New! IDEL Extension Until July 3, 2021

We had a feeling this might happen! And it has. The Ontario government has extended the length of the Deemed Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (IDEL) AGAIN! Enacting O. Reg 765/20, amending O. Reg 228/20 both under the Employment Standards Act (ESA). 

We have been warning our clients – and webinar attendees – about the upcoming January 2, 2021 end to the Deemed IDEL – it has now been extended to July 3, 2021. 

What is a Deemed IDEL? 

Employees who were laid off or had their hours reduced from March 1, 2020, until July 3, 2021, are on a deemed IDEL. During normal times, we would consider these employees to just be laid off but these regulations convert any reduction in hours – including all the way to ZERO hours and ZERO pay – to be deemed IDELs and not layoffs. 

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Covid-19 Infections At Work

As case numbers rise, employers and employees alike may wonder what they should do if an employee or a co-worker tests Covid-19 positive. 

If An Employee is COVID-19 Positive

Obviously, an employee who has tested positive for COVID-19 should not return to work until they are no longer COVID-19 positive. In Ontario, workplaces are currently required to administer the daily screening tool, which ideally catches any infected employee early. 

Employers should assess the infected employee’s past actions and potential contacts. It may not be necessary to close the entire workplace, but it may make sense to close off their work area or the bathroom they used for a time and then to thoroughly disinfect the area.

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Termination Entitlements: Benefits, Bonuses and Commissions

Unfortunately, lots of terminations are coming across our desks these days. While most employers understand that they need to provide notice of termination, many employees have a variety of different types of compensation which may or may not continue during the notice period. As with many things in law, it depends! 

Let’s go over some of the common aspects of executive termination packages.

A Primer on Notice

It all starts with notice! Unless an employee is being terminated for cause, they are entitled to notice of termination. “For cause” or “with cause” terminations are rare, so in most cases and absent egregious employee behaviour, employers will owe employees notice. 

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Life After CERB: New Government Benefits

New recovery benefits replace Canada Emergency Response Benefit

Photo by kate.sade on Unsplash

So long, CERB! The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) has officially ended.

Those who were receiving the CERB can now apply for the new recovery benefits. These benefits are retroactive to September 27, 2020, and available until September 25, 2021.

The Canada Recovery Caregiving and Sickness Benefits

As of this Monday, October 5, 2020, the following benefits are now open for applications through the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Here is some information on these new benefits:

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New Government Income Replacement Benefits

Buh-Bye CERB

The federal government has introduced a suite of new income replacement programs which will take over from the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) once it ends on October 3, 2020. Note that individuals can still apply for the CERB until December 2, 2020, but the benefit application must be for income lost during the time period March 15, 2020 to October 3, 2020. FAQs about the CERB and the various application processes can be found on the government site here. 

Remember that while it has been very easy to get the CERB, it is not properly available to those who refuse to return to work or who quit their jobs because being on the CERB is more lucrative than working.

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Non-Solicit Provisions in Employment Contracts – What You Need to Know

Many restrictive convenants in agreements unenforceable

Image by Edar from Pixabay

We get a lot of questions from employers and employees about restrictive covenants. Many employment contracts include a restrictive covenant – a contractual clause that seeks to limit an employee’s ability to solicit the employer’s clients and/or employees and/or to compete for those same clients in the same geographical area once the employee leaves the employer.

Courts generally find restrictive covenants in employment agreements unenforceable, unless they are reasonable between the parties and not adverse to the public interest. Typically, if a restrictive covenant is ambiguous with regards to time, activity or geography, it will not be enforceable. Let’s take a look at non-solicit agreements.

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