Ontario proposes new rules to protect jobs of military reservists

A Canadian flag sits on a member of the Canadian Armed Forces in this file photo. (Lars Hagberg/The Canadian Press)

The Ontario government is proposing legislation that would give military reservists new protections guaranteeing they can return to their civilian jobs after recovering from physical or mental injuries.

Labour Minister Monte McNaughton made the announcement Friday morning alongside retired General Rick Hillier.

Speaking to CTV News Toronto ahead of the announcement, McNaughton said the legislation is meant to send the message to employers that “these jobs will be there for military reservists when they’re deployed abroad or responding to a natural disaster.”

“The men and women who serve in uniform are heroes and they defend freedom abroad, and they also help with natural disasters here in Ontario and across the country,” McNaughton said.

“So I'm proud to say that I'll be introducing new legislation that would guarantee military reservists can return to their jobs after deployment, and even if they need additional time off to recover from physical and mental injuries, that's the least we can do for our heroes.”

Officials say that of the 40,000 soldiers in Afghanistan, nearly one in seven developed a mental injury as a result of their deployment.

“It really is important that we're protecting the physical and mental health of our military reservists.”

In addition, the Ontario government is also proposing regulations that would allow reservists to be respond to domestic emergencies such as search and rescue operations and natural disasters such as floods or ice storms immediately rather than waiting until their months-long employment probationary period is over.

McNaughton said this will provide reservists immediate job protection if there is a need for their services in Canada.

“As long as they've had a job they are protected essentially from day one.”

The legislation builds on protections put in place last year that ensured deployed or training reservists could not be fired during their absences from their civilian jobs.

At the time McNaughton said it was “unacceptable” to ask Canadians to choose between their careers and service their country. It was also a measure that, in combination with the new proposal, hopes to ease a shortage of reservists and troops.

Officials say that one in 10 of the Canadian Armed Forces’ 100,000 positions remain unfilled.

The ministry of labour has been making multiple announcements under its Working for Workers Act this week, including ensuring there are double the amount of washrooms on construction sites. The legislation will be officially introduced over the next couple of days.