The federal government is outlining its latest aid package for an economy recovering from the coronavirus pandemic, proposing targeted support to severely affected businesses, locked-down workers and extra weeks of benefits that expired just days ago. The legislation, introduced Wednesday in the House of Commons, is one of four bills the government wants members of […]
The federal government is extending the deadline for its consultations on modernizing the employment insurance program. The online survey, which was opened in August and scheduled to run until October, has been extended to Nov. 19, 2021. In a joint statement, Carla Qualtrough, the minister of employment, workforce development and disability inclusion; Pierre Laliberté, the Canada Employment […]
The Ontario government is promising to expand mental-health and addictions support for frontline health and long-term care workers by investing $12.4 million over two years. In its fall economic statement, delivered Thursday, the province acknowledged the toll the coronavirus pandemic has taken on these employees’ physical and mental well-being. “The COVID‐19 pandemic has had a significant […]
The Ontario government is introducing legislation that will require employers with 25 or more employees to draft a right-to-disconnect policy. On Monday, Monte McNaughton, the province’s minister of labour, training and skills development, announced the move as part of the Working for Workers Act 2021, as the Ontario government gears up for an election next […]
The federal government has unveiled a $7-billion redesign of pandemic aid for businesses and individuals that kicks in Sunday, which would cut support to almost 900,000 workers and potentially put thousands of jobs at risk in the near-term. The Liberals have long said the federal wage and rent subsidies, along with benefits like the Canada […]
A third term for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau means some significant promises with the potential to impact employers and employees may soon become reality. During its campaign, the Liberal Party pledged to support workplace coronavirus vaccination mandates, a national childcare program, expanded public mental-health offerings and a right-to-disconnect policy. On vaccination mandates, the Liberals promised […]
Eighteen months into the coronavirus pandemic and counting, one of its hottest topics is still up for debate. Jim Stanford, economist and director of the Centre for Future Work The lack of adequate and consistent paid sick leave constitutes a gaping hole in Canada’s public health and social security response to COVID-19. As public health […]
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has made legislated bereavement leave policies top of mind for both employers and employees. As of Sept. 15, at least one in 1,376 Canadian residents have died from the coronavirus, for a total of 27,315 deaths, according to The New York Times. Bereavement leave is available for employees across most Canadian jurisdictions and some of […]
Ontario is extending a temporary paid sick leave program for workers until the end of this year. Labour Minister Monte McNaughton announced that the coronavirus pandemic program set to expire on Sept. 25 will be extended to Dec. 31, 2021. He said the spread of the more transmissible Delta variant prompted the move to give more […]
The federal government is taking steps to close the gender wage gap with the Pay Equity Act, which came into effect on Aug. 31. The legislation requires federally regulated public and private sector employers to ensure workers receive equal pay for work of equal value, according to a press release, which noted employers have three […]