Your Guide to The Employment Standards Act

This guide is a hassle-free source of details about essential areas of the ESA. It is for your details and support only. It is not a legal document. If you require details or exact language, please describe the ESA itself and its policies.

This guide should not be used as or considered legal suggestions. You might have greater rights under a work agreement, cumulative contract, the typical law or other legislation. If you’re not sure about anything in this guide, please speak to a lawyer.

Topics covered by the ESA?

These include:

advantage plans

bereavement leave

kid death leave

crime-related kid disappearance leave

vital health problem leave

stated emergency situation leave

domestic or sexual violence leave

the employment requirements poster: circulation requirements

equal pay for employment equivalent work

household caretaker leave

family medical leave

household duty leave

submitting a claim

hours of work, consuming periods and rest durations

transmittable disease emergency leave

licensing – short-term help companies and recruiters

lie detector tests

base pay

non-compete arrangements

organ donor employment leave

overtime pay

payment of earnings

pregnancy and parental leave

public vacations

reservist leave

severance of employment

sick leave

short-lived help firms

termination of employment and short-term layoffs

tips or gratuities

getaway.

written policy on detaching from work.

composed policy on electronic monitoring of staff members.

Reprisals are restricted

Employers are forbidden from punishing workers in any way since the worker exercised ESA rights.

Clients of short-lived help firms are prohibited from punishing task workers in any method since the project employee worked out ESA rights.

Recruiters are restricted from punishing potential employees who engage or utilize the employer’s services in any method for particular reasons, consisting of asking the employer to adhere to the Act or investigating about whether an individual holds a licence as required by the ESA.

Employers, customers of short-lived aid agencies and employers who dedicate a reprisal can be:

– purchased to compensate the employee, project staff member or prospective staff member.

– purchased to restore the employee or project staff member (if the reprisal was committed by an employer or customer of a short-lived aid company).

– bought to pay a charge.

– prosecuted.

Find out more about reprisals.

Greater right or benefit

If an arrangement in an employment contract or another Act gives a worker a higher right or advantage than a minimum employment requirement under the ESA then that arrangement uses to the employee rather of the employment requirement.

No waiving of rights

No staff member can consent to waive or provide up their rights under the ESA (for example, the right to receive overtime pay or public vacation pay). Any such contract is null and space.

Enforcement and compliance

Violations of the ESA can result in enforcement action.

The kind of enforcement action that can be taken depends on which arrangement of the ESA was contravened. Examples consist of:

– an order to pay.

– a compliance order.

– a ticket.

– a notice of breach with a financial penalty.

– an order to renew and/or compensate.

– prosecution.

Other workplace-related laws

The ESA includes just some of the guidelines affecting operate in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs problems such as workplace health and employment wellness, human rights and employment labour relations.

Related Ontario laws consist of the:

Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Pay Equity Act.

Human Rights Code.

For more info about other Ontario laws, contact ServiceOntario:

– Tel: 416-326-1234 (in Toronto).

– Toll-free: 1-800-267-8097 (in the rest of Ontario).

– online at ServiceOntario.ca.

Federal laws impacting work environments include statutes on earnings tax, work insurance and the Canada Pension Plan.

To find out more about federal laws, call the Government of Canada details line at 1-800-622-6232.

Who is not covered by the ESA?

Most workers and employers in Ontario are covered by the ESA. However, the ESA does not use to some people and the individuals or organizations they work for, such as:

– employees and employers in sectors that fall under federal work law jurisdiction, such as airlines, banks, the federal civil service, post workplaces, radio and television stations and inter-provincial trains.

– individuals working under a program approved by a college of used arts and technology or employment university.

– people working under a program that is authorized by a profession college signed up under the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005.

– secondary school trainees who work under a work experience program authorized by the that runs the school in which the trainee is registered.

– people who do community involvement under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.

– law enforcement officer (other than for the lie detectors provisions of the ESA, which do use).

– prisoners participating in work or rehab programs, or individuals who work as part of a sentence or order of a court.

– individuals who hold political, judicial, religious or chosen trade union offices.

– significant junior ice hockey gamers who meet certain conditions related to scholarships.

– people who fulfill the definition of company consultant or infotech consultant under the ESA if certain conditions are met.

For a total listing of other individuals not governed by the ESA, please check the ESA and its guidelines.

Employee misclassification

Employers are forbidden from misclassifying workers as independent contractors, interns, volunteers or any other type of worker not covered by the ESA.

Learn more about worker misclassification.

Additional resources

In addition to this guide, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) has additional resources offered to help you:

– The Employment Standards Act Policy and Interpretation Manual is the primary referral source for the policies of the Director of Employment Standards appreciating the analysis, administration and enforcement of the ESA.

– Staff at the Employment Standards Information Centre are offered to answer your questions about the ESA. Information is readily available in many languages. You can reach the information centre from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.