This blog explores some of the issues with temporary layoffs in the time of COVID-19. It outlines the basics of temporary layoffs and answers some of employers’ most frequently asked questions.
Relief for Workers Announced – Federal Government Passes Emergency COVID-19 Response Benefits and Leaves for Federal Workers
Parliament has come together in an emergency session and passed Bill C-13 – The COVID-19 Emergency Response Act (the “Act”) on March 25, 2020. The blog summarizes the support and benefits which have been implemented for workers impacted by COVID-19 business closures and work stoppages.
Provincial Worker Job Protection Formalized – The Employment Standards Amendment Act (Infectious Disease Emergencies), 2020
In an emergency session on March 19, 2020, the Ontario legislature passed Bill 186, which amends the ESA to provide support for provincially-regulated employees including full-time, part-time, student, casual workers and temporary help agency assignment employees who are unable to work as a result of COVID-19.
Help is on the Horizon – Changes to EI Benefits, Introduction of the Emergency Care Benefit, and Support for Small Businesses in Response to COVID-19
Many are aware of measures already in place or introduced by the various public and government authorities for employers, employees and the economy. On March 18th, in response to increasing demand, the federal government announced further measures and support available to workers and employers as part of its COVID-19 Economic Plan.
PH’s COVID-19 Employer Resource Centre
In the face of the COVID-19, PH is doing its part to keep employers informed and their employees safe. We’ve gathered some helpful resources for employment-related issues facing employers in the wake of COVID-19.
Sick with Worry: An Employer’s Guide to Managing Coronavirus Concerns in the Workplace
For the vast majority of us, the main impact of coronavirus is anxiety. Employers may already be feeling the impacts of a nervous workforce. This may include increased sick days and absences, refusals to work, or discriminatory behaviour in the workplace. What’s an employer to do?
Leaping Through 2020 - Facing the Payroll Challenge of a February 29th
For most of us, February 29th may come and go with no consequence. But for employers, there is a special consideration that may be taken for granted. If you pay your employees on a bi-weekly basis, February 29th brings with it the possibility of 27 pay periods rather than the usual 26 (depending on when your pay periods fall).
Let's "Talk" - Sweet Employee Engagement
With many employers looking for new, creative and better ways to promote open communication amongst coworkers and across teams, what if there were conversation hearts for the workplace?
Restoring the Workplace After an Investigation – A Reindeer’s Guide
Even the story of a reindeer from the North Pole can teach employers about managing the complex issue of restoring a respectful workplace and working relationships after a harassment complaint.
Informal Work Should Still be Governed by “Formal” Employment Contracts
According to a recent Angus Reid Institute study, 40% of Canada’s millennials have participated in the “gig economy” over the past 5 years. This blog discusses the reasons for having temporary/informal jobs governed by written employment contracts, and what they should include.
Lest We Forget
On March 1, 2018, the Federal government passed Bill C-311, An Act to Amend the Holidays Act (Remembrance Day). The Act officially and formally recognizes Remembrance Day as a “legal holiday”.
Post-#MeToo: Confidentiality Restrictions May Go the Way of the Dodo
From a legal perspective, confidentiality is a standard term tied to settlements in the workplace. But are NDAs soon to become extinct and if so, what should employers do?
The Chalk Dust Has Not Settled on Strike Action at Ontario Schools: What’s an Employer to do?
While parents may once again find themselves scrambling to make arrangements for their children – emergency childcare, camp registration, calling on family members – employers question what will happen at their workplaces if their workers have to tend to matters at home in a school shutdown.
More Than Just a Dinner: A Thanksgiving Toolkit
Follow these Thanksgiving tips to ensure your working relationship, like your holiday, ends up being the celebration you envisioned.
The Desjardins Data Leak – How Employers Can Prevent Privacy Breaches
A single employee was responsible for the entirety of the Desjardins data breach, carrying out an internal attack right under the company’s nose. What more can (and should) an employer do?
Maternity and Parental Leave Policies: To Top Up, or to Tap Out? That is the Question…
What should employees expect when they’re expecting? Patrizia discusses whether it is discriminatory for employers to provide enhanced maternity leave benefits to female employees only.
Mind the (Gender Wage) Gap: What Lies Ahead for Ontario Employers
This past month, the US Women’s National Soccer Team made headlines amid their World Cup run by pushing for pay equality with their counterparts on the men’s team, leading to support from sponsors and the US Senate.
So what is the big deal about gender/sex discrimination in compensation and should Ontario employers be concerned?
You’ve Wined Them, You’ve Dined Them…and They’ve Stood You Up: What Employers Can Do When Jobseekers Fail to Commit
What is an employer to do in cases where they have not yet had the chance to build that relationship with a new employee who’s ghosted them?
Equality When You Are Born This Way … Not the Same Way
When it comes to employers navigating human resource issues and relationships with their employees, it’s obvious that “equal” is not the same as “identical”…
A Reasonable Expectation of Privacy: The Application of R v. Jarvis to the Employment Context
The recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in R v. Jarvis addressed the circumstances that give rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy. While the case directly considered whether certain recordings violated the Criminal Code, the Court’s broad analysis of when a reasonable expectation of privacy exists applies outside the criminal context, with relevance to employers.