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Ontario’s Bill 149 April 05 2024

On March 21, 2024, Ontario’s Bill 149, the Working for Workers Four Act, 2023 received royal assent, amending the Employment Standards Act (ESA) and other employment legislation.

The following changes are now in force:

- Employers are prohibited from deducting or withholding wages from an employee where a customer of a gas station, restaurant or other establishment leaves without paying their bill.
- The definition of an “employee”, under the ESA, is amended to confirm that work performed in a trial period is considered training and therefore any person performing work in a trial period is to be considered an employee.

The following changes will take effect on June 21, 2024:

- If an employer has a tip sharing policy, the policy must be in writing and posted in the workplace and retained for three years after it ceases to be in effect.
- Employers must pay tips or gratuities to employees in one of the following ways: cash, cheque (payable only to the employee), direct deposit, or any other prescribed method of payment.
- If payments are made to employees via direct deposit, the account must be one selected by the employee, in addition to being in the employee’s name and being accessible only to the employee or a person authorized by the employee.
- Any alternate vacation pay arrangements between an employer and employee must be in writing.

The following changes will take effect in the future on proclamation:

- Employers may not include Canadian experience requirements in any public advertisements or applications forms.
- Employers must keep copies of all public job advertisements for at least three years after the posting has closed.
- Employer must state expected compensation (or range), in any public job posting.
- Employers must disclose if artificial intelligence is used to screen, assess, or select candidates in any public job posting.

For more information on employment legislation in your area, please refer to our Laws tab or submit a ticket through the OnDemand portal.

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Ontario’s Bill 149 Posted on April 05, 2024

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