On October 28, 2024, the Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 (the “Act”) received Royal Assent and became law. Many of the legislative changes are now in force and effect, requiring immediate compliance, while other provisions only come into force on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.

Significantly, the various “job posting” changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”), including the disclosure of whether the job posting is for an existing vacancy, as well as the requirement that applicants be informed of a decision following an interview are not yet in force. Similarly, the “washroom facility” requirements under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (the “OHSA”), including that such facilities be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition, and maintaining records with respect to cleaning such facilities are also not yet in force. Further changes to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (the “WSIA”) extending presumptive coverage for primary-site skin cancer to firefighters and fire investigators, provided they had at least 10 years of service before being diagnosed is also not yet in force.

The following are the amendments which are now in force:

Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA)

• Employers are prohibited from requiring a certificate from a “qualified health practitioner” (meaning a physician, a registered nurse, or a psychologist, or a member of a prescribed class of health practitioners) for the purposes of establishing an employee’s entitlement to take the three days of unpaid sick leave under section 50 of the ESA; and
• The maximum fine for individuals convicted of violating the ESA has been doubled from $50,000 to $100,000.

Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA)

• The definition of “industrial establishment” is amended to exclude an office that is located in a private residence – however, the OHSA is amended to specifically apply to telework performed in or about a private residence;
• The definitions of “workplace harassment” and “workplace sexual harassment” are expanded to clarify that such harassment may take place in a workplace “virtually through the use of information and communications technology”;
• An employer may post a copy of the OHSA and any explanatory material, its workplace health and safety policy, as well as its workplace violence and workplace harassment policies in a “readily accessible electronic format”, provided that these materials are posted in an electronic format that can be readily accessed by workers in the workplace, and the employer provides workers with direction on where and how to access such materials;
• A constructor or an employer required to establish a joint health and safety committee is permitted to post the names of work locations of committee members in a readily accessible electronic format; and
• Employers who are required to post annual summaries of data from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board may do so in a readily accessible electronic format.

Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (WSIA)

• Presumptive coverage for post-traumatic stress disorder for wildland firefighters and wildland fire investigators.

As noted above, a number of the amendments come into force on a day to be proclaimed by the Lieutenant Governor. Many of those upcoming changes are also subject to certain terms which have yet to be clarified and defined in the statutes or the regulations. We will continue to provide updates as details emerge regarding any further upcoming changes.

If you have any questions about this topic or any other questions relating to workplace law, please do not hesitate to contact a Mathews Dinsdale Lawyer.