The Employment Standards Act:

Mastering the Challenges, Avoiding the Pitfalls     

Mistakes under the Employment Standards Act can prove complex and costly to the uninitiated.  This course will cover all the most difficult areas to provide you with a firm grounding in the area.

You Will Learn: 

• How the new Act has changed things
• What to do when the Ministry investigates and the tougher penalties that can be imposed
• Hours of work and overtime - how to make the most of changes to the Act
• The new need for written agreements
• New rules for holidays and vacations, pregnancy and parental leave, terminations, layoffs and closures
• Emergency leave - how to administer, how it fits with existing policies, how to detect and deter abuses

The Program Will Cover:   

Introduction 

• How the government has positioned the Act
• Does the new ESA take us forward or move us back?

The New ESA- An Overview

• How the new Act applies to your organization
• The new anti-reprisal restriction - who does it protect? What is a reprisal?
• The Ministry of Labour's expanded power to reinstate: When does it apply?
• Tougher penalties
• What to do when the MOL investigates you

Hours of Work and Overtime    

• The 60-hour work week - Does it actually exist? How would it work?
• The demise of the permit system and the rise of written agreements: How does it affect your workplace
• Do the new rules lead to more flexible scheduling?
• Longer hours: Is employee consent necessary?
• How to make the most of the changes
• Why all employers need to know the new rules

Holidays and Vacations

• Who qualifies for public holidays?
• The formula for calculating vacation pay
• Working on public holidays
• Vacation scheduling: Does the employer still decide?
• When can employees take vacation one day at a time?
• Vacation pay: When is it paid? How is it calculated?
• Can employees forego their vacation?

Pregnancy and Parental Leave

• The one-year leave provision
• How have changes to Employment Insurance affected your workplace?
• The employee's right to reinstatement: Is it absolute?
• What are the employer's rights?

Emergency Leave

• What is emergency leave and who is entitled to it?
• What is an "emergency"?
• What are the employee's responsibilities?
• How to detect and deter abuses
• Harmonizing emergency leave with existing policies
• Impact on attendance policies and other workplace practices

Terminations, Layoffs and Closures

• Notice of termination and severance pay - when to pay and how much
• When does a reduction in hours become a layoff?
• When does a temporary layoff become permanent?
• Can you lay off salaried employees?
• How do recall rights affect termination and severance pay?
• How to time closures to reduce costs

The Union Challenge     

• What unions tell employees about the Act
• How unions use the Act to assist them in organizing campaigns
• How to use the Act as an opportunity to reduce your vulnerability to unionization