Kitchener/CMEDIA: The Ontario government proposing updates to employment laws around mass layoffs to protect more workers being remote and a changing economy, a news release said.
The proposed changes imply that employees working remotely would be eligible for the same enhanced notice as in-office employees in mass termination situations to ensure that remote employees receive the same eight week minimum notice of termination or pay-in-lieu and prevent companies from taking advantage of them.
“No billion-dollar company should be treating their remote employees as second-class,…our government will continue to lead the country in ensuring workers have the protections they need to find better jobs and earn bigger paycheques in the 21st century economy, said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.
Ontario’s Employment Standards Act (ESA) also determines that employers are currently only required to share the latest version of the employment standards poster outlining ESA workplace rights and responsibilities, with new employees.
Ontario government is also proposing regulatory changes to protect precarious employees by requiring employers to provide new hires with information in writing about their job including pay, work location and hours of work, and the date by which that information needs to be provided (e.g. before their first shift).
“We applaud Minister McNaughton for taking steps to ensure that all workers in Ontario are afforded the same rights and protections, regardless of their workplace setting,” said Chris Albinson, CEO and President of Communitech.
As part of a larger package expanding on the ground-breaking actions in the Working for Workers Acts, 2021 and 2022, these proposed changes are already helping millions of people by introducing additional supports that embrace the future of work.
#Ontario; #UpdatingEmploymentLaws; #PreventMassLayoffs; #ProtectingRemoteEmployees
