On November 27, 2024, the Ontario government introduced the Working for Workers Six Act, 2024 (Bill 229). Bill 229 proposes amendments to various employment-related statutes, including the Employment Standards Act, 2000, Occupational Health and Safety Act, and Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.
Key proposed amendments are addressed below.
Employment Standards Act, 2000
If passed, Bill 229 would:
- introduce a new placement of a child leave, entitling an employee with at least 13 weeks of service to an unpaid leave of up to 16 weeks after the placement or arrival of a child into the employee’s custody, care and control through adoption or surrogacy
- introduce a new long-term illness leave, entitling an employee with at least 13 weeks of service to an unpaid leave of up to 27 weeks if the employee is unable to perform the duties of their position because of a serious medical condition
Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA)
If passed, Bill 229 would:
- impose a minimum fine of $500,000 on any corporation found guilty of a second or subsequent offence under the OHSA that results in the death or serious injury of one or more workers in a two-year period
- require an employer to ensure that any personal protective clothing and equipment is a proper fit and appropriate in the circumstances; the government would also have the authority to impose additional regulatory requirements related to the assessment of personal protective clothing and equipment
- provide the Chief Prevention Officer with the authority to:
- establish criteria to assess and approve training programs delivered outside of Ontario for equivalency
- establish policies related to general training requirements under the OHSA
- seek advice from an advisory committee established by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
- collect and use personal information for the purpose of developing, monitoring or reporting on a provincial health and safety strategy or for the purpose of providing advice on the prevention of workplace injury and occupational disease
- provide the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (Minister) with the power to require a constructor to establish a worker trades committee at a project and provide for the composition, practice and procedure of that worker trades committee
Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997
If passed, Bill 229 would:
- extend presumptive coverage to prescribed firefighters and fire investigators for primary-site kidney cancer and primary-site colorectal cancer provided the worker had at least 10 years of service before being diagnosed
- provide for the distribution of surplus amounts in the insurance fund to a Schedule 2 employer that is a municipality, provided certain prescribed requirements are met
Additional Statutory Amendments
If passed, Bill 229 would:
- introduce an amendment to the Highway Traffic Act to provide additional driver requirements where a work-related vehicle is stopped on a highway
- amend the Ontario Immigration Act (OIA) to prohibit any person from making an oral or written misrepresentation in an application under the OIA or submitting a false document in support of an application or counseling another person to commit any such acts
- grant the Minister the authority to impose a ban on an applicant or representative for a prescribed period where they have contravened the provisions of the OIA
- proclaim the first week of November each year as Skilled Trades Week
Article author: Paul E. Broad
Original article available here: https://hicksmorley.com/2024/11/28/ontario-introduces-emworking-for-workers-six-act-2024-em/#:~:text=On%20November%2027%2C%202024%2C%20the,Safety%20and%20Insurance%20Act%2C%201997.
