The Ontario Court of Appeal recently released two decisions which consider the Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation (SLAPP) provisions of the Courts of Justice Act. The provisions are aimed at discouraging actions that have the harmful effect of chilling individuals and organizations from speaking out on matters of public interest. The first decision of the…
Author: Hicks Morley
Bill Relating to Daylight Savings Time Passes in Ontario Legislature – Not Yet in Force
On November 30, 2020, Bill 214, Time Amendment Act, 2020, a Private Member’s Bill, received Royal Assent. It has not yet been proclaimed into force. If proclaimed into force, the Bill would amend the Time Act to make the time now called “daylight savings time” the “standard time” year round. In addition, the Bill would…
New Version of Employment Standards Poster is Available
The Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development recently published a new version of the Employment Standards in Ontario poster (Version 9.0). The poster contains information relating to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) with respect to minimum wage, hours and overtime, vacation time and pay, public holidays, leaves of absence and termination notice and…
Federal Government Proposes New Holiday: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
On September 29, 2020, the federal government tabled Bill C-5, An Act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Interpretation Act and the Canada Labour Code (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation). If passed, Bill C-5 would create a new federal holiday entitled the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, with the purpose of…
COVID-19 Leave in Canada Labour Code to be Extended
Early on September 30, 2020, the federal House of Commons passed Bill C-4, COVID-19 Response Measures Act. It amends the Leave Related to COVID-19 provisions of the Canada Labour Code to extend the leave to September 25, 2021. It also enacts the Canada Recovery Benefits Act which establishes certain benefits as a result of COVID-19….
Canada Labour Code COVID-19 Leave Extended by an Additional 4 Weeks
The COVID-19 leave available under the Canada Labour Code has been extended an additional 4 weeks, from 24 weeks to 28 weeks, effective September 4, 2020. This change is to align the leave with the recent increase to the number of weeks an employee can receive the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).
Federal Government Seeks Input on Accessibility Standards
The federal government is seeking input from interested participants on the development of federal accessibility standards under the Accessible Canada Act (Act), which came into force in July 2019.
Ontario Government Announces Extension of Temporary Relief from ESA Termination and Severance Provisions
On Thursday, September 3, 2020, the Ontario government announced that it would be extending the temporary relief measures from the termination and severance provisions of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) until January 2, 2021. The temporary measures are found in Ontario Regulation 228/20, Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (IDEL Regulation), and had been set to expire today (September 4, 2020). The IDEL Regulation has been amended to define the “COVID-19 period” as that period beginning on March 1, 2020 and ending on January 2, 2021
Proposed Extension of Current CEWS Calculation for Inactive Employees Through Claim Period 7
The federal government has announced that it proposes to extend the current treatment of employees on leave with pay under the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program by four weeks, from August 30, 2020 to September 26, 2020 (CEWS claim period 7).
Details of Extensive Changes to Employment Insurance and Canada Emergency Response Benefit Announced
In the latest evolution of the federal government’s response to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, on August 19, 2020, amendments to the Employment Insurance Act (EI Act) were published and, on August 20, 2020, the government announced new measures to support affected Canadians who continue to be unable to work due to COVID-19.