Working for Workers Five Act Passed into Law

On October 28, 2024, the Working for Workers Five Act, 2024, was passed into law. This is the latest instalment in a series of legislations which have updated and modernized aspects of Ontario's employment laws.

For more information on the previous Working for Workers legislation, check out our prior blog posts, such as: Legislative Updates for Ontario – Round-up of Recent and Pending Changes and Ontario's Working for Worker's Four Act, 2023 Passed into Law.

The Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 amends a number of employment laws including:

1. Employment Standards Act (ESA):

The following changes are implemented immediately:

• Doctor's Notes: Employers are prohibited from asking employees to provide doctor's notes as evidence to their entitlement for sick leave under the ESA. Currently, sick leave under the ESA is capped at 3 unpaid days per calendar year. This change does not impact the ability of employers to ask for doctor's notes for other health-related leaves under the ESA, for example, family responsibility or family medical leave.
• Maximum Fines Increase: The maximum fines for violations of the ESA are increased from $50,000 to $100,000.

Several other changes were passed, but will come into force at a later and yet unknown date:

• Job Posting Disclosures: Employers will need to disclose whether a publicly advertised job posting is for an existing vacancy. According to the Ontario government, this is intended to improve fairness for jobseekers by letting them know whether a vacancy truly exists.
• Follow-ups with Interviewees: Employers will need to respond to candidates they interviewed within a to-be-prescribed amount of time. It remains to be seen exactly what information employers will need to provide to these candidates.
• Retention of Interview Information: Employers will need to retain copies of the above-noted information for 3 years after the day the information was provided to the candidate.

2. Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA):

The following changes are implemented immediately:

• Telework and Private Residences: OHSA will explicitly extend to private residences where telework is performed.
• Virtual Harassment: The definition of workplace and sexual harassment is expanded to include harassment done "virtually through the use of information and communications technology", addressing issues related to remote work communications. In light of this change, we'd encourage employers to consider amending their Workplace Harassment Policy as part of the required annual review to reflect the new and expanded definitions.
• Electronic Posting of Information: Employers will be allowed to electronically post OHSA information, provided that workers are adequately informed, facilitating easier access to important safety information.

The following change was passed, but will come into force at a later and yet unknown date:

• Washroom Cleanliness: Employers must maintain the cleanliness of any workplace washroom facilities and keep records of same.

3. Other Legislation

The Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 also introduces modifications to:

• Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act, 2006 - new requirements relating to developing standards for fair assessment of qualifications and to enable multiple registration to occur concurrently.
• Building Opportunities in the Skilled Trades Act, 2021 – amendments to provide for regulations to set out alternative criteria for academic standards for apprenticeships.
• Ontario Immigration Act, 2015 – amendments to provide for delegation of powers or duties for internal reviews of decisions or orders.
• Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 – amendments to provide for coverage for PTSD and cancer for firefighters and fire investigators.

Conclusion:

As employment laws in Ontario continue to rapidly evolve, employers and employees alike are encouraged to take the time to familiarize themselves with the changes and speak with their legal counsel to ensure they understand their workplace rights and obligations.

The team at Lee Workplace Law would be happy to answer any questions you have regarding your workplace legal requirements.