FAQs

Overtime

• After How Many Worked Hours Does Overtime Start?
• Am I Entitled To Overtime Pay In Ontario?
• Are Managers Entitled To Overtime Pay?
• Can My Employer Make Me Work Overtime?
• I Need To Work Overtime, But My Employer Won’t Let Me
• Is Overtime Calculated Daily?
• Is Overtime Pay In Ontario Always 1.5 The Employees’ Rate Of Pay?
• What is Overtime Pay?

Public Holidays and Vacation Entitlements

• Can I borrow vacation days from next year if I’ve used all of mine?
• Can I refuse to work over the holidays?
• Do employers have to provide time off for Religious Leave?
• Do I get paid overtime if I work around the Christmas holidays?
• Do I have to attend a work Holiday party?
• Do part-time employees get paid for statutory holidays?
• How does vacation time accumulation work for employees, and what are the rules regarding vacation pay?
• I don’t celebrate Christmas; can I work to earn overtime?
• Is it fair to negotiate additional vacation time with your employer?
• I’ve used my vacation days, can I take unpaid leave?
• What happens if Christmas and Boxing Day falls on a weekend?

Employment Standards Entitlements

• Are employers legally obligated to pay interns?
• Can Employees Waive Entitlements Under the Employment Standards Act?
• Can Employees Get More Than Employment Standards Act Entitlements?
• Does the ESA, 2000 (“ESA”) impose mandatory breaks from work?
• Creating a safe workplace in the era of COVID-19: Tips and Guidelines
• Can Employers Offer Rights Beyond Employment Standards?
• How many sick days am I entitled to in Ontario?
• I am a salaried employee. Am I entitled to overtime?
• My employment was recently terminated. What am I entitled to?
• How much vacation time am I entitled to under ESA, 2000 (“ESA”)?
• Difference between “notice” and “severance” under the ESA, 2000
• What is the “Three-Hour Rule”?
• What leaves are allowed under the Employment Standards Act 2000 (ESA)?
• Who is covered by the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”)?

Workplace Harassment

• What are your employer’s obligations in terms of workplace harassment?
• What can I do if I’ve been harassed at work?
• What is a hostile/poisoned work environment?
• What is reprisal?
• What is “workplace harassment”?

Leaves of Absence

• Does my employer have to pay me while I am on sick leave?
• Can My Employer Force Me Back to Work?
• What information can my employer request me while I am on sick leave?

Human Rights in the Workplace

• Can a potential employer ask me if I have a criminal record?
• Can I be fired for taking too many sick days?
• Can my employer fire me for being pregnant?
• What can a potential employer ask me in an interview?
• What can I do if I am being discriminated against at work?
• What can I do if I am facing discrimination at work?
• What forms of discrimination fall under human rights?
• What is the best way to manage an employee’s disability?
• When can an employer ask for a police record check?

Pregnancy and Parental Leave

• Do employees continue to accrue vacation time during parental leave?
• Can Employer Alter Job Duties after Pregnancy/Parental Leave Return?
• Is my employer allowed to fire me while I am on maternity leave?
• Can my employment be terminated while on parental leave?
• Can you qualify for a top-up during your maternity or parental leave?
• What benefits are available during maternity or parental leave in Ontario?
• How Much Time Off Does Your Employer Have to Give for Parental Leave?
• Is my employer required to pay me while on maternity leave?
• What happens if you get pregnant while on maternity leave in Ontario?
• What are my employment rights while on parental or maternity leave?
• Reasonable job accommodations to request from employer during Pregnancy
• What are your rights if the baby is born before the due date?
• What is parental leave in Ontario?
• What is the difference between parental leave and pregnancy leave?
• What is the earliest that pregnancy leave can begin?
• What is the maximum duration of a pregnancy leave?
• What obligations do I have if I resign during parental leave?
• When should you inform your employer of your pregnancy?
• Who is considered a parent?

Employment Contracts

• Can you reject an employment offer before signing a contract?
• Is a Conflict-of-Interest working for two employers a Cause for Dismissal?
• Is there a legal obligation to disclose a second position?
• Should my employment contract be written?
• Should you accept a job offer if you’re not sure?
• Should you talk to your boss before resigning?
• What happens if you get a better offer after accepting a job offer?
• What is an employment contract?
• What is Moonlighting?
• What makes an employment contract valid and enforceable?
• What questions should you ask before signing an offer of employment?
• What should be included in an employment contract?

