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Your Guide to The Employment Standards Act

This guide is a practical source of info about key areas of the ESA. It is for your info and support only. It is not a legal file. If you need information or precise language, please describe the ESA itself and its regulations.

This guide must not be used as or considered legal guidance. You might have greater rights under an employment agreement, collective contract, the common 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 strategies

bereavement leave

child death leave

crime-related child disappearance leave

vital health problem leave

stated emergency situation leave

domestic or sexual violence leave

the employment requirements poster: employment circulation requirements

equal pay for equal work

family caregiver leave

household medical leave

family responsibility leave

filing a claim

hours of work, consuming periods and rest periods

infectious illness emergency situation leave

licensing – momentary help firms and recruiters

lie detector tests

base pay

non-compete contracts

organ donor leave

overtime pay

payment of wages

pregnancy and adult leave

public holidays

reservist leave

severance of employment

ill leave

short-term aid agencies

termination of employment and short-lived layoffs

suggestions or gratuities

vacation.

written policy on detaching from work.

composed policy on electronic tracking of workers.

Reprisals are forbidden

Employers are prohibited from penalizing workers in any way because the employee exercised ESA rights.

Clients of short-term help companies are forbidden from penalizing assignment staff members in any way because the project worker worked out ESA rights.

Recruiters are restricted from punishing potential staff members who engage or utilize the recruiter’s services in any method for particular factors, consisting of asking the employer to adhere to the Act or inquiring about whether a person holds a licence as required by the ESA.

Employers, customers of temporary aid agencies and recruiters who dedicate a reprisal can be:

– purchased to compensate the worker, task worker or potential employee.

– ordered to restore the employee or project staff member (if the reprisal was dedicated by a company or client of a short-term aid agency).

– ordered to pay a penalty.

– prosecuted.

Learn more about reprisals.

Greater right or advantage

If a provision in an employment agreement or another Act gives an employee a higher right or advantage than a minimum work requirement under the ESA then that arrangement uses to the employee instead of the employment standard.

No waiving of rights

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

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 include:

– an order to pay.

– a compliance order.

– a ticket.

– a notice of contravention with a monetary charge.

– an order to reinstate and/or compensate.

– prosecution.

Other workplace-related laws

The ESA consists of only a few of the guidelines affecting operate in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs issues such as workplace health and security, human rights and employment labour relations.

Related Ontario laws include the:

Occupational Health And Wellness Act.

Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Pay Equity Act.

Human Rights Code.

For additional information 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 affecting offices consist of statutes on earnings tax, work insurance and the Canada Pension Plan.

For more info about federal laws, call the Government of Canada info line at 1-800-622-6232.

Who is not covered by the ESA?

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

– workers and companies in sectors that fall under federal employment law jurisdiction, such as airlines, banks, employment the federal civil service, employment post workplaces, radio and tv stations and inter-provincial trains.

– individuals working under a program authorized by a college of used arts and technology or 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 school board that operates the school in which the trainee is enrolled.

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

– law enforcement officer (except for the lie detectors provisions of the ESA, which do apply).

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

– people who hold political, judicial, employment spiritual or chosen trade union offices.

– major junior ice hockey gamers who fulfill certain conditions connected to scholarships.

– people who satisfy the definition of company expert or info innovation consultant under the ESA if specific conditions are fulfilled.

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

Employee misclassification

Employers are forbidden from misclassifying employees as independent professionals, interns, volunteers or any other type of employee not covered by the ESA.

Find out more about employee misclassification.

Additional resources

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

– The Employment Standards Act Policy and Interpretation Manual is the main recommendation source for the policies of the Director of Employment Standards appreciating the interpretation, administration and enforcement of the ESA.

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