MORE SWEEPING CHANGES TO EMPLOYMENT LAW IN ONTARIO - January, 2019
2018 has been quite a year for employment law in Ontario. Last year at this time employers were bracing for major changes from the Liberal Government’s ‘Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act (“Bill 148”). In October we navigated through the legalization of recreational cannabis, and today we will discuss the Conservative Government’s ‘Making Ontario Open for Business Act’ (“Bill 47”).
With specific focus on the changes coming to the Employment Standards Act, the major highlights most employers need to be aware of are outlined below.
It is important to note that these changes take effect on January 1, 2019, so until then existing Bill 148 provisions will remain in force.
Bill 148 changes that were slated for implementation on January 1, 2019 have all been repealed.
Major Implications:
- The standard minimum wage will remain at $14/hour until 2020.
- Employers will be able to continue to use employees on an on-call basis at no cost unless they attend work.
- Employers will not be required to provide 3 hours of pay to employees who are notified of a shift cancellation within 48 hours of their shift.
Personal Emergency Leave provisions are changing significantly on January 1, 2019.
Major Implications:
- The current entitlement to 10 annual Personal Leave Days, including 2 paid days are being replaced as follows:
- Up to 3 unpaid days annually for personal illness, injury or medical emergency.
- Up to 3 unpaid days annually to attend to family responsibilities.
- Up to 2 unpaid bereavement days annually when certain family members pass away.
- If an employee takes a day off under company policies that would otherwise entitle them to one of these leaves, the employee is deemed to have taken the legislated leave as well.
- Employers’ may request a medical note to substantiate employee time off from work for medical reasons, when it is reasonable to request one.
Equal Pay for Equal Work based on employment status provisions have been repealed.
Major Implications:
- Effective January 1, 2019 employers will not be required to pay part-time, casual or temporary assignment employees the same rate of pay as full-time staff when they perform the same work.
Key Bill 148 provisions that will remain in place beyond January 1, 2019 include:
- The standard minimum wage will remain $14/hour.
- Changes made to various extended Leaves of Absence provisions under the Employment Standards Act will remain in place. This includes Pregnancy and Parental Leaves, Critical Illness Leave, Family Medical Leave, Child Death Leave, Crime Related Child Disappearance Leave, and Domestic or Sexual Violence Leave.
- Minimum vacation time and pay provisions for employees with 5 years of service with their employer will remain at 3 weeks and 6% of wages.
Though not related to Bill 148 or Bill 47, The Pay Transparency Act that was slated to come into effect on January 1, 2019 has been delayed.
Major Implications:
- Employers will not be required to indicate salary or pay ranges on job advertisements, nor will employers be prohibited from asking candidates for information related to past compensation during the recruitment process.
Hopefully this helps clarify some of the mystery around the employment law landscape in Ontario effective January 1, 2019. But don’t get too comfortable folks, we are expecting to see more change to our employment laws soon...
If you wish you discuss the impact that any of these changes may have on your organization, please give us a call.
We wish all of our clients and friends a very Happy Holiday and New Year filled with Peace, Joy, and Prosperity. Happy Holidays from NCHR.
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: #19, December 2018
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