Working in Canada

• Can I change employers under my current work permit?
• Can I Stay in Canada with a Terminated Employer-Specific Work Permit?
• What If I Missed My Work Permit Extension?
• Fired on a Closed Work Permit: What Are My Options to Keep Working?
• Effect on foreign workers in a merger or acquisition of their employer
• Do Foreign Workers Repay Relocation Costs?
• My company name change: Do I need a new work permit?
• What is the Ontario Immigration Nominee Program?

Protections for Foreign Workers

• Are temporary foreign workers entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) Benefits?
• Do foreign workers have protections against discrimination?
• Can Employers Request Foreign Workers to Forfeit Rights?
• Are Foreign Workers in Ontario Have Protections Under the ESA?
• What is the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act, 2009?

Implied Status

• Implied Status: Can I Leave and Re-Enter Canada?
• Implications for implied status if work permit extension is denied?
• What is “implied status”?
• Implied Status and SIN Expiry: Can I Still Work in Canada?

Termination of a Foreign Worker

• Can I Get Termination Pay?
• How Can I get A New Work Permit?
• How Do I Know If I Have Been Wrongfully Dismissed?
• As a terminated foreign worker; do I have to leave Canada immediately?
• Am I required to report the termination of a temporary foreign worker?
• What If I Want To Challenge The Termination Of My Employment?
• What is a foreign worker’s entitlement if their employment is terminated?

Work Permit Basics

• Can I apply for a work permit at the port of entry?
• Do I need a job offer to work in Canada?
• Do I require an eTA or Temporary Resident Visa to work in Canada?
• How long may a work permit be issued for?
• Do I Need a Medical Exam for a Work Permit?
• What is a Labour Market Impact Assessment And Why Do I Need One?
• What is a study permit?
• How vulnerable work permit different from other work permits?
• What is considered “low-skilled” work in Canada?
• What is considered “skilled work” in Canada?
• What types of activities are considered “work”?
• What types of work permits are issued in Canada?

Considering Working in Canada

• Am I Admissible to Canada With a Criminal Charge or Conviction?
• Are all temporary foreign workers eligible for an open work permit?
• Can an Employer Terminate for a Non-Essential Closure?
• Can I apply for a work permit at the port of entry?
• Can I work in Canada with a Visitor Visa?
• Does a Canadian job offer automatically grant work permit eligibility?
• Does my relationship qualify for family sponsorship and PR

Fairness in Workplace Investigations

• How do I ensure fairness in a workplace investigation?

Constructive Dismissal

• Can I claim constructive dismissal even after I resign?
• Do I have a constructive dismissal case?
• What can you receive if you are constructively dismissed?
• What is constructive dismissal in Canada?
• What is the average payout for constructive dismissal?

Just Cause for Termination

• Can an employer dismiss an employee for violating a workplace policy?
• Can my boss fire me if I called in sick and lied about it?
• If fired without cause, what are an employee’s legal rights?
• Is it hard to fight back if my employer fires me for cause?
• Am I entitled to severance pay if terminated for “Just Cause”?
• What is “Just Cause” termination?

Wrongful Dismissal

• Am I entitled to additional damages if my employer acted in bad faith when I was terminated?
• Can an Employee Sue for Wrongful Dismissal Instead of Labor Ministry Claim?
• I’ve been fired. Does my employer have to tell me why I was terminated?
• Differences: wrongful, constructive, unjust dismissal.
• What is wrongful dismissal in Ontario?

Notice of Termination/Severance Packages

• What is the difference between severance pay and termination pay?
• How does mass termination of employment affect notice?
• Minimum notice periods for termination without cause in Ontario?
• What if I am not happy with the termination package offered to me by employer?
• What is ‘reasonable notice’?
• What is severance pay, and who is entitled to it?
• When is an employee not entitled to notice or compensation in Lieu?

Termination of Employment

• Can future employers see if I was fired?
• Can I be fired if I’m late for work due to weather?
• Can I be fired without a warning in Ontario?
• Can I receive Employment Insurance (EI) if I am fired?
• Is my employer required to provide me with a reference letter?
• What makes a termination clause unenforceable?
• What steps to take if asked to sign a release post-employment termination?