Ontario first released its plan to follow a cautious and phased approach to lifting COVID-19 public health and workplace safety measures on January 20, 2022. On February 14, 2022, however, Ontario announced that with key...more
With key public health indicators beginning to show signs of improvement and expected to continue, Ontario announced that commencing January 31, 2022, in the absence of concerning trends, it would begin to take steps to...more
The following is a complete accumulation of our blog postings on Ontario COVID-19 restrictions since 2020, in reverse chronological order. ...more
In Bunge Hamilton Canada, Hamilton, Ontario v. United Food and Commercial Workers Canada, Local 175, the arbitrator found that a mandatory vaccination policy requiring unvaccinated unionized employees to be placed on unpaid...more
In Bunge Hamilton Canada, Hamilton, Ontario v. United Food and Commercial Workers Canada, Local 175 (Bunge), Arbitrator Robert J. Herman dismissed a union grievance challenging the employer’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination...more
On January 3, 2022, the Ontario government announced a number of restrictions in response to climbing COVID-19 case numbers and increased hospitalizations. Effective January 5, 2022, the province is temporarily returning to a...more
In response to the recent rapid increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations caused by the highly transmissible nature of the Omicron variant, and as the province continues to accelerate its booster dose rollout, Ontario announced...more
At 12:01am on January 5, 2022, Ontario will implement additional COVID-19 public health measures. These restrictions include the closure of certain businesses, capacity limit reductions, and a requirement that employees work...more
On January 3, 2022, the Government of Ontario announced that, as a temporary measure, the province would revert to a modified version of Step Two of the Roadmap to Reopen as of 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, January 5, 2022....more
On October 25, 2021, the Government of Ontario began the process of easing its pandemic restrictions in accordance with its plan, announced on October 22, 2021, to carefully and gradually eliminate all such restrictions....more
Since September 22, 2021, patrons of restaurants and other specified businesses and organizations in Ontario have been required to provide proof of full vaccination status and identification at the entry point of applicable...more
With the Delta variant putting residents and staff in long-term care homes at risk of contracting COVID-19, on October 1, 2021, Ontario announced certain mandatory vaccination and randomized testing requirements....more
In July, Ontario entered Step Three of its Roadmap to Reopen, and on September 22, 2021, began to require full vaccination (two doses plus 14 days) with proof of vaccination and ID to access restaurants and certain public...more
Ontario’s proof of vaccine requirement for patrons of certain indoor public settings commenced on September 22, 2021. In response to this new regime, as well as to the recent trend among employers to implement vaccination...more
On August 17, 2021, Ontario announced that COVID-19 vaccination policies would be mandatory in high-risk settings, and the province’s exit from the Roadmap to Reopen would be put on hold. Therefore, until further notice,...more
On July 30, 21, Ontario filed O. Reg. 541/21 (Regulation), which adds a new “Roadmap Exit Step” to the Rules for Areas at Step 3 of its Roadmap to Reopen (Roadmap). ...more
On June 24, 2021, Ontario announced that with improvements in key indicators relating to public health and health care, and the provincewide vaccination rate surpassing targets, it will be moving to Step Two of its Roadmap to...more
On April 1, 2021, the government of Ontario activated its pandemic “emergency brake,” sending the entire province out of the five-tiered colour-coded framework and into the “shutdown” zone. The province implemented these...more
In response to the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases, concerns over hospital intensive care unit capacity, and the increasing risk to the public caused by COVID-19 variants, on April 7, 2021, Ontario announced the declaration...more
With COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations rising in Ontario at a concerning pace due to the rapid transmission of new variants, on April 1, 2021, the province filed Ontario Regulation 240/21 under the Reopening Ontario (A...more
In light of the increased COVID-19 vaccine distribution in Canada, the Ontario government has made significant amendments to its vaccine distribution plan. The province is currently in the midst of Phase I of its vaccination...more
On October 20, 2020, Ontario introduced Bill 218, Supporting Ontario’s Recovery and Municipal Elections Act, 2020 (Bill 218) for First Reading. Bill 218, which would provide employers with a degree of liability protection...more
On October 9, 2020, the Government of Ontario announced additional restrictions on and closures of public gatherings, specific businesses, and indoor food and drink service, in an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19. These...more