Practice Area: Labour Relations

Ontario Enacts Legislation to Provide Paid Leave for Reasons Related to COVID-19

· 14 min read

On April 29, 2021, the Ontario government tabled and passed Bill 284, COVID-19 Putting Workers First Act, 2021 (Bill). The Bill amends the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) to provide eligible employees with up to three days of paid emergency leave in circumstances of absences relating to a designated infectious disease (Paid IDEL). As readers…

Long-Term Care COVID-19 Commission Submits Final Report

· 1 min read

On April 30, 2021, Ontario’s Long-Term Care COVID-19 Commission submitted its Final Report to the Minister of Long-Term Care. The Commission was created by the Ontario government in July 2020 in response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the long-term care sector. Specifically, the Commission was asked “to investigate the cause of the…

Ontario Court of Appeal Holds “Owner” of a Construction Project Can Be Considered an “Employer” Under OHSA

· 5 min read

A recent decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal has significant implications under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) for owners and employers responsible for construction projects. In Ontario (Labour) v. Sudbury (City), the Court of Appeal held that an “owner” of a construction project can also be considered an “employer” with obligations to…

Ontario Extends Stay-at-Home Order; Implements Further Restrictions

· 6 min read

On April 16, 2021, the Ontario government extended the declared emergency made under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (EMCPA) as well as the Stay-at-Home Order until May 5, 2021. Additional restrictions for the Rules for Areas in Stage 1 (Shutdown Zone), made under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020,…

Ontario Makes Emergency Order to Permit Redeployment of Health Professionals by LHINs and Ontario Health

· 4 min read

On April 9, 2021, the Ontario government announced that it has made two orders under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (EMCPA). The first order relates to the redeployment of certain health care professionals and other workers to hospitals. The second order relates to the transfer of patients to alternative sites. The government states…

We Welcome Four New Associates to the Firm

Hicks Morley is pleased to announce that four new associates have joined the firm in our Ottawa, Toronto and Waterloo Offices. Michael Babe is joining our colleagues and continuing his labour and employment practice in Hicks Morley’s Ottawa office. Michael looks forward to serving our clients and providing support to them on a wide range…

Larissa V. J. Putt

Larissa Putt is a labour and employment lawyer in Hicks Morley’s Waterloo office. She provides advice and representation to employers in both the private and public sectors on a wide range of labour and employment issues including grievance arbitration, labour disputes, collective bargaining and human rights advocacy work. She also provides employers with practical guidance on a wide array of statutory compliance related matters including employment standards compliance.

Michael Babe

Michael Babe is a labour and employment lawyer with Hicks Morley’s Ottawa office. He provides advice and representation to management in both the public and private sectors on a broad range of labour, employment and human rights matters. Michael has experience with wrongful dismissal claims, human rights complaints and labour disputes. Michael has appeared before…

Federal Government Extends COVID-19 Leaves under Canada Labour Code

· 2 min read

On March 31, 2021, the federal government published regulations amending the Canada Labour Standards Regulations made under the Canada Labour Code to increase the length of the existing federal COVID-19 leaves. These changes took effect on March 15, 2021.  Therefore, employees in federally regulated workplaces continue to be entitled to the following two job-protected unpaid…