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The Employer: Roles & Responsibilities What’s the law? What’s mandatory? ?

Employment Standards Act (ESA) the minimum standards employers must follow Human Rights Code equal rights and opportunities Privacy best practices to respect employees privacy Occupational Health & Safety the little book What you Need to Know...

Employment Standards Act (ESA) ○ Employee Files Employers are required to keep written files for all employees ○ Hours of Work Number of hours most employees can be required to work in a day is eight hours ○ Overtime Pay Overtime pay is 1½ times the employee’s regular rate of pay ○ Vacation Vacation time and vacation pay - 2 weeks entitlement and 4% of gross pay ○ Termination/Severance pay 1 week per year After 5 year of employment: 2 weeks per year

What you Need to Know... Employment Standards Act (ESA) Certain standards can differ by province: Source:

What you Need to Know... Employment Standards Act (ESA) Pregnancy & Parental Leave Comparison: ONTARIOQUEBEC 17 weeks pregnancy leave 35 weeks parental leave (or 37 weeks if pregnancy leave not taken) 18 weeks maternity leave 5 weeks paternity leave 52 weeks parental leave

What you Need to Know... Employment Standards Act (ESA) Termination Comparison: ONTARIOQUEBEC 1 week after 3 months 2 weeks after 1 year 3 weeks after 3 years 4 weeks after 4 years etc. up to 8 wks after 8 yrs 1 week after 3 months 2 weeks after 1 year 4 weeks after 5 years 8 weeks after 10 years

What you Need to Know... Employment Standards Act (ESA) Termination Termination with Cause ○ put the onus on the employer to show that an act by an employee has seriously impacted, or further similar act could seriously impact the organization Termination without Cause ○ usually requires advance notice and/or compensation be given to the employee. ● often a result of restructuring within the organization or changes in funding Wrongful Dismissal ○ a legal claim about the cause or notice given to the employee when they are terminated. ● Constructive dismissal: caused by a significant change in the employment relationship (employer makes significant changes to employee’s hours, authority or position, etc.

What you Need to Know... Employment Standards Act (ESA) Termination If you must terminate the employment of an employee: Evaluate the risks around Common Law Consult your HR professional and/or an employment lawyer for advice on the best way to proceed with the termination, given the specific circumstances Act fairly, consistently, and in good faith at all times Conduct the termination in such a way that the dignity of the employee is preserved

What you Need to Know... Human Rights Code Equal rights & opportunities ○ Discrimination Unfavourable treatment on the grounds of, among others: race, colour, creed, age, etc. ○ Harassment Repetitive malicious comments or behaviours - that is known, ought to be known to be unwelcome ○ Sexual Harassment Unwelcome comments or behaviour of a sexual nature or harassment based on gender

What you Need to Know... ○ Age ○ Ancestry, colour, race ○ Citizenship ○ Ethnic origin ○ Place of origin ○ Creed ○ Disability ○ Family status Human Rights Code The 14 Grounds ○ Marital status ○ Gender identity ○ Record of offenses ○ Sex ○ Sexual orientation ○ Receipt of public assistance (housing only)

What you Need to Know... Privacy in the Workplace Privacy Legislation ○ PIPPEDA: Personal Information Protection & Electronic Documents Act 2000 All organizations that collect, use or disclose personal information when doing business Personal information of an employee ○ FIPPA & MFIPPA: Ontario’s Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection Act (FIPPA) & Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act

What you Need to Know... Privacy in the Workplace The Privacy Act ○ Was first introduced in 1977 in the Canadian Human Rights Act ○ Employers and employees ○ Right to access and correct personal information ○ The privacy act was passed in 1983 right of access to information and a right to request correction Privacy in Ontario ○ January 2012, Ontario Court of Appeals declared common law in Canada ○ Jones v. Tsige Tsige worked at BMO and accessed Jones’ personal banking information Nothing came of this but it was an invasion of privacy ○ “Intrusion upon Seclusion” ○ Ramifications of this case are still being discussed

