Overview
On November 27, 2024, the Province of Ontario introduced Bill 229, the Working for Workers Six Act, 2024. Bill 229 is the sixth instalment in the Province’s Working for Workers legislative series. If enacted, Bill 229 would make a variety of changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) and the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).
The Province also recently published coming into force information (i.e. proclamations) for a variety of amendments that were made to the ESA and the OHSA under Bill 190, the Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 (reported on here and here), Bill 149, the Working for Workers Four Act, 2024 (reported on here and here), Bill 79, the Working for Workers Act, 2023 (reported on here), and Bill 88, the Working for Workers Act, 2022, which enacted the Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act, 2022 (originally reported on here; subsequent amendments enacted under Bill 149 reported on here and here).
On November 29, 2024, the Province also filed a slew of new regulations under the ESA and the OHSA in relation to the above legislation.
This article summarizes key changes proposed under Bill 229, coming into force information for the above legislation, and the new related regulations.
Proposed Changes Under Bill 229
Employment Standards Act, 2000
If passed, Bill 229 would make significant changes to the ESA by creating a new parental leave and a new long-term illness leave. These are discussed in more detail below.
The Province had initially published a proposal inviting comments on the proposed new leaves until January 2, 2025. However, the Province recently updated the proposal to indicate that the time period for accepting comments had closed on December 10, 2024. The Bill has also now, as of December 12, 2024, passed Third Reading in the Legislature.
New parental leave
Bill 229 would create a new unpaid and job-protected parental leave under the ESA for parents who have a child or children through adoption or surrogacy. This would be called “placement of a child leave.”
In its news release (the “News Release”), the Province indicates the purpose of the leave would be to ensure “Ontarians never have to choose between being a worker or a parent.”
Under this new leave, an employee who has been employed by an employer for at least 13 weeks would be entitled to up to 16 weeks of unpaid leave because of the arrival of a child (or children) into an employee’s care through adoption or surrogacy. This time off would be required to be taken consecutively. Where more than one parent is employed at the same employer, the leave is shared between the employees. Adoptive parents and parents via surrogacy would also be eligible for 62 weeks of parental leave following the placement of a child leave.
New long-term illness leave
Bill 229 would create a new unpaid and job-protected sick leave under the ESA for employees who are unable to work due to “a serious medical condition.”
The News Release provides as follows regarding this leave:
The government also intends to propose a new 27-week long-term illness leave for employees unable to work due to a serious medical condition as defined by a medical practitioner, such as cancer, multiple sclerosis or Crohn’s. If passed, this would be one of the longest provincial leaves in Canada and would ensure workers with a serious medical condition have the time away from work they need to get treatment and recover, without risking their jobs.
Under this new leave, an employee who has been employed by an employer for at least 13 weeks who is unable to work due to a serious medical condition would be entitled to up to 27 weeks of unpaid leave in a 52 week period. Although This time off could be taken nonconsecutively, with a single day of leave counting as a full week. The serious medical condition and the period during which the employee will not be performing their duties must be confirmed by a certificate from a physician, a registered nurse or a psychologist. If an employee still has a serious medical condition after the 52-week period expires, the employee is entitled to take another 27-week leave.
The other jurisdictions that have enacted similar long-term illness leaves so far are as follows: Federal (27 weeks), Alberta (16 weeks), Manitoba (27 weeks), Newfoundland and Labrador (27 weeks), and Quebec (26 weeks). Proposed legislation has also been introduced in Saskatchewan to increase the existing serious illness/injury leave from 12 weeks to 27 weeks.
Occupational Health and Safety Act
New fines for second or subsequent offences. Bill 229 would impose a new minimum fine of $500,000 for any corporation found guilty of a second or subsequent offence under the OHSA that results in the death or serious injury of one or more workers in a two-year period.
Properly fitting PPE for women in all sectors. Bill 229 would require employers to ensure women workers in all sectors are provided with properly fitted personal protective clothing/equipment (i.e. “PPE”). According to the News Release, this change is intended “[t]o bring more women into the trades and grow Ontario’s trades workforce.” The new requirement would build on the one originally introduced under Bill 79 insofar as Bill 229 would expand the requirement’s application from only women in construction to women in all sectors.
New powers of the Chief Prevention Officer
Bill 229 would provide the CPO with new powers in respect of the following matters:
- Establishment of criteria for assessing and approving training programs delivered outside of Ontario for equivalency;
- Establishing policies related to general training requirements under the OHSA;
- Seeking advice from an advisory committee established by the Ministry; and
- Collection and use of personal information for the purpose of developing, monitoring or reporting on a provincial health and safety strategy or for the purpose of providing advice on the prevention of workplace injury and occupational disease.
