On June 21, 2019, Bill C-81, the Accessible Canada Act (Act) passed as amended by the Senate and received Royal Assent. The provisions of this Act come into force on a day to fixed by order of the Governor in Council. As we previously reported, the Act is accessibility legislation which impacts certain federally regulated…
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“Non-Construction” Employer Deeming Provision under LRA Now in Force
On April 3, 2019, Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2019, received Royal Assent. Among other things, the Bill amends the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (LRA) to deem certain public sector entities as “non-construction” employers to whom the construction provisions of the LRA will not apply. Such entities include municipalities, local housing corporations, social services…
Gender Identity and Gender Expression
Gender identity and gender expression are protected grounds under Ontario’s Human Rights Code (Code). While the law in this area is highly dynamic, this Client Toolkit provides employers with guidelines and best practices for understanding its unique aspects, supporting trans people in the workplace, and ensuring compliance with the Code.
Cases of Note: Dealing with Challenges in the Healthcare Workplace
In this edition of HR HealthCheck, we discuss a recent decision of the Ontario Divisional Court which considered the challenging issue of a nurse who suffers from an addiction disability and whose employment was terminated for theft of narcotics from the workplace.
If You Are Subject to the Canada Business Corporations Act, Take Note of New Record-Keeping Obligations
Effective June 13, 2019, corporations that are subject to the Canada Business Corporations Act must maintain and provide access to a register of individuals who, directly or indirectly, have “significant control” over the corporation.
Ontario Proposes Increase to Hours for Unionized Employees Under ESA Overtime Averaging Agreements
On June 19, 2019, the government published two regulatory proposals which relate to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) and for which the government is inviting feedback by August 5, 2019.
Ontario Health and Safety Regulations Amended
On June 10, 2019, the Ontario government filed a number of amendments to regulations made under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. O. Reg. 186/19 replaces the “Equivalency” provision of Regulation 851 (Industrial Establishments) with a new provision entitled “Alternative methods and materials.” It now requires employers to provide written notice to the joint health…
Significant Canada Labour Code Reforms to Come Into Force September 1, 2019
The federal government has proclaimed September 1, 2019 as the coming into force date for several changes to the Canada Labour Code (Code) as enacted by Bill C-63, the Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 2 (Bill C-63). As a result of co-ordinated coming into force provisions, a number of substantive amendments to the Code contained in Bill C-86, the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 (Bill C-86) will also come into force on September 1, 2019.
Ontario Clarifies DB Funding Reforms under the Pension Benefits Act
On May 21, 2019, the Ontario government filed Regulation 105/19 amending Regulation 909 (General Regulation) under the Pension Benefits Act (PBA). The amendments mainly relate to clarifying elements of the defined benefit (DB) funding rules that took effect on May 1, 2018. Many of the new clarifications have been requested by the pension industry over…
Ontario Budget Bill (Bill 100) Passes
As previously reported, on April 11, 2019, the Ontario government released its 2019 Budget and introduced Bill 100, Protecting What Matters Most Act (Budget Measures), 2019. Bill 100 received Royal Assent on May 29, 2019. Of particular interest to employers and human resource professionals are the amendments made to the following statutes: Public Sector Labour…