What you Need to Know... Occupational Health & Safety The little book ○ Health & Safety Awareness training for every worker and supervisor under Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) The regulation came into force as of July 1, 2014 ○ Workers, Supervisors & Owners are accountable Owners have the highest level of accountability ○ Workplace Violence Bullying / Domestic Violence o First Aid / CPR

What you Need to Know... Occupational Health & Safety Bill 168: Workplace Violence & Harassment ● Amendment to The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) which sets out the rights & duties of all those who have a role in dealing with workplace violence and workplace harassment. ● Deals with the Employer’s requirement to establish minimum standards and policies for violence and harassment in the workplace ● Required regardless of the size of the workplace or the number of workers ○ 5 of more workers, policies must be in writing and posted in the office ● Harassment & Discrimination may also be a matter than falls under the Ontario Human Rights Code

What you Need to Know... Occupational Health & Safety Bill 132: Sexual Violence & Harassment ● September 8, 2016 deadline ● Under Bill 132, the OHSA’s definition of “workplace harassment” will be expanded to include “workplace sexual harassment”, which is defined as: 1. Engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct against a worker in a workplace because of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, where the course of comment or conduct is known or ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome; or 2. Making a sexual solicitation or advance where the person making the solicitation or advance is in a position to confer, grant or deny a benefit or advancement to the worker and the person knows or ought reasonably to know that the solicitation or advance is unwelcome.

employee claims ESA/HRC or employment lawyers common law precedent cases it’s costly if you don’t know…

What you Need to Know... ○ Job Postings job posting or advertisements should not have any references to any of the prohibited codes that could be discriminatory to a certain ground (age, colour, place of origin, family status, sex…) ○ The Interview Design of the questions Make sure they don’t discriminate Example: If a job requires heavy lifting, do not ask: “Do you have a bad back or any medical issues?” as you might be discriminating against a candidate with a disability. To ensure the candidate can meet the physical requirements for the role, you may ask: “This job requires periods of heavy lifting of up to 50lbs. Are you able to do this?” Recruitment

What you Need to Know... ○ References Approval – obtain from the candidate Questions - your questions are focused around their performance, skills and relevant background to the position ○ Making the Offer Verbal offers can be enforced Protect yourself around discriminating compensation by sex (paying a woman less than a man in same position) wage differences can be based on skill, effort and responsibility... ensure to provide 5-7 days to review the offer and obtain sign back prior to 1 st days ALWAYS REMEMBER THE PROHIBITED GROUNDS Recruitment

Company Values Do you have them…? The values, beliefs, attitudes, and shared goals held by employees in an organization. Organizational Culture CURIOSITY TrustIntegrity Passion ExcellenceAccountability DIVERSITY Teamwork Respect Balance INNOVATION COMPASSION

What you Need to Know... ○ Can have negative outcomes if not managed properly ○ Differences in the workplace can cause tensions and complexity ○ With Canada being so multicultural, diversity in the workplace is prevalent ○ Important to instill an organizational culture that values and encourages people to actively manage diversity as an asset Organizational Diversity

What you Need to Know... Payroll ○ Manual or Online provider ○ Schedule ○ T4s – critical documentation – Feb deadline ○ Vacation policy – establish at start

What you Need to Know... Types of Employment ○ PERMANENT Most common in Canada Usually involves base salary, health benefits and other possible perks Payroll deductions both Employee and Employer must pay (EI, Canada Pension Plan, Income Tax, Union Dues…) ○ PART-TIME Hourly Occasional, weekend, evening, or daily Often service jobs & pay the minimum wage ○ CONTRACT/on payroll same as hourly – just no benefits ○ INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR / Freelance Fixed amount for a specific project (often no additional benefits) Can be hired to address specific problem a few months

What you Need to Know... Source: Unions ○ Nearly 30% Canadians belong to union Nurses, teachers, mostly trade workers ○ Unions are regulated by Federal & Provincial ○ They are required to be democratic & financially accountable for members

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