On February 18, 2022, the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development (Ministry) updated its online guide to the Employment Standards Act (Guide) to include chapters on written policy on disconnecting from work and non-compete agreements. The chapters provide guidance on recent Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) amendments that require employers with 25 or…
Industry: Membership Associations
In Case You Missed It: Key COVID-19 Cases to Date
Our recent FTR Now provided an overview of notable “non-pandemic” legal developments from 2021. In this FTR Now, we provide a round-up of key COVID-19 cases, which include decisions on issues such as wrongful dismissal, mandatory vaccination and human rights. These decisions will be of interest to employers and HR professionals as we move forward into…
Beyond COVID-19: 2021 Year in Review – Cases and Legislation of Note
Employers and human resource professionals will undoubtedly remember 2021 as another year shaped by the pandemic. But … there were also legal developments in 2021 that were not related to COVID-19. In this FTR Now, we look at some of the year’s notable “non-pandemic” cases and legislative developments of interest.
Federal Government Publishes Exemptions to New Hours of Work and Notice of Schedule Requirements under Canada Labour Code
The federal government recently published Exemptions from and Modifications to Hours of Work Provisions Regulations (Regulations) made under the Canada Labour Code (CLC). The Regulations provide certain exemptions and modifications to the CLC provisions requiring employers to provide 96 hours’ notice of work schedule, 24 hours’ notice of shift change, 30-minute breaks every 5 hours…
Ontario Announces Further Extension of Paid and Deemed Infectious Disease Emergency Leaves
On December 7, 2021, the Ontario government announced that it would be extending the program that provides eligible employees with up to three days of paid infectious disease emergency leave (Paid IDEL) until July 31, 2022 (previously set to expire December 31, 2021). The government also announced that it would be extending the temporary relief…
Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, Receives Royal Assent
On December 2, 2021, Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, 2021, received Royal Assent. We reviewed Bill 27 in detail in our FTR Now of October 26, 2021, Ontario Proposes Significant Changes to ESA and Other Employment-Related Legislation, as well as our FTR Now of December 1, 2021, Ontario Passes Bill 27, Working for Workers…
Federal Government Announces COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement for Federally Regulated Workplaces
On December 7, 2021, the federal government announced that it will propose regulations under Part II of the Canada Labour Code to make vaccination against COVID-19 mandatory in all federally regulated workplaces. The government stated that it will be consulting with key stakeholders on these new regulations, which it anticipates will come into force in…
Ontario Passes Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, As Amended at Committee
On November 30, 2021, the Ontario government passed Bill 27, Working for Workers Act, 2021.
The Bill will amend a number of statutes, including the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997….
Arbitrator Finds Mandatory Vaccination Policy to be Unreasonable
In this FTR Now, we review the arbitration award issued on November 11, 2021 by Arbitrator John Stout in Electrical Safety Authority and Power Workers’ Union, in which he assessed the reasonableness of an employer’s mandatory vaccination policy. In the specific context of the workplace, and its associated workplace dangers and hazards arising from COVID-19…
Ontario Introduces Legislation to Protect Pension Plan Whistle-blowers
On November 4, 2021, the Ontario government introduced Bill 43, Build Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2021 (Bill 43) for first reading. Among other things, Bill 43 includes proposed amendments to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario Act, 2016 (FSRA Act) to include protections for whistle-blowers in the pension sector and the other sectors regulated…