Federal Liberals want to add personal days off as Ontario reduces them

OTTAWA – The Trudeau government plans to give approximately 900,000 Canadian workers more days off with pay, according to a proposal that appears designed to entice the Ontario government to fight for workers' rights in the province. Modern economy.

This change is part of a considerable package of amendments to the Canada Labor Code proposed this week by the federal Liberals in their 850 page budget bill.

If pbaded, federal legislation would leave workers five days off a calendar year for reasons such as keeping their loved ones, educating their children or attending their own citizenship ceremonies. Three days off would be paid for workers who had worked at least three months in a row.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford have already fought against carbon taxes and refugee immigration and settlement programs. The new federal bill comes as the Ontario legislature prepares a bill to repeal similar reforms made by failed Ford Liberals last spring.

In addition to giving workers the right to personal days off, the federal government also proposes that workers be entitled to holiday pay, sick leave, maternity leave and parental leave as soon as possible. first day of work.

In addition, the amendments would provide for five days of paid leave for victims of domestic violence, unpaid leave to appear in court or jury and a fourth week of annual vacation for employees with at least 10 years of employment. consecutive. The amendments would also require the employer to provide in writing the worker's schedule at least 96 hours prior to the start of the employee's first shift in that schedule.

The federally regulated sector includes civil servants and employers in large industries such as banks and railways, where many workers already have better conditions. But Ottawa hopes that all the changes in the workforce will set a precedent and lead to similar amendments in the rest of the country. Most Canadian workers are under provincial jurisdiction, not federal.

Federal Labor Minister Patty Hajdu, spokesperson, said the approach was designed to improve the work-life balance of Canadians. She also said that this is not only good for the well-being of workers, but also for their productivity and for the economy in general.

"What we are doing is hopefully we will give the provinces an example," said Véronique Simard on Wednesday. "Smart employers know that when you take care of your workers, it's good for business."

Attempts to establish such national standards are likely to be resisted by some prime ministers and business leaders.

In announcing its intention to repeal Ontario's law, Bill 148, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development, Jim Wilson, said Kathleen Wynne's "Liberal government" has created a tsunami of charges. and regulations that have imposed unnecessary and significant costs on economic growth. "

If the Ontario government's labor law, if pbaded, removes the two-day personal holiday pay guarantee for workers, bringing the provincial total to eight, all unpaid.

Dan Kelly, Executive Director of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, objected to Bill 148. He cautioned federal proposals bring back part of what he considers as its worst provisions and goes even further.

"It's a series of really useless choices and I think they're trying to go back to the 1970s by implementing a list of policies that they care about," Kelly said. "This is another giant step for the (federal) government trying to keep some of the sad legacies of Kathleen Wynne's labor policy."

Kelly, representing small and medium-sized businesses, said the vast majority of small businesses would not be directly affected by the changes made by the federal government. But he insisted that unions could succeed in getting the provinces to adopt standards similar to those set out in the updated Canada Labor Code.

Federal proposals have also generated support. The Canadian Labor Congress has stated that Canadian unions refer to them as an important modernization of federal labor standards.

"In the past, the Canada Labor Code was considered the absolute norm, but the Harper government has dramatically eroded federal labor standards for a decade," union president Hbadan Yussuff said in a statement.