In the security biz, I get to work eight hours a day, with no lunch and no breaks. Recently changed company policy set the minimum vacation per year at five days.
Unfortunately, the new maximum per year is also five days.
Also, I can’t find anything in the law that requires management to give us bathroom breaks.
As Northern Piper also points out - the laws in Canada reflect recognition of the unequal bargaining position of most employees.
While American ideological types may love to prattle about the values of the “free market” the sad fact is that unless you are a particularly talented individual in an in-demand field, odds are you are at the mercy of your employer and have no bargaining power.
For every store clerk, security guard or fast-food worker who would love to ask for a week or two of vacation, there is a line-up of possibly illegal-status applicants, willing to take the job for less pay and willing to forgo luxuries like a vehicle, payments on student loans, and cockroach-free living arrangements. A country that wants to rise into the first world must set some minimum standards.
Logically, a truly free market would also not have unemployment benefits for these ungrateful workers to fall back on should the employer take their demands for time off as “uppity”.
Of course, life gets even more interesting when what little health care you have is tied to your employer. At least in Canada, if you are a legal resident of your province, you are covered. The employer cannot threaten you with losing that too.
Just thought of another major difference in employment law between Canada and the US - drug testing. Here in Canada, unless the employer can show that a drug test is clearly related to the job requirements, mandatory drug tests will be contrary to our human rights laws.
Spoons, as usual, gave an excellent summary of the Canadian law on drug testing in this thread: Does EVERYBODY test for drugs these days?
In this current job market- yes. A decade + ago, my friend could not hire bodies for a retail job @ $10/hr + benefits. There were no takers.
Just to add, these are typical of the questions I’ve received from my American clients. None of this is legal advice; for legal advice specific to a jurisdiction, consult a lawyer licensed to practice in that jurisdiction:
Question: Can I make my Canadian employees work on Canadian holidays? After all, we in the US are open those days, and we feel all our employees should be working when we are. Can’t we make the Canadians work on Canada Day, when we’re working? We’ll give them July 4th off. And what’s with Thanksgiving in October? Can’t we make them take Thanksgiving in November, like us? And what’s with that holiday in August?
Answer: You can ask an employee to take a different day than the statutory holiday, if you like. You may not get agreement, and you can do little about that. You must pay them regular pay for taking the holiday off. To pay them regular pay for working the holiday, you will have to deal with the fact that they are entitled to another mutually-acceptable day off–so, if July 4th isn’t good for the employee, you’re out of luck. He or she might want July 8th, and how is that for you? Regardless, you cannot force employees to work on Canada Day (July 1st), or any other statutory holiday, unless you are willing to pay for it.
If you force an employee to work on a statutory holiday, and do not negotiate a different mutually-acceptable day off with the employee, you will owe them 2.5 to 3 times their regular pay for working the holiday. This also applies to the August long weekend in provinces where it is mandated by statute. As always, exceptions (such as for part-timers) can apply, and all this can depend on the province. Consult a Canadian lawyer for what to do in your situation.
Question: Do I have to pay my Canadian employees who are travelling on business for travel time?
Answer: Yes. Your Canadian employees are “on the clock” from the time they leave home until they reach their destination, and vice versa for the homeward journey. This applies no matter when they leave: if they leave for the airport at 0500 Sunday morning to get to the airport for an 0800 flight that arrives at its destination five hours later (a typical situation when starting from a Toronto address and flying from Toronto to Vancouver), you will pay them for 8 hours. Add another hour for the time spent in baggage claim and travelling into the city to the hotel: 9 hours total for travel time.
After that, they are on their own. Watching TV in the hotel room is off the clock. The clock starts again when they are in the office, or at whatever place the job needs them to be. And of course, the clock starts again when they begin their homeward journey.
Question: Further to the above, do I have to pay them even if they don’t work on the plane, in the airport, in cabs, etc?
Answer: Yes. They can drink in the airport bar, watch the inflight movie, and sightsee from the cab, totally ignoring your work at all times, and you still have to pay them.
Question: I want to hire a Canadian in Canada as a contractor, reporting to head office in the US. Can I