2010

Happy holidays and see you in 2011

December 24, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Announcements and Administration

We are taking a break from blogging over the holidays…

Blogging, Christmas, employment law, holiday greeting, Holidays, HR

Slaw: CSST services and website available only in French

December 23, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Health and Safety, Human Resources

The Office québécois de la langue française requires that all communications between the Commission de la Santé et de la Sécurité du Travail du Québec (CSST, Quebec’s workplace health and safety board) and employers, suppliers and partners take place in French only, to comply with…

Charter of the French Language, Commission de la Santé et de la Sécurité du Travail du Québec, CSST, Office québécois de la langue française, Quebec, Slaw, slaw.ca, workplace health and safety board

Ministers agree on private sector pension plan

December 22, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits

On Monday December 20, 2010, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced that the provinces, territories and the federal government came to an agreement during their meeting in Alberta to move ahead with a new private-sector pension plan called the pooled registered pension plan framework. This means any talk regarding the expansion of the Canada Pension Plan is put on hold for now.

canada pension plan, cpp, pension plan, pooled registered pension plan, private-sector pension plan, PRPP, workplace pension plans

Impact on employers of the Open for Business Act: Employment standards complaints

December 21, 2010 Earl Altman Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources

The oddly named Open for Business Act 2010 received royal assent on October 21, 2010. The purpose of this Ontario statute, as its name implies, is to promote Ontario as being “open for business”. It amends and simplifies procedures within a number of government ministries, including the Ministry of Labour.

canadian employment law, complaint process, employment law, Employment Standards Claim, Employment standards complaint, Employment standards investigation, Employment Standards Officer, ESA complaint, Filing an Employment Standards Claim, Ministry of Labour, ontario, Open for Business Act

The season of stress?

December 20, 2010 Adam Gorley Accessibility Standards, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Standard for Employment

What types of pressures you’re feeling this season—both at and away from work—and how do you deal with them? My coping method is to pray desperately for vacation (four days away!) and think about how great I’ll feel in the new year.

Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, AODA, Christmas, coping with stress, four day workweek, Health Canada, Holidays, illness, ontario, overtime, stress, stressors, vacation, work culture, work-life balance

Slaw: Human Resources Professional Association of Ontario as a regulator

December 20, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Human Resources

Bill 138, the Registered Human Resources Professionals Act, 2010 received first reading in the Ontario Legislature on November 23, 2010. The aim of the Bill is to make human resources…

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Occupational health and safety panel recommendations: mandatory training and enhanced enforcement

December 17, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Health and Safety, Human Resources

On December 10, 2010, the Expert Advisory Panel on Occupational Health and Safety submitted its report to the Ontario government, containing several significant recommendations that will help improve workplace health and safety. The panel believes that…

canadian employment law, employment law, enforcement, Expert Advisory Panel on Occupational Health and Safety, health and safety training, mandatory training, Ministry of Labour, ontario, Tony Dean, workplace health and safety

Most organizations still don’t encrypt data when it leaves the office

December 17, 2010 Christina Catenacci Human Resources, Privacy and Security

I recently read a news release by the Alberta Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner that indicated that there are still high incidences of laptops containing personal information being stolen—without having security measures such as encryption put in place. The commissioner was left scratching his head.

Alberta, canadian employment law, employment law, encryption, Encryption technology, identity theft, laptops, Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner, personal information, private sector privacy legislation, protecting personal information, security measures, stolen laptops, technology

Pilot project for dependents of high-skilled Canadians or permanent residents returning to Ontario could go farther

December 16, 2010 Henry J. Chang, Dentons LLP Corporate Immigration, Human Resources

On November 24, 2010, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC”) announced that it was implementing a pilot project to grant open work permits to foreign spouses, common law partners, and dependent children of skilled Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents who are returning to Ontario for work. However, the pilot project is extremely limited.

Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, foreign spouse, Immigration Law, Labour Market Opinion, Operation Bulletin 229, permanent residents, Skilled Worker, work permits

Nova Scotia creation of the ‘Superboard’

December 15, 2010 Andrew Taillon Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources

As Christina Catenacci recently blogged, my home Province of Nova Scotia has taken steps to create a unified labour board. While the establishment of the Labour Board itself has not been the subject of much debate, the Bill that introduced it did create some controversy as it also introduced changes to our Trade Union Act.

canadian employment law, employment law, employment related dispute, Labour-Management Review Committee, Nova Scotia, Superboard, Trade Union Act, Union relations

Christmas greetings in the workplace may be offensive

December 14, 2010 Andrew Lawson Health and Safety, Human Resources, Human Rights

You can’t say ‘Merry Christmas’ anymore—they have taken all the fun out of coming to work. What about my human rights? Wow! Where did all this negativity come from? I decided to do some research and look for the origins of this Christmas bashing and I turned up some interesting cases.

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Employer performed unauthorized credit checks on employees

December 10, 2010 Christina Catenacci Human Resources, Privacy and Security

I recently read an investigation report from the Alberta Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner, where an employer made a big mistake and ended up violating the privacy of at least 25 employees.

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Workplace violence and harassment training

December 9, 2010 Adam Gorley Health and Safety, Human Resources, Human Rights

I guess I’m lucky never to have experienced harassment at work and I certainly never expect to at my current job—unless you count some gentle ribbing at the annual croquet tournament. But nevertheless, First Reference recently had its first mandated workplace violence and harassment training session to educate me and my co-workers on the company’s new mandated policies.

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Paving company owner OHS fine for death of teen

December 8, 2010 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, Human Resources

A Manitoba business owner was fined $33,500 for numerous workplace and safety violations which contributed to the death of a 15-year-old boy who was buried in burning asphalt.

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Overtime rules can trap the unwary employer

December 7, 2010 Earl Altman Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources

In Ontario, the Employment Standards Act (ESA) requires employers to pay at least time and a half for all hours worked by an employee in excess of 44 per week. Employers who, for different reasons, fail to pay overtime pay have faced two types of claims by employees…

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