On March 23, 2023, the Ontario government tabled its 2023 Ontario Budget: Building a Strong Ontario. Of significance to employers, the Budget announced that the paid Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (Paid IDEL) will expire on March 31, 2023. By way of background, the Paid IDEL is a form of paid leave available under the Employment…
Industry: Municipalities & Municipal Agencies
Ontario to Amend the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and Other Legislation
On March 20, 2023, the Ontario government tabled Bill 79, Working for Workers Act, 2023. If passed, Bill 79 would amend several statutes including the Employment Standards Act, 2000, the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act, 2009. In this FTR Now, we review proposed amendments of particular interest…
Hicks Morley Welcomes Stephanie Savoni as WSIB Counsel
Managing Partner Craig Rix is pleased to announce that Stephanie Savoni has joined the firm as WSIB Counsel.
Stephanie J. Savoni
Stephanie Savoni is counsel to Hicks Morley in its Toronto office, and has been working in the field of workplace safety and insurance law for over 22 years. Her practice has been dedicated exclusively to representing employers in workplace safety and insurance law matters for the past 19 years.
Ontario Arbitrator Finds National Day of Mourning Not a Holiday under Collective Agreements
An Ontario arbitrator has found that the “National Day of Mourning” on September 19, 2022 was not a “holiday” within the meaning of the collective agreements in issue as that day was not “proclaimed” to be a holiday by a legislative process. The Prime Minister declared September 19, 2022 to be a National Day of…
Beyond COVID-19: 2022 Year in Review – Cases and Legislation of Note
Employers and human resource professionals will undoubtedly remember 2022 as another year shaped by the pandemic.
But…there were also legal developments in 2022 that were not related to COVID-19. In this FTR Now, we look at some of the past year’s notable “non-pandemic” cases and legislative developments.
Ontario Launching 2023 Budget Consultations
On December 8, 2022, the Ontario government announced that it is launching consultations for the 2023 Budget. The announcement states that the government is “seeking ideas from workers, families, business owners and communities on what they need and what they want to see in the 2023 Budget.” In-person consultations will be held across the province…
Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits Increase to 26 Weeks
The amendments contained in Bill C-30, Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1, which permanently extend the maximum number of weeks available under employment insurance (EI) sickness benefits, have been proclaimed into force effective December 18, 2022. In this FTR Now we consider this development and its implications for employers. Extension from 15 to 26 Weeks…
COVID-19 Year-End Edition
As we near the end of 2022, we reflect back on a year filled with virtual environments, increased connections and a renewed focus on wellness as we made it through another year since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020. The pandemic has had a broad-ranging impact on employment law since March 2020. To wrap up…
Court of Appeal Denies Injunction Relating to Mandatory Vaccination Policy
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently released its reasons in National Organized Workers Union v. Sinai Health System. The Court dismissed the appeal brought by the National Organized Workers Union (Union) of an Ontario Superior Court decision which refused to stay the implementation of the workplace COVID-19 vaccination policy (Policy) of Sinai Health System (Sinai…