In Taylor v Salytics Inc., 2025 ONSC 3461 (Taylor), the Ontario Superior Court of Justice emphasized the importance of a substance-over-form analysis in the interpretation of employment agreements, concluding that a temporary...more
In a significant decision for employers, the Ontario Court of Appeal in Metrolinx v. Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1587, upheld the Divisional Court’s ruling that quashed an arbitrator’s decision reinstating five employees...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
Several 2024 amendments to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) will be implemented in summer 2025, and more new requirements will take effect starting in 2026. Below is a detailed overview of these changes,...more
In a rare but significant “win” for employers, the Ontario Court of Appeal confirmed that an employer can enforce a termination provision limiting an employee’s entitlements strictly to the minimum standards under the...more
Le présent bulletin résume les principaux éléments des récents projets de loi relatifs à l’emploi qu’a adoptés l’Assemblée législative de l’Ontario et qui auront une incidence sur les employeurs en Ontario....more
This bulletin summarizes key elements of recent employment-related bills passed in the Ontario legislature that will impact Ontario employers....more
Baker v Van Dolder’s Home Team Inc. (Baker) is the latest decision in Ontario to conclude that a termination provision permitting an employer to terminate, without cause, “at any time” is contrary to the Employment Standards...more
In Karim v. Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, 2024 HRTO 1231, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) dismissed a probationary employee’s claim that they were discriminated against with respect to employment because...more
In Timmins v. Artisan Cells, 2025 CanLII 2387, Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice found, in an undefended claim, that the employers “by their correspondence and actions” repudiated the employee’s employment agreement when...more
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
On January 28, 2025, Ontario Premier Doug Ford requested that Lieutenant Governor Edith Dumont dissolve Ontario’s Legislative Assembly, triggering an election for Ontarians to elect Members of Provincial Parliament. That...more
On November 27, 2024, the Ontario government introduced Bill 229, Working for Workers Six Act, 2024 (Bill 229). This announcement comes just one-month after Ontario’s Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 (Bill 190) received...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
In November 2023, the Government of Ontario passed Bill 149, the Working for Workers Four Act, 2023 (the “Act”). The Act places new obligations and prohibitions on employers, and intends to strengthen Ontario’s employee...more
UPDATE: On November 3, 2022, Bill 28, Keeping Students in Class Act, 2022, received Royal Assent. On October 31, 2022, in an unprecedented bid to prevent school board employees represented by the Canadian Union of Public...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, 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, the Working for Workers Act, 2022, received Royal Assent in Ontario, thus enacting the Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act, 2022. The act also...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
On February 24, 2022, Ontario announced that later this month, in an effort to protect the privacy of employees, it will be the first province to introduce legislation requiring employers to tell their workers if and how they...more
In Bunge Hamilton Canada, Hamilton, Ontario v. United Food and Commercial Workers Canada, Local 175, the arbitrator found that a mandatory vaccination policy requiring unvaccinated unionized employees to be placed on unpaid...more
In Bunge Hamilton Canada, Hamilton, Ontario v. United Food and Commercial Workers Canada, Local 175 (Bunge), Arbitrator Robert J. Herman dismissed a union grievance challenging the employer’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination...more
On November 11, 2021, only two days after Arbitrator Von Veh upheld a mandatory vaccination policy in United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Canada Local 333 v. Paragon Protection Ltd. (Paragon), Arbitrator Stout struck...more
The government of Ontario has introduced legislation that they proclaim will “make the province the best place for people to work, live and raise a family.” The legislation, Bill 27 - the Working for Workers Act, 2021 (“Bill...more