Worker trades committees. Bill 229 would allow the Minister to make orders in respect of worker trades committees at construction projects (i.e. construction sites).
New Coming into Force Information and Regulations
Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA)
Job postings and interviews
Bill 149 amended the ESA to require employers to include the following in publicly advertised job postings:
- Expected compensation for the position (or the range of expected compensation);
- Use of artificial intelligence to screen, assess or select applicants for a position; and
- Whether the posting is for an existing vacancy.
In addition, employers will be prohibited from including Canadian experience requirements in publicly advertised job postings or associated application forms.
Bill 190 added new “anti-ghosting” provisions to the ESA in relation to job postings and interviews. Employers who publicly advertise a job posting will be required to disclose whether there is a job vacancy. Employers will also be obligated to respond to all applicants who are interviewed for a publicly posted position.
These changes under Bill 149 and Bill 190 will come into force on January 1, 2026.
New O. Reg. 476/24 expands on the above changes to the ESA. Highlights under the Regulation are as follows:
- Application: The new job posting rules will only apply to employers with 25 or more employees.
- Definitions: Definitions are provided for the terms “artificial intelligence,” “publicly advertised job posting,” “compensation,” and “interview.”
- Compensation disclosure: The requirement to disclose compensation does not apply to positions that have an expected compensation equivalent to more than $200,000 annually or that have a range of expected compensation that ends at an amount equivalent to more than $200,000 annually. In addition, any range of expected compensation cannot exceed an amount equivalent to $50,000 annually.
- Interviews: Employers will have to inform interviewees whether a hiring decision has been made within 45 days of their last interview. This can be done in person, in writing or using technology.
Required information for new employees
Bill 79 added a regulation-making authority for prescribing the information that employers must provide to new employees.
In accordance with new O. Reg. 477/24, employers with 25 or more employees must provide the following information in writing to new employees before their first day of work:
- The legal name of the employer, as well as any operating or business name of the employer if different from the legal name.
- Contact information for the employer, including address, telephone number and one or more contact names.
- A general description of where it is anticipated that the employee will initially perform work.
- The employee’s starting hourly or other wage rate or commission, as applicable.
- The pay period and pay day established by the employer under the ESA.
- A general description of the employee’s initial anticipated hours of work.
The above requirements will come into force on July 1, 2025.
These requirements do not apply to “assignment employees,” which the ESA defines as “an employee employed by a temporary help agency for the purpose of being assigned to perform work on a temporary basis for clients of the agency.” The existing requirements to provide information to assignment employees will continue to apply to temporary help agency employers.
Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA)
Construction industry
Bill 190 added new duties under the OHSA for constructors with respect to the maintenance of workplace washroom facilities. Specifically, constructors will be required to ensure that any washroom facilities for workers are clean and to maintain cleaning records. These changes will come into force on July 1, 2025.
New O. Reg. 480/24 specifies that a washroom facility cleaning record must include the date and time of the two most recent cleanings of the washroom facility. In terms of making the record available to workers, this requirement can be satisfied by either ensuring the record is posted in a conspicuous place in or near the washroom facility, or by posting the record electronically where it can be accessed by workers and workers are provided with directions on where and how to access the record.
New O. Reg. 482/24 establishes additional record-keeping obligations for constructors regarding cleaning and sanitizing at construction projects (i.e. construction sites), over and above those required under new O. Reg. 480/24, detailed above.
These new regulatory requirements will come into force on January 1, 2026.
Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act, 2022 (DPWRA)
On September 5, 2024, the Province announced that the DPWRA and its related Regulation will come into force on July 1, 2025.
As a reminder, the DPWRA created many new worker rights for different kinds of “gig workers” and persons that hire them, regardless of whether or not the workers are employees.
Among other things, the Act establishes a minimum wage and other rights for workers who perform “digital platform work,” which is defined as “the provision of for payment ride share, delivery, courier or other prescribed services by workers who are offered work assignments by an operator through the use of a digital platform.” A “digital platform” is defined as “an online platform that allows workers to choose to accept or decline digital platform work.”
The DPWRA will only apply to persons that are an “operator,” which is defined as “a person that facilitates, through the use of a digital platform, the performance of digital platform work by workers, but does not include a temporary help agency within the meaning of the [ESA].”
For a comprehensive canvas of these changes, please see our earlier reporting on Bill 88, Bill 149, and the DPWRA (originally reported on here; subsequent amendments enacted under Bill 149 reported on here and here).
This publication provides general information and should not be relied on as legal advice or opinion. This publication is copyrighted by Hunter Legal LLP and may not be photocopied or reproduced in any form, in whole or in part, without the express permission of Hunter Legal LLP.