The “New” Law of the Land – Bill 47 Officially Passes and Rolls Back Bill 148

The “New” Law of the Land – Bill 47 Officially Passes and Rolls Back Bill 148

Piccolo Heath LLP

On November 21, 2018, Bill 47, the Making Ontario Open for Business Act, 2018, received Royal Assent and was officially passed. It passed with no substantial changes to the initial bill that the provincial government proposed. It undoes many of the changes that the Liberal government introduced in Bill 148, returning to previous legislative language. The changes to the below legislation will come into effect on the following dates:

  • Employment Standards Act, 2000 – January 1, 2019

  • Labour Relations Act, 1995– November 21, 2018

The PH Report we had previously prepared outlines the various changes to both the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and the Labour Relations Act, 1995. Some of the most noteworthy changes include:

  • Minimum Wage – Repealing the scheduled minimum wage increase. The minimum wage will remain at $14 until 2020, after which any increases will be tied to inflation.

  • Personal Emergency Leave – Repealing the current provision of 10 days off for personal emergency leave, including two paid sick days. Employees will be able to take up to eight unpaid days off – three days for personal illness, three for family responsibilities, and two for bereavement.

  • Equal Pay for Equal Work – Employers will not be required to pay part-time and casual employees at the same rate as full-time workers doing the same work.

  • Misclassification – Employers will not bear the onus of proving that an individual is not an employee, and is an independent contractor for example, in disputes surrounding classification.

Despite the passage of Bill 47, employers may be restricted in their ability to change employee entitlements. Employers must determine whether their existing agreements, policies and procedures allow them to change entitlements to correspond with current legal obligations. Before rolling back any entitlements that were granted following Bill 148, employers should seek legal advice.

We will update this blog with any further developments regarding Bill 47.

This blog was written by Chetan Muram, who is no longer with Piccolo Heath LLP.

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