employment law

Good Friday, Easter and Passover in 2020

April 9, 2020 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, International HR Law, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Union Relations, Wages and Compensation, 0

Good Friday and Easter Sunday coincide with the Jewish observance of Passover in 2020. Easter and the holidays that are related to it are moveable feasts in that they do not fall on a fixed date in the Gregorian or Julian calendars which follow only the cycle of the sun; rather, their dates are determined on a lunisolar calendar similar to the Hebrew calendar. It has come to be the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or soonest after 21 March, but calculations vary in East and West.

COVID-19, Easter, employment law, Good Friday, Public Holiday, religious accommodation, Statutory Holiday, Time off with pay

Three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk

April 9, 2020 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation, 0

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with completing a record of employment, the federal COVID-19 10 percent wage subsidy and the Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

Canada Emergency Response Benefit CERB, COVID-19, employment law, layoffs, record of employment, termination of employment, wage subsidy

Trudeau announces modified eligibility criteria for 75% wage subsidy for employers

April 9, 2020 Occasional Contributors Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Wages and Compensation, 0

While employers continue to wait for the specific program details and eligibility requirements, the federal government has committed to changing some of the requirements for employers wishing to take advantage of the federal wage subsidy.

COVID-19, employment law, wage subsidy

Working safely from home

April 8, 2020 Lisa Stam, Spring Law Employee Relations, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Training and Development, 0

What are the employer’s obligations to an employee when an employee is not working in the office? With so many employees now working from home, employers’ health and safety obligations need to be reexamined.

employment law, occupational health and safety act, Ontario Labour Relations Board, working from home, Workplace Safety Insurance Appeals Tribunal, workplace violence and harassment

Layoffs and alternatives – Curtailing operations in response to COVID-19

April 8, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation, 0

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have rapid and far-reaching effects on Canadian workplaces. In this article, we answer those questions for Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec. In all cases, please be advised that different considerations may apply under the terms of a collective agreement, if applicable.

Canada Emergency Response Benefit, employment insurance benefits, employment law, layoffs, record of employment, reduced work schedule, sick days, statutory leaves of absence, vacation time, work sharing program

COVID-19: What a difference a month makes

April 7, 2020 Doug MacLeod, MacLeod Law Firm Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Notice, Damages and Settlements, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Recruiting and Hiring, Wages and Compensation, 0

In over 30 years I have never seen one topic dominate my employment law practice like COVID-19 has over the last three weeks. Some Ontario businesses have gone from working at 100% capacity to 0% because the Ontario government has declared these businesses as non-essential and working remotely is not possible.

Canadian Emergency Response Benefit CERB, COVID-19, employment insurance benefits, employment law, layoffs, staffing, Temporary wage subsidy

Substitution of public holidays: An unusual option for unusual times

April 7, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Payroll, Wages and Compensation, 0

As most employers know, Ontario recognizes nine public holidays every year. The majority of employees are entitled to take these public holidays off work and receive public holiday pay. Most employees who actually work on these days are entitled to receive premium pay (equal to time and a half wages), in addition to public holiday pay.

COVID-19, employment law, Good Friday, Public Holiday Pay, public holidays, statutory holidays, substitute another day off for a statutory holiday

Alberta employers can now use and maintain electronic employment records: Amendments to the Electronic Transaction Act General Regulation

April 7, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employment/Labour Standards, HR and Technology, Human Resources, Privacy and Security, 0

Recent amendments to the Electronic Transactions Act General Regulation remove restrictions on employers’ use of electronic signatures and storage of electronic documents.

Alberta Electronic Transactions Act, electronic records, employment law, information integrity

Saskatchewan enacts public health emergency leave

April 6, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, Human Resources, 0

On March 17, 2020 the government of Saskatchewan introduced and passed amendments to The Saskatchewan Employment Act. The primary focus of these amendments is the enactment of a new form of leave called “public health emergency leave” for provincially-regulated employees.

COVID-19, employment law, pandemic, public health emergency leave, unpaid leave

Family status accommodation requests: How far do employers need to go?

April 6, 2020 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Human Resources, Human Rights, Training and Development, 0

The human rights landscape in Ontario has been fraught with differing legal standards and understandings of what an employer’s legal obligations are regarding family status accommodation.

employment law, family status, Family Status Accommodation, termination

Client alert: Remote work, data breaches and cybersecurity considerations during COVID-19

April 6, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employee Relations, Health and Safety, HR and Technology, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Privacy and Security, 0

As businesses adapt to the “new normal” of extreme uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, countless employees are faced with the prospect of working remotely in a variety of new (and sometimes less-than-secure) environments. Cybercriminals have taken notice.

COVID-19, cyber crime, cybersecurity, employment law, pandemic planning, phishing, work from home

Supreme Court of Canada cracks open the door for international human rights tort claims in Nevsun Resources Ltd. v. Araya

April 3, 2020 Employer Advisor, McCarthy Tétrault LLP Employee Relations, Human Resources, Human Rights, International HR Law, 0

Although the majority decision in this case does not definitively establish the existence of torts based on international human rights violations in Canadian courts, the reasons represent a significant leap in judicial thinking on the responsibilities and liability of Canadians corporations who operate internationally in jurisdictions where human rights abuses may occur.

act of state doctrine, Charter of Rights and Freedoms, corporate social responsibility, crimes against humanity, customary international law, employment law, international human rights, violation of international norms

Starting an investigation when no one asked (or wanted) you to

April 2, 2020 Rubin Thomlinson LLP Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Health and Safety, Human Resources, Human Rights, 0

Somewhere between going on an ill-advised “fishing expedition” and commencing a clearly defined investigation of a formal complaint, lies a grey area rife with uncertain legal obligations and sticky situations.

discrimination, employment law, investigation, misconduct, violence and harassment

COVID-19: Federal job-protected leave under Canada Labour Code announced

April 2, 2020 Occasional Contributors Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Payroll, Pensions and Benefits, Wages and Compensation, 0

As an emergency response measure, the federal government has introduced up to 16 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave under the Canada Labour Code for federal employees who are “unable or unavailable to work for reasons related to COVID-19”.

COVID-19, emergency response measure, employment law, Job protected leave, Leaves of absence, sick leave

Federal COVID-19 aid package: The 10 percent wage subsidy and the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy

April 1, 2020 Yosie Saint-Cyr, LL.B. Managing Editor Employee Relations, Employment/Labour Standards, Human Resources, Payroll, Recruiting and Hiring, Source Deductions and Reporting, Wages and Compensation, 0

April 1, 2020, the federal government released further details of the much anticipated Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program. The program is to help businesses keep and return workers to their payroll through the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

10 percent wage subsidy, Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy, COVID-19, employment law, Federal COVID-19 aid package, pandemic, Temporary wage subsidy