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Also known as employment law, Canada labor law outlines what an employer must do for its employees by law.
Employers are required to apply minimum standards to ensure certain levels of work practice and uniformity across the workforce. Minimum standards are applied to conditions such as working hours, minimum pay level, mandatory employee benefits, and holiday periods.
Keep in mind that, in Canada there are different federal and provincial laws are applicable depending on the region in which a company operates. 90% of Canadian employees are protected by provincial labor laws.
There are variations in the statutory notice period across Canada’s provinces and territories. A notice period of 2 weeks (i.e. 10 working days) is standard across Canada, including in federally regulated industries.
There are a number of factors that affect the legal requirement to provide a notice period.
For example, employers are not required to provide written notice in the following circumstances:
Furthermore, the statutory notice period usually extends with the length of employment. See the statutory notice period that must be given in the province of Ontario, as an example.
If the employee has been employed for up to 3 months, they must provide 1 week’s notice in writing. If they have been employed from 3 months to 2 years, they must provide 2 weeks’ notice in writing.
Generally, employees who complete at least 12 consecutive months of continuous employment qualify for severance pay. The minimum severance payment is five days’ worth of pay.
The calculation for severance pay is two days’ pay at the employee’s regular rate of wages for each full year of employment.
Employers are required to provide severance pay in all circumstances except the following:
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The Employment Standards Act (ESA) and Employment Standards Code (ESC).
Yes. A contract of employment can be terminated during the probationary period for any reason that is non-discriminatory. In Canada, statutory notice periods only apply to employees who have completed 3 consecutive months of employment.
Yes. Employees have the right to terminate their employment during the probationary period. The requirement to provide notice will depend on the details of the agreement entered into, such as the length of the probationary period. If termination is within the first 3 months no period of notice is required.
If an employee has completed 3 consecutive months of employment, the statutory notice period applies. The notice, including the reason(s) for the termination, must be provided in writing.
