As we know, the government legalized the recreational use of marijuana in October of 2018, but this does not mean employees can be impaired at work. Much like the rules for the use of alcohol, employers have the right to set rules for non-medical use of marijuana in the workplace. But what about medical marijuana? […]
In a recent Ontario Superior Court decision, both the plaintiff employee and the defendant employer suffered serious legal cost consequences for making unsubstantiated allegations against each other. As part of a somewhat disturbing trend among some plaintiff side law firms, legal pleadings are ‘cookie-cutter’ based making allegations of wrongdoing, human rights violations and claims for […]
Please note the below changes do not impact provincially regulated employers. On December 17, 2021, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canada Labour Code (Bill C-3) received Royal Assent. This bill amends Part III of the Canada Labour Code to provide 10 days of paid sick leave to federally regulated private sector […]
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 […]