This guide is a practical source of info about crucial sections of the ESA. It is for your details and help just. It is not a legal document. If you need information or specific language, please refer to the ESA itself and its regulations.

This guide should not be used as or thought about legal guidance. You may have greater rights under an employment contract, cumulative contract, the typical law or other legislation. If you're uncertain about anything in this guide, please talk to an attorney.

Topics covered by the ESA?

These consist of:

advantage plans

bereavement leave

child death leave

crime-related kid disappearance leave

crucial health problem leave

stated emergency leave

domestic or sexual violence leave

the employment standards poster: circulation requirements

equal spend for equivalent work

family caretaker leave

family medical leave

family duty leave

suing

hours of work, eating periods and pause

infectious disease emergency leave

licensing - short-term help companies and employers

lie detector tests

base pay

non-compete contracts

organ donor leave

overtime pay

payment of incomes

pregnancy and parental leave

public vacations

reservist leave

severance of employment

authorized leave

short-lived assistance companies

termination of work and short-term layoffs

ideas or gratuities

vacation.

written policy on detaching from work.

written policy on electronic monitoring of employees.


Reprisals are prohibited

Employers are forbidden from penalizing workers in any method because the employee exercised ESA rights.

Clients of momentary aid agencies are prohibited from penalizing project workers in any method due to the fact that the assignment staff member worked out ESA rights.

Recruiters are restricted from penalizing prospective staff members who engage or use the recruiter's services in any method for certain reasons, consisting of asking the employer to comply with the Act or inquiring about whether an individual holds a licence as needed by the ESA.

Employers, clients of temporary aid companies and recruiters who dedicate a reprisal can be:

- ordered to compensate the worker, task worker or prospective staff member.

- bought to reinstate the employee or project employee (if the reprisal was dedicated by an employer or customer of a momentary help firm).

- purchased to pay a charge.

- prosecuted.


Find out more about reprisals.

Greater right or advantage

If an arrangement in an employment agreement or another Act gives a staff member a greater right or advantage than a minimum employment standard under the ESA then that arrangement applies to the employee instead of the work standard.

No waiving of rights

No worker can consent to waive or quit their rights under the ESA (for instance, the right to receive overtime pay or public vacation pay). Any such agreement is null and void.

Enforcement and compliance

Violations of the ESA can lead to enforcement action.

The kind of enforcement action that can be taken depends on which provision of the ESA was contravened. Examples include:

- an order to pay.

- a compliance order.

- a ticket.

- a notice of breach with a financial penalty.

- an order to restore and/or compensate.

- prosecution.


Other workplace-related laws

The ESA contains only some of the rules impacting work in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs issues such as workplace health and wellness, human rights and labour relations.

Related Ontario laws consist of the:

Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Pay Equity Act.

Human Rights Code.


For more details about other Ontario laws, contact ServiceOntario:

- Tel: 416-326-1234 (in Toronto).

- Toll-free: 1-800-267-8097 (in the rest of Ontario).

- online at ServiceOntario.ca.


Federal laws affecting work environments consist of statutes on income tax, work insurance coverage and the Canada Pension Plan.

To learn more about federal laws, call the Government of Canada details line at 1-800-622-6232.

Who is not covered by the ESA?

Most staff members and companies in Ontario are covered by the ESA. However, the ESA does not apply to some people and individuals or companies they work for, such as:

- employees and employers in sectors that fall under federal work law jurisdiction, such as airlines, banks, the federal civil service, post offices, radio and tv stations and inter-provincial trains.

- people working under a program authorized by a college of applied arts and innovation or university.

- people working under a program that is approved by a profession college signed up under the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005.

- secondary school trainees who work under a work experience program authorized by the school board that operates the school in which the student is enrolled.

- people who do neighborhood participation under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.

- law enforcement officer (except for the lie detectors provisions of the ESA, which do apply).

- inmates participating in work or rehab programs, or individuals who work as part of a sentence or order of a court.

- people who hold political, judicial, religious or chosen trade union offices.

- significant junior ice hockey players who satisfy particular conditions associated with scholarships.

- people who fulfill the meaning of company consultant or infotech expert under the ESA if particular conditions are satisfied.


For a complete listing of other individuals not governed by the ESA, please examine the ESA and its policies.

Employee misclassification

Employers are prohibited from misclassifying staff members as independent specialists, interns, lovewiki.faith volunteers or any other kind of worker not covered by the ESA.

Learn more about worker misclassification.

Additional resources

In addition to this guide, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) has extra resources offered to assist you:

- The Employment Standards Act Policy and Interpretation Manual is the main reference source for the policies of the Director of Employment Standards respecting the interpretation, administration and enforcement of the ESA.

- Staff at the Employment Standards Information Centre are available to address your questions about the ESA. Information is available in many languages. You can reach the information centre from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.