Human Resources Legislative Update
Ontario Government Proposes to Shorten Construction Industry Open Periods
Date: April 22, 2026
On April 20, 2026, the Ontario government announced the introduction of the Protecting Ontario’s Workers and Economic Resilience Act, 2026, which would, if passed, contain important potential changes to the construction industry’s “open period” which all construction employers should be aware of.
Later that same day, Bill 105, Protecting Ontario’s Workers and Economic Resilience Act, 2026 (Bill 105) was tabled for First Reading, carried and ordered for Second Reading. On April 21, 2026 and April 22, 2026, Bill 105 was debated at Second Reading.
Currently, the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (LRA) sets out what is commonly referred to as an “open period” in the construction industry. During this time, trade unions can displace (raid) other unions to represent their members or union members can apply to terminate their union’s bargaining rights (decertify them). Currently, these open periods occur during the last two months of a collective agreement’s operation, among other times.
The Government has proposed two alternative models to shorten the timeframe from two months to a one month timeline, for both displacement and termination applications. The Ministry has indicated it will consult with stakeholders to determine the best approach between the two models:
(1) Where the one month time period would fall during the last month of a collective agreement’s operation; or
(2) Where the one month time period would fall during the second-last month of a collective agreement’s operation.
The stated purpose of these potential changes is to address project delays and uncertainty in the construction sector. The open period has often been a very disruptive time in the unionized construction industry, while practically resulting in a surprisingly small amount of employees actually changing bargaining agents.
We will provide further updates as they become available. If you have any questions about these potential upcoming changes, please feel free to contact a member of our Construction Labour Group.
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