Lawyers have filed a class action lawsuit against CIBC World Markets Inc. alleging widespread violations of employment standards legislation including unpaid overtime in various provinces across Canada.

None of the allegations have been proven in court and the case will first need to be certified as a class action before proceeding.

In media reports, CIBC said it plans to defend this action.

The suit, which was filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, claims relief for various types of employees of CIBC World Markets including investment bankers, financial analysts and investment advisors.

The suit, filed by Juroviesky and Ricci LLP in conjunction with Ken Alexander of Ball & Alexander Employment Lawyers, alleges that CIBC World Markets allegedly failed to accurately record employees’ hours of work, and allegedly failed or refused to pay overtime pay in violation of applicable provincial legislation.

The suit further alleges “CIBC World Markets cultivates an environment where employees are expected to work up to 80 hours per week in violation of provincial limits on hours of work” and that through its practice not to record employees’ hours of work, the firm “led its employees to believe that they were not entitled to overtime pay, and were outside the purview of the protections of provincial safeguards limiting work hours.”

It’s the second class-action lawsuit filed against CIBC that claims employees worked overtime without pay. It comes almost 18 months after a bank teller filed a class action that also claimed the bank failed to pay overtime.

“It is important for employers to remember that salary is not a listed exemption from overtime under applicable Ontario legislation and that salaried workers are also protected by provincial limits on hours of work” said Henry Juroviesky, in a release.

The suit requests that the court grant relief to all persons that worked for CIBC World Markets at any time since October 2002, that are owed overtime pay in accordance with applicable provincial legislation.

Juroviesky and Ricci LLP, with offices in Toronto and New York, has an active class action practice.