HR MAT T E R S
Are You
Ready for
the Changing
Landscape of
Employment
Standards
Legislation?
By Sharon Kolodychuk, BA, CPHR
Employment laws, employment
standards, labour laws, statutes,
employee relations, labour relations…
human rights, occupational
health and safety…What seems to be
an ever-changing legal and legislative
landscape tends to get a bit confusing
even for seasoned HR professionals, let
alone for employers and employees.
Canada, as with most industrialized
countries, has laws in place from
employment standards to workplace
safety, as well as employment equity
and human rights obligations all set
out to protect the rights of workers.
Each province and territory in Canada
have established their own standards
and expectations on how employers
are to treat their employees – and vice
versa – regarding legislated areas of the
employment relationship in respect to
rates of pay, hours of work, overtime,
vacation entitlement, public holidays,
leaves of absence and more.
Employment standards legislation
serves the needs of most employees
and employers in the province or territory
a workplace is located in. These
regulations delineate the minimum
employment standards requirements
in the jurisdiction where the employment
relationship has been established.
Instituting employment standards, the
Government of Canada set out:
“To ensure that employees are treated
fairly, the federal and provincial governments
have established employment standards
regarding:
•• Minimum wage
•• Annual vacations and other types
of leave
•• Public (statutory) holidays
•• Hours of work, including standard
hours, overtime and emergency
requirements
Certain industries fall under federal regulations,
while others must comply with provincial
or territorial employment standards.
If employees are unionized, there may be
additional standards set out in their collective
agreement that go above and beyond what is
required by law.” 1
Employment standards offices serve
the needs of both employers and
employees by providing information
and education on the rights of employees
and the responsibilities of employers
under their relevant employment standards
legislation. These offices, acting as
the basic legal authority in their jurisdiction,
provide for the enforcement of
the employment standards regulations,
laws and legislation through employment
standards officers.
Human resources professionals serve
the needs of employers and employees
within the diverse workplaces they
support and, since employment law
Ivan Karpov / 123rf
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