Employee Standards ACTA - Big changes considered for Ontario workplaces

Mike Crawley, cbc.ca
Premier Kathleen Wynne's government is about to get advice that could lead to a significant shakeup of the laws governing work in Ontario. 

The Changing Workplaces Review is examining just about everything related to labour law in this province, including sick pay, overtime, how workers can join unions and employers' responsibilities to contract workers. 

It could trigger the most significant reforms to the Employment Standards Act and the Labour Relations Act since Mike Harris was premier. 

"The world of work that I went into as a young man is not the world of work that young people are going into today," Labour Minister Kevin Flynn said in an interview with CBC News. "We need to make sure that the regulations are protecting the most vulnerable."

The review is focusing on the new realities of the millennial workforce, including the spread of part-time and contract work. Noting that the province's current employment laws were drawn up in the 1990s, Flynn said they "need to be updated for the world of 2017." FULL STORY

NOTE: ACTA’s submission to the review is available in the Member’s Only section of the website. The main concern within this review is that the government is considering moving “independent contractors” into the definition of employee. The government believes that there is a mis-classification of employees and they are reviewing options to correct.