In Ville de Québec v. Ouellet, a pregnant police sergeant asked her employer, the City of Québec, to assign her safe duties rather than be pulled off the job under the workers’ compensation program known as Program for a safe...more
Recently, sweltering summer heat settled over parts of Canada, especially in Ontario. There is good reason to believe that this will happen again this summer, and will impact both workers who are outside in the sun and those...more
On May 28, 2025, the Ontario Government introduced the Working for Workers Seven Act, 2025 (Bill 30). If passed, Bill 30 will amend the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), and...more
On October 28, 2024, Ontario’s Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 received Royal Assent. ...more
Ontario recently passed Bill 190, Working for Workers Five Act, 2024, on October 28, 2024, building on earlier legislation of the same series and making further changes to employment rules in Ontario. Below are some of the...more
On October 28, 2024, Ontario’s Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 received Royal Assent. This is the fifth such act since 2021. ...more
On October 28, 2024, Ontario’s Bill 190, Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 (Bill 190), received Royal Assent. Among other things, Bill 190 amends the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Occupational Health and Safety...more
On October 1, 2024, WorkSafeBC introduced new regulations (the Crane Regulations) regarding tower crane safety which amend Part 14 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation (the OHS Regulation) in British Columbia. The...more
In R. v. Greater Sudbury (City), 2024 ONSC 3959, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (OSCJ) dismissed an appeal of the trial judge’s decision in which she acquitted the City of Sudbury (City) of various charges under...more
Executive Summary: This is Part 4 of a series of Alerts exploring different facets of the ongoing opioid addiction crisis afflicting our country. Our initial Alert on June 12, 2023 outlined the big-picture issues associated...more
The Supreme Court of Canada’s (SCC) decision in R. v. Greater Sudbury (City), 2023 SCC 28 was equally divided (4-4). In the absence of a majority SCC decision, the City's appeal was dismissed, and the decision of the Court...more
On November 14, 2023, the Government of Ontario introduced the Working for Workers Four Act, 2023 (“Bill 149”). If passed, the proposed legislation will amend the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”) to include...more
On October 26, 2023, Ontario’s Bill 79, Working for Workers Act, 2023 (Bill 79) received Royal Assent and came into force. The statutes amended by Bill 79 include the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), the Occupational...more
During Ward and Smith’s annual Employment Law Symposium, three attorneys provided insights on a fictional construction company's reaction to a serious job site accident. In the session, the attorneys shed light on key issues...more
The Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development has announced that it is seeking prompt comments and feedback on two Occupational Health and Safety proposals, including one in relation to heat...more
Changes to the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations under the Canada Labour Code will require federally-regulated employers to make menstrual products available to their employees for free and provide disposal...more
On March 20, 2023, Ontario introduced Bill 79, Working for Workers Act, 2023 for First Reading. Bill 79 contains amendments to the province’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA),...more
As discussed, on December 8, 2022, Ontario proclaimed in force amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act made in Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022. The amendments, which require certain employers to have...more
On December 8, 2022, Ontario proclaimed in force amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) made in Bill 88, Working for Workers Act, 2022. The amendments, which require certain employers to have naloxone...more
On October 6, 2021, the Act to modernize the occupational health and safety regime took effect. As indicated in the act’s title, its purpose was to modernize Québec’s occupational health and safety regime with regard...more
Bill 59, the Act to modernize the occupational health and safety regime, was adopted on September 30, 2021 by the Quebec National Assembly and sanctioned on October 6, 2021. It is the most important modernization process of...more
On April 11, 2022, the Ontario government’s Bill 88, the Working for Workers Act, 2022 (“Bill 88”), received royal assent. Earlier this year, we wrote about Bill 88 on this blog, when it was still at second reading. In...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
Le 28 février 2022, le projet de loi 88, Loi de 2022 visant à œuvrer pour les travailleurs (le « projet de loi 88 ») a été déposé auprès de l’Assemblée législative de l’Ontario. S’il est adopté, il apporterait des...more
On February 28, 2022, Bill-88 – the Working for Workers Act, 2022, was introduced in the Ontario legislature. If passed, Bill-88 will amend various employment-related legislation in Ontario, including the Employment Standards...more