workers (1976) 1 SCR 2 Canada Safeway Ltd v RWDSU (1998) 1 SCR 1079 Find you are constantly looking up definitions? Try our search provider (works in most modern browsers) If you find an error or omission in Duhaime's Legal Dictionary, or if you have legal term suggestion, we'd love to hear from you!