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New Employment and Labour Changes with "Making Ontario Open for Business Act"

December 7, 2018

Bill 47, also called the "Making Ontario Open for Business Act," was passed and given royal assent on November 21, 2018. This new act relaxes demands on employers by repealing or altering many of the changes that came into effect last year under the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act of 2017 ("Bill 148").

Specifically, employers should note the following requirements that Bill 47 repeals:

Furthermore, Bill 47 also reverts back to the old method for calculating public holiday pay, which requires employers to use the following formula: the total amount of regular wages earned and vacation pay payable to the employee in the four work weeks before the work week in which the public holiday occurred, divided by 20.

With regard to the Labour Relations Act, Bill 47 also repeals:

Additionally, Bill 47 reverts back to the previous fines for convictions under the Labour Relations Act, which means a decrease from $5,000 to $2,000 for individuals and from $100,000 to $25,000 for corporations. It also revives a pre-Bill 148 section providing for first collective agreement arbitration where the parties to the agreement are unable to effect a first collective agreement, while simultaneously eliminating provisions allowing for first collective agreement mediation and mediation-arbitration.

These lists are not exhaustive, and employers with operations in Ontario should fully review their workplace policies in light of all the changes that have recently been made. If you have any questions related to this or any other employment law matter, please contact your Miller Canfield attorneys.

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