The 2025 Ontario provincial election will take place on February 27, 2025. Voters will elect their Member of Provincial Parliament to represent them at Queen’s Park.
In most of the province, polls are open on election day...more
In 2023, Canada saw significant statutory and case law developments in labour and employment law. This Insight provides an overview of notable 2023 developments, with links to more detailed articles and commentary....more
What is It? The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) was established in 2008 to document the history and legacy of residential schools, which were operated between the late 1800s and the late 1990s by the...more
12/14/2023
/ Canada ,
Churches ,
First Nations ,
Holidays ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Reform ,
Minor Children ,
Reconciliation ,
Religious Institutions ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Ordinances ,
Wage and Hour
This month, the federal government made two announcements that are relevant to federally regulated, private-sector employers regarding the minimum age for employment and the minimum wage. Canada provides this list of...more
On March 23, 2023, Ontario released its 2023 Ontario Budget: Building a Strong Ontario (2023 Budget). The Budget provides that Paid Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (Paid IDEL) will expire on March 31, 2023....more
3/27/2023
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Employees ,
Unpaid Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
On March 9, 2023, British Columbia’s Bill 2, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Act (Bill 2) received Royal Assent. Bill 2 came into force on the date of Royal Assent.
Bill 2 amends British Columbia’s Employment...more
On November 25, 2022, Canada announced that, commencing on December 18, 2022, Employment Insurance (EI) sickness benefits will be extended permanently from 15 weeks to 26 weeks. Accordingly, qualified individuals who...more
As Canada is a member of the British Commonwealth, the monarch of Britain is its head of state and is represented by the Governor General of Canada, who is appointed by the sitting Prime Minister....more
In Bowen v. JC Clark Ltd., 2022 ONCA 614, the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) put employers on notice that their discretion in awarding discretionary bonuses is not unconstrained and must be exercised fairly and reasonably. ...more
Deemed IDEL No Longer Available -
In May of 2020, Ontario filed O. Reg. 228/20, which provided that a non-unionized employee who did not perform their job duties during the “COVID-19 period” because their work hours were...more
8/10/2022
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Layoffs ,
Ontario ,
Wage and Hour
Earlier this year, pursuant to Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Canada Labour Code (Act) and Bill C-19, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on April 7, 2022 and other...more
On July 21, 2022, Ontario filed Regulation 464/22, which amends O. Reg. 228/20: Infectious Disease Emergency Leave Regulation to extend the availability of Paid Infectious Disease Leave (Paid IDEL) until March 31, 2023. ...more
7/22/2022
/ Canada ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Public Health ,
Sick Leave ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
In Ontario (Health) v. Association of Ontario Midwives, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (OCA) was satisfied with the reasonableness of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario’s (HRTO) finding that the Ministry of Health (MOH)...more
7/19/2022
/ Canada ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Ministry of Health ,
Ontario ,
Ontario Human Rights Tribunal ,
Pay Gap ,
Wage and Hour
On May 31, 2022, Alberta’s Bill 17, Labour Statutes Amendment Act, 2022, received Royal Assent, and the following amendments to Reservist Leave and Bereavement Leave in the province’s Employment Standards Code came into...more
In Beach Place Ventures Ltd. v. Employment Standards Tribunal, 2022 BCCA 147, the British Columbia Court of Appeal (BCCA) upheld a determination by the Employment Standards Tribunal (Tribunal) that three taxi drivers...more
The 2022 Ontario general election will take place on June 2, 2022. Voters will elect members of the provincial government to serve in the Legislative Assembly.
Under Ontario’s Election Act, every employee who is...more
On April 11, 2022, Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022 received Royal Assent and became law. As previously discussed, in addition to enacting the new Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act, 2022 (DPWRA), Bill 88 amends the...more
On April 5, 2022, Ontario announced that, in an effort to help workers with rising costs and inflation, it will be raising its general minimum wage by 8% from $15 per hour to $15.50 per hour, commencing October 1, 2022. The...more
In United Utility Workers’ Association of Canada v Dataco Utility Services Ltd., 2022 CanLII 13414 (AB GAA), Arbitrator John Moreau, Q.C., dismissed 11 grievances filed on behalf of 11 service technicians (Grievors) of Dataco...more
3/9/2022
/ Breach of Contract ,
Canada ,
Collective Agreements ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Grievance Process ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
International Labor Laws ,
Layoffs ,
Severance Pay ,
Wage and Hour
In Nader v. University Health Network, 2022 ONSC 447, the court examined the language of a secondment agreement and concluded that the plaintiff-employee was not a fixed-term employee of the organization to which he was...more
On the heels of the passage of the Working for Workers Act, 2021, Ontario introduced Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022 (Bill 88) on February 28, 2022, and carried it at First Reading....more
3/3/2022
/ Canada ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Standards Act ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Ontario ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Wage and Hour
In 2021, Canada saw significant statutory and case law developments in labour and employment law, some of which related to COVID-19. This Insight provides an overview of key 2021 developments, with links to more detailed...more
12/17/2021
/ Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Harassment Guidance ,
Workplace Violence ,
Wrongful Termination
Provincial minimum wage rates were increased to their current rates on October 1, 2021. Just one month later, on November 2, 2021, Ontario announced that because the cost of living has increased considerably due to the...more
11/11/2021
/ Canada ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Standards Act ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Regulations ,
Ontario ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Wage and Hour
In O’Reilly v. ClearMRI Solutions Ltd., 2021 ONCA 385 (ClearMRI Solutions), the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) decided that the motion judge erred in concluding that a majority shareholder of an employee’s contractual employer...more
7/8/2021
/ Canada ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
International Labor Laws ,
Ontario ,
Responsible Party ,
Shareholders ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
On June 3, 2021, the federal government’s Bill C-5, An Act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Interpretation Act and the Canada Labour Code (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation) received Royal Assent. This bill...more