The Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services has published “A Guide to the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation” dated July 2012. The Integrated Accessibility Standards (IAS) Regulation was made under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. It came into force on July 1, 2011 and affects nearly all organizations in Ontario. The Guide…
Author: Hicks Morley
Letters of Credit Regulation Proposed to Implement Pension Reform Measures
On July 30, 2012, the Ontario Ministry of Finance posted details of a proposed, supporting regulation to implement the new framework for letters of credit under the yet to be proclaimed section 55.2 of the Pension Benefits Act (“PBA”). As noted in our “Pension Reform Measures in Ontario Have Arrived” FTR Now of July 27,…
Federal Government Creates Panel on Labour Market Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities
Further to its Economic Action Plan 2012, the federal government has announced the creation of a Panel on Labour Market Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities. The Panel has been charged with identifying private sector successes and best practices regarding labour market participation of persons with disabilities. It will also identify barriers and disincentives to employment…
Prep Time Payback – The Last (Good) Word?
School board labour relations practitioners will recall the efforts made by OPSBA in its 2009 PDT negotiations with ETFO to ensure that public school boards would not be obliged to reschedule preparation time that was missed due to such factors as board-imposed professional development held during the instructional day. The OPSBA/ETFO language stated: Missed preparation…
Pension Reform Measures in Ontario have Arrived
Until recent years, the statutory framework governing occupational pension plans for Ontario employees had remained largely unchanged for 20 years. Then, in 2010 the Ontario government passed two significant pension reform Bills: Bill 236 and Bill 120. There have been four subsequent Bills which made further changes to the Pension Benefits Act (“PBA”). On July…
Temporary solvency relief extended for specified Ontario MEPPs
The Ontario government filed regulatory amendments extending temporary solvency relief another five years for specified Ontario multi-employer pension plans (“SOMEPPs”). O. Reg. 203/12 amends sections 6.01(2), 6.0.3(2) and 6.04(1)(b) of General Regulation 909 to extend the solvency funding relief to valuations dated on or before August 31, 2017, and is now in force. We anticipate…
EI Regulations Giving Effect to Federal Budget 2012 Initiatives Now in Force
On June 20, 2012, Regulations Amending The Employment Insurance Regulations (“Regulations”) were registered and are now in force. Pilot Project No. 14, Pilot Project for Calculating Benefit Rate Based on Claimant’s 14 Highest Weeks of Insurance Earnings (Best 14 Weeks), previously scheduled to end on June 23, 2012, is extended by the Regulations and will…
House of Commons Adjourns Until September 17, 2012
On Thursday, June 21, 2012, the federal House of Commons adjourned until 11:00 a.m. (EDT) on Monday, September 17, 2012.
Divisional Court Affirms Pay Equity Wage Grids and Restricts Tribunal’s Use of Human Rights Code
In a recent decision that will have implications for employers and service providers across Ontario, the Ontario Divisional Court has upheld an important 2010 ruling of the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal (“PEHT”). In Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 1999 v. Lakeridge Health Corporation, the Court held that the decision of the PEHT regarding the…
MOL Safety Blitz Targets Construction Sites and Surface Mines
The Ontario government has announced that during the months of July and August 2012, the Ministry of Labour (“MOL”) will perform safety blitzes of construction sites and surface mines across Ontario. MOL inspectors will: check construction sites for hazards involving tower and mobile cranes; target activities involving the transportation of stone, sand, gravel and other…