In Taylor v. Salytics Inc., 2025 ONSC 3461, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice considered whether a temporary layoff provision in an employment contract constituted a termination provision, and was therefore subject to the...more
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
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
In Pham v. Qualified Metal Fabricators Ltd., 2023 ONCA 255, the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) found that unless an employee’s employment contract provides otherwise via an express or implied term, an employer’s unilateral lay...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
Employers in Ontario have been waiting for clarification on the interpretation of COVID-19 leave provisions throughout much of the pandemic. Employers had hoped that the Court of Appeal’s decision in Taylor v Hanley...more
As we previously highlighted, on May 29, 2020, the Province of Ontario enacted Ontario Regulation 228/20, Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (IDEL Regulation), under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The IDEL...more
Just six weeks after holding in Coutinho v. Ocular Health Centre Ltd. that Ontario Regulation 228/20 (IDEL Regulation) under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) did not remove an employee’s common law right to claim...more
In order to address the economic impact of COVID-19 on Ontario’s businesses, in June 2020 the Ontario government created a special leave called “infectious disease emergency leave” (IDEL) through Ontario Regulation 228/20 (O....more
On May 29, 2020, the Province of Ontario enacted Ontario Regulation 228/20, Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (the “IDEL Regulation”), under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”). The IDEL Regulation retroactively...more
Last May, the government of Ontario filed Ontario Regulation 228/20 (IDEL Regulation) under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The Regulation provides that an employee in a non-unionized workplace who, any time during...more
On September 3, 2020, Ontario’s government announced that it would extend layoff protections, preventing temporary layoffs due to COVID-19 from automatically becoming terminations of employment. In normal circumstances,...more
On July 24, 2020, Ontario’s new Bill 195, Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act, 2020, became law. In accordance with Bill 195, Ontario’s Emergency Declaration has ended (subject to the provincial...more
Le 29 mai 2020, le gouvernement de l’Ontario a adopté le Règlement de l’Ontario 228/20 (le « Règlement »), qui élargit la portée du congé spécial en raison d’une maladie infectieuse prévu aux termes de la Loi de 2000 sur les...more
On May 29, 2020, the government of Ontario filed Ontario Regulation 228/20 (Regulation) under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The Regulation amends layoff and constructive dismissal rules exclusively under the ESA,...more
On May 29, 2020, the Government of Ontario enacted O. Reg 228/20, which expanded the scope of the Infectious Disease Emergency Leave under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). The key elements of the regulation are...more