January 1, 2019 marks the coming into force of new amendments to Quebec’s Act respecting labour standards (Act). The Quebec National Assembly adopted Bill 176, An Act to amend the Act respecting labour standards and other legislative provisions mainly to facilitate family-work balance (Bill 176) in June 2018. Bill 176 was assented to the same day, and several changes came into effect…

The Quebec Court of Appeal (Court) has established that employees who terminate their employment relationship without notice may work for a competitor without necessarily violating their duty of loyalty. However, resigning employees still have the obligation to make reparation for harm caused by their failure to provide notice, the Court ruled. The Civil Code of Quebec stipulates that, pursuant to…

On November 21, 2018, the Ontario government passed the Making Ontario Open for Business Act, 2018 (Bill 47), which introduces significant changes to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Labour Relations Act, 1995 and the Ontario College of Trades and Apprenticeship Act, 2009. As discussed in our October 2018 Blakes Bulletin: Ontario Looks to Roll Out Major Changes to Labour…

On November 15, 2018, the Ontario government introduced Bill 57, Restoring Trust, Transparency and Accountability Act, 2018 (Bill 57) in the Ontario legislature. Bill 57 proposes to amend a significant number of Ontario’s statutes, including the Pay Transparency Act, 2018, which was scheduled to come into effect on January 1, 2019.  If passed, Bill 57 would change the commencement date…

On October 29, 2018, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-86, Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 (Bill C-86) in the House of Commons, which proposes new pay equity legislation, the Pay Equity Act (Act). If passed, the Act will apply to federally regulated employers with 10 or more employees. The Act’s intended purpose is to “establish a proactive process…

The Administrative Labour Tribunal (ALT) clarified the terms under the Act respecting labour standards (Act) that provide the new time limit for filing a psychological harassment complaint with the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), in its recent decision, Dinu v. 9227-3754 Québec Inc. (Dinu) (available in French only). AMENDMENTS Previously, Section 123.7…

On October 23, 2018, the Ontario government introduced Bill 47, Making Ontario Open for Business Act, 2018 (Bill 47) in the Ontario legislature. Bill 47 proposes significant changes to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Labour Relations Act, 1995 and the Ontario College of Trades and Apprenticeship Act, 2009. The government has stated that Bill 47 is intended to “bring…

The Court of Appeal for Ontario (Court of Appeal) recently clarified the timing for the delivery of statutory and common law notices in the context of business closures or restructurings resulting in mass termination. On September 19, 2018, the Court of Appeal released its decision in Wood v. CTS of Canada Co. (Wood), an appeal arising from the closure of…