‘RE-DO’ ON BILL 148 STATUTORY HOLIDAY PAY CALCULATION CHANGES
The Ontario government is reversing its stance on changes initiated to public holiday pay calculations that came into effect on January 1, 2018.
The Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act (Bill 148) introduced a new public holiday pay formula which increased entitlements for part-time, temporary and casual employees by basing pay on the number of shifts worked in a pay period, rather than using a previous formula which was pro-rated based on a full-time work week.
Due to significant feedback from the business community, citing punitive and unfair costs for small businesses with part-time employees in particular, the government has agreed to review this controversial policy decision.
It is assumed that Doug Ford’s newly elected majority Progressive Conservative Government will honour this commitment.
In the meantime, and effective July 1, 2018, employers will revert to the previous public holiday pay calculations going forward. Employers will not be required to make any retroactive pay changes.
As a reminder, please find the previous public holiday pay calculation below. This applies to all eligible employees and is effective July 1, 2018:
- “The employee’s public holiday pay for a given public holiday shall be equal to the total amount of regular wages earned and vacation pay payable to the employee in the four work weeks before the work week in which the public holiday occurred, divided by 20”.
An overview of the key changes initiated by Bill 148, which impacts most employers in Ontario is outlined HERE.
 PAY TRANSPARENCY LEGISLATION HAS BEEN PASSED
Ontario recently passed legislation to increase transparency in hiring processes, mandating that employee compensation be based on candidate qualifications and the requirements of the job.
This legislation is the central piece of Then Now Next: Ontario’s Strategy for Women’s Economic Empowerment, which will help remove long-standing barriers that have kept women from benefiting equally in Ontario’s rapidly changing economy.
Effective January 1, 2019 and beginning with the Ontario Public Service sector, Ontario will:
- Require all publicly advertised job postings to include a salary rate or range;
- Prevent employers from asking a candidate about their previous compensation;
- Prohibit reprisals against employees who discuss or disclose compensation; and
- Establish a framework for tracking and reporting compensation gaps based on gender or other diversity characteristics.
The proposed new rules will then apply to employers with more than 250 employees in 2020, and to employers with more than 100 employees in 2021.
NCHR will keep a close eye on this as January approaches.
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Contact us for more information: info@nchr.ca - 905-818-NCHR - http://www.nchr.ca
This e-newsletter from NCHR Consulting & Recruitment Services contains important information about HR related legislative updates and other best practice suggestions and lessons learned, to help you better manage your business and employee situations.
NCHR e-newsletter: #17, June 2018
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