If you thought COVID-19 was over, think again. The Ontario government has just announced that it will be extending the Worker Income Protection Benefit program yet again until March 31, 2023. Set to expire on July 31st, 2022, this extension means that employers will still be required to provide three paid infectious disease emergency leave […]
Over the past several months, many employers across Canada have implemented mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies within their workforce. In the context of labour arbitrations, unions have challenged their reasonableness and enforceability. Largely, arbitral decisions have favoured the implementation of mandatory vaccination policies, provided that the consequence of non-vaccination is reasonable, i.e. immediate dismissal for non-compliance […]
It is common for businesses to hire seasonal employees to work during the summer months or other peak seasons. Hiring these kinds of employees can be a beneficial way for employers to meet temporarily increased business demands. Whether a seasonal employee is returning from the previous year, is new to the business, or is being […]
In December 2013, The Accessibility for Manitobans Act (“AMA”) became law, with the goal of making meaningful strides in accessibility across the province, by 2023. The Accessibility Standard for Employment, which was enacted on May 1, 2019, is intended to eliminate barriers faced by Manitobans (the “Employment Standard”) and impacts private sector organizations, non-profit organizations […]
Quebec has recently passed a controversial bill that has left many employers operating in the province wondering how this will affect them. Bill 96 – An Act respecting French, the official and common language of Quebec – will mean the following for Quebec businesses (this is a summary of major changes): Businesses will be required […]
With the Ontario Provincial Election just around the corner, now is a good time to start thinking about your obligations as an employer to provide your employees with time off work to vote. Eligible voters who are 18 years of age or older and registered to vote are entitled to three consecutive hours off work […]
As you may be aware from our recent e2r™ Alert, a recent change to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) requires employers with 25 or more employees on January 1 of any year have a written policy in place with respect to electronic monitoring of employees. Since our last Alert, we confirm that employers […]
The Ontario government’s second Working For Workers Act, 2022 was passed on April 7, 2022 and will take effect on the later of July 1, 2022 or the date the legislation receives Royal Assent. The Working For Workers Act, 2022 creates the Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act, 2022 (“DPWR”) and makes amendments to the Employment […]
Recently, in Reotech Construction Ltd. v. Snider (2022), British Columbia’s Supreme Court reversed a trial court decision that declined to deduct the employee’s Canada Emergency Response Benefit (“CERB”) payments from their wrongful dismissal damages. In this case, the employee was laid off at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic and received approximately $9,000.00 in CERB […]
What is the new law? The Working for Workers Act, 2021 (the “Act”) amended the Employment Standards Act, 2000 in Ontario on December 2, 2021. Among other things, it prohibited Ontario employers from entering into an employment agreement or other agreement with an employee that is, or that includes, a non-compete agreement. This also applies […]