In R. v. Greater Sudbury (City), 2024 ONSC 3959, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (OSCJ) dismissed an appeal of the trial judge’s decision in which she acquitted the City of Sudbury (City) of various charges under...more
In Croke v. VuPoint System Ltd., 2024 ONCA 354, the Court of Appeal for Ontario (OCA) upheld the Superior Court of Justice – Ontario (SCJ)’s summary judgment decision that an employee’s refusal to comply with their employer’s...more
In November 2023, the Government of Ontario passed Bill 149, the Working for Workers Four Act, 2023 (the “Act”). The Act places new obligations and prohibitions on employers, and intends to strengthen Ontario’s employee...more
The Ontario Court of Appeal recently held that an employee’s failure to meet COVID-19 vaccination requirements imposed by a third party amounted to frustration of the employment contract. As a result, there was no obligation...more
Le 21 mars 2024, le projet de loi 149 de l’Ontario, intitulé Loi de 2024 visant à œuvrer pour les travailleurs, quatre (le « projet de loi 149 »), a reçu la sanction royale. Le présent bulletin résume les principales...more
On March 21, 2024, Ontario’s Bill 149, Working for Workers Four Act, 2024 (Bill 149) received royal assent. Summarized below are the key amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), Workplace Safety and Insurance...more
The Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development has announced that it is seeking prompt comments and feedback on two Occupational Health and Safety proposals, including one in relation to heat...more
An arbitrator recently issued the first award in Ontario to address and uphold the reasonableness of a hospital vaccination policy that provides for the termination of employment for non-compliance. In Lakeridge Health and...more
On March 23, 2023, Ontario released its 2023 Ontario Budget: Building a Strong Ontario (2023 Budget). The Budget provides that Paid Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (Paid IDEL) will expire on March 31, 2023....more
As of October 14, 2022, Ontario made the following changes to its COVID-19 requirements for long term care (LTC) homes, as set out in its COVID-19 guidance document....more
Employee filed action against company vice president for sexual harassment and sexual assault, and against company for vicarious liability for the sexual harassment. Court confirmed that sexual harassment is not an...more
In Regional Municipality of York v Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 905 (Long Term Care Unit), 2022 CanLII 78173, Arbitrator Stephen Raymond decided that a mandatory vaccination policy (Policy) requiring employees in...more
On July 21, 2022, Ontario filed Regulation 464/22, which amends O. Reg. 228/20: Infectious Disease Emergency Leave Regulation to extend the availability of Paid Infectious Disease Leave (Paid IDEL) until March 31, 2023. ...more
On April 22, 2022, Ontario announced that its Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) is maintaining the existing provincial masking requirements in select higher-risk indoor settings, and the CMOH Directives currently in...more
In The Toronto District School Board and CUPE, Local 4400 (Re: PR734 COVID-19 Vaccine Procedure) (TDSB and CUPE), Arbitrator William Kaplan upheld the Toronto District School Board’s (TDSB) mandatory COVID-19 vaccination...more
On March 9, 2022, the Ontario government announced a plan to bring an end to all COVID-19 restrictions by April 27, 2022. Below is a summary of the upcoming employment-related changes. . . ...more
On March 1, 2022, Ontario moved to the Roadmap Exit Step, as amended. We provided a summary of the restrictions that were eliminated on that date and those that would continue to exist....more
On March 9, 2022, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, announced that the province’s mask mandate will end in most settings on March 21, 2022, along with remaining regulatory requirements for...more
Last May, Ontario released its Roadmap to Reopen, a three-step plan to safely and gradually reopen the province and loosen certain public health restrictions. In July, Ontario filed O. Reg. 541/21, which added a new “Roadmap...more
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
On February 14, 2022, the Government of Ontario announced that continued improvement in public health indicators means that COVID-related restrictions can be relaxed ahead of schedule. The first major changes take effect on...more
With key public health indicators beginning to show signs of improvement and expected to continue, Ontario announced on January 20, 2022, that commencing January 31, 2022, it would begin to take steps to cautiously and...more
On January 27, 2022 Ontario filed Regulation 25/22, amending Ontario Regulation 364/20, Rules for Areas at Step 3 (the “Step 3 Regulation”). On January 31, 2022, all public health units in Ontario will again move to Step 3...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
On January 20, 2022, the Government of Ontario announced that, beginning on January 31, 2022, restrictions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic will gradually be eased. While the province’s plan could change in response to...more