Ontario has published changes to the qualifications of persons hired as personal support workers (PSWs) or to provide personal support services in long-term care homes. Ontario Regulation 246/22 (O. Reg. 246/22) under the Fixing Long-Term Care Act, 2001 prescribes, among other things, residents’ rights, plans of care, processes for reporting complaints and nursing and personal…
Publication Type: Blog Post
Municipalities Take Note: Ontario Regulation Expanding Strong Mayor Powers Comes into Effect
The Ontario government has announced it is expanding strong mayor powers to 26 additional municipalities in the province. The province originally granted strong mayoral powers to the mayors of Toronto and Ottawa with the passing of Bill 3, Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 (Bill 3) on September 8, 2022 and the coming into force…
Employers Take Note: Incoming Changes to Competition Act
Employers are reminded that amendments made to the Competition Act by Bill C-19, Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 (Bill C-19) will come into force on June 23, 2023. Bill C-19 amends the existing criminal conspiracy provisions of the Competition Act to make it a criminal offence for an employer to conspire, agree or arrange…
Employers Take Note: Employees Entitled to Paid Time Off to Vote in Upcoming Toronto Mayoral By-Election
The Toronto mayoral by-election will be held on Monday, June 26, 2023, and voting hours will run from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Employers should be aware that under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 (Act), all employees who are eligible to vote in the election are entitled to three consecutive hours during voting hours on…
Reminder: Naloxone Kit Requirements Effective June 1, 2023
As we reported previously, amendments to the Occupational Health & Safety Act in Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022, which require certain employers to have a naloxone kit in the workplace, have been proclaimed into force effective June 1, 2023. On December 9, 2022, the Ontario government filed O. Reg. 559/22: Naloxone Kits, which…
Ontario Introduces Bill 91, Less Red Tape, Stronger Economy Act, 2023 and Announces Additional Amendments to Reduce Red Tape
On April 3, 2023, the Ontario government announced a range of measures related to pensions and employment (amongst other matters) in the province. On the same day, the government introduced Bill 91, Less Red Tape, Stronger Economy Act, 2023 (Bill 91) to implement some of those measures. Bill 91 and the additional measures are of…
Ontario Minimum Wage to Increase October 1, 2023
On March 31, 2023, the Ontario government announced that the general provincial minimum wage will increase from $15.50 to $16.55 per hour on October 1, 2023. This minimum wage applies to most employees. Minimum wage rates will also increase on the same date for the following groups of employees:
Federal Government to Extend Temporary Measures under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program
On March 27, 2023, the federal government announced the extension of temporary measures introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic under the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program. As stated in the announcement, the extended measures include: The government also announced that the TFW Program will begin transitioning to the LMIA Online Portal as the primary method to…
Federal Minimum Wage to Increase on April 1, 2023
On March 21, 2023, the federal government announced that the federal minimum wage will increase from $15.55 to $16.65 per hour on April 1, 2023. The increase applies to the federally regulated private sectors, including banks, postal and courier services, telecommunications, and interprovincial air, rail, road and marine transportation. Federally regulated private sector employers are…
Court Considers Appropriate Pleadings in Class Action Context
In a recent development in Ottawa’s “convoy class action,” Justice MacLeod of the Ontario Superior Court provided a helpful review for litigants of what will be considered an appropriate pleading under the Rules of Civil Procedure particularly in the class proceedings context. Background Li v. Barber is a proposed class proceeding commenced by an Ottawa…