Ontario passes new rules that mandate employers tell workers if they are being tracked

Ontario has passed new laws that require companies to tell their employees if and how they are being electronically tracked, along with establishing a minimum wage for gig workers.

On Thursday, the government said it passed the “Working for Workers Act 2,” which encompasses a range of new rights aimed at benefiting employees in Ontario.

“It is another step forward in our fight to rebalance the scales, put more workers in the driver’s seat of their careers,” Labour Minister Monte McNaughton said in a news release on Thursday.

Here’s what you need to know about the new legislation.

TRACKING WORKERS

At companies in the province with 25 employees or more, workers must be handed a written contract that outlines how they are being monitored on computers, cell phones, GPS systems, and other electronic devices.

Employers will be given six months to establish these new policies.

If a company is tracking their workers, they will be required to disclose the purpose behind this collection of information.

MINIMUM WAGE

For app-based gig workers, a $15 minimum wage will be established on top of tips.

While the province raised the minimum wage across Ontario to $15 an hour in January, gig workers were excluded from that legislation.

This new law makes it mandatory for ride-share drivers and couriers to receive a recurring pay period and pay day. Also, workers must be provided clarity on how algorithms calculate their pay.

The legislation also includes the right for work-related disputes to be resolved in Ontario, preventing workers from traveling outside of the province or country in order to settle disputes with employers.

These new rules do not mention portable benefits, which the government has suggested could come after the provincial June election if the Progressive Conservative government is re-elected.

NALOXONE KITS

In workplaces that are deemed high risk of an employee opioid overdose, naloxone kits will be mandatory to have on-site. As examples, the government said these settings would include construction sites, bars and nightclubs.

For companies that fail to comply with this new policy, the “highest fines in Canada” will be applied. If a worker is severely injured or dies on the job, the company will face a $1.5 million fine.

In addition, the Ontario government is removing barriers for out-of-province workers trained in high demand professions and is guaranteeing the jobs of military reservists are waiting for them when they return home.