Your Guide to The Employment Standards Act

This guide is a hassle-free source of info about key areas of the ESA. It is for your details and support only. It is not a legal file. If you need information or precise language, please describe the ESA itself and its policies.

This guide ought to not be used as or thought about legal recommendations. You might have higher rights under an employment agreement, cumulative contract, the common law or other legislation. If you’re unsure about anything in this guide, please speak to a lawyer.

Topics covered by the ESA?

These consist of:

advantage plans

bereavement leave

child death leave

crime-related child disappearance leave

crucial illness leave

stated emergency situation leave

domestic or sexual violence leave

the employment requirements poster: distribution requirements

equivalent pay for equal work

household caregiver leave

family medical leave

family obligation leave

suing

hours of work, eating durations and pause

contagious illness emergency leave

licensing – temporary aid companies and recruiters

lie detector tests

base pay

non-compete arrangements

organ donor leave

overtime pay

payment of wages

pregnancy and adult leave

public holidays

reservist leave

severance of work

authorized leave

momentary assistance agencies

termination of employment and temporary layoffs

pointers or gratuities

vacation.

composed policy on disconnecting from work.

written policy on electronic tracking of staff members.

Reprisals are prohibited

Employers are prohibited from penalizing workers in any method since the employee worked out ESA rights.

Clients of companies are prohibited from punishing assignment staff members in any method due to the fact that the task worker worked out ESA rights.

Recruiters are forbidden from penalizing potential workers who engage or use the recruiter’s services in any way for specific reasons, including asking the recruiter to abide by the Act or making queries about whether an individual holds a licence as needed by the ESA.

Employers, customers of momentary aid firms and employers who commit a reprisal can be:

– bought to compensate the employee, assignment employee or potential employee.

– bought to renew the employee or project employee (if the reprisal was dedicated by an employer or client of a short-term help company).

– purchased to pay a charge.

– prosecuted.

Learn more about reprisals.

Greater right or benefit

If an arrangement in an employment agreement or somalibidders.com another Act provides a worker a higher right or benefit than a minimum employment standard under the ESA then that provision uses to the staff member instead of the employment standard.

No waiving of rights

No worker can consent to waive or quit their rights under the ESA (for instance, the right to get overtime pay or public vacation pay). Any such agreement is null and void.

Enforcement and compliance

Violations of the ESA can result in enforcement action.

The kind of enforcement action that can be taken depends on which provision of the ESA was contravened. Examples consist of:

– an order to pay.

– a compliance order.

– a ticket.

– a notice of conflict with a financial charge.

– an order to restore and/or compensate.

– prosecution.

Other workplace-related laws

The ESA contains just a few of the guidelines affecting operate in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs concerns such as workplace health and wellness, human rights and labour relations.

Related Ontario laws consist of the:

Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Pay Equity Act.

Human Rights Code.

For more details about other Ontario laws, contact ServiceOntario:

– Tel: 416-326-1234 (in Toronto).

– Toll-free: 1-800-267-8097 (in the rest of Ontario).

– online at ServiceOntario.ca.

Federal laws affecting workplaces include statutes on earnings tax, employment insurance coverage and the Canada Pension.

For additional information about federal laws, call the Government of Canada information line at 1-800-622-6232.

Who is not covered by the ESA?

Most workers and companies in Ontario are covered by the ESA. However, the ESA does not apply to some people and individuals or companies they work for, such as:

– staff members and companies in sectors that fall under federal work law jurisdiction, such as airlines, banks, the federal civil service, post offices, radio and tv stations and inter-provincial railways.

– people working under a program approved by a college of applied arts and innovation or university.

– people working under a program that is authorized by a career college registered under the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005.

– secondary school students who work under a work experience program authorized by the school board that operates the school in which the student is registered.

– people who do community participation under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.

– law enforcement officer (other than for the lie detectors arrangements of the ESA, which do apply).

– inmates participating in work or rehab programs, or individuals who work as part of a sentence or order of a court.

– people who hold political, judicial, spiritual or elected trade union workplaces.

– significant junior ice hockey gamers who satisfy particular conditions connected to scholarships.

– individuals who meet the definition of business consultant or info technology consultant under the ESA if certain conditions are satisfied.

For a total listing of other people not governed by the ESA, please check the ESA and its policies.

Employee misclassification

Employers are restricted from misclassifying employees as independent professionals, interns, volunteers or any other kind of worker not covered by the ESA.

Learn more about worker misclassification.

Additional resources

In addition to this guide, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) has extra resources readily available to assist you:

– The Employment Standards Act Policy and Interpretation Manual is the main referral source for the policies of the Director of Employment Standards appreciating the interpretation, referall.us administration and enforcement of the ESA.

– Staff at the Employment Standards Information Centre are available to answer your questions about the ESA. Information is available in numerous languages. You can reach the details centre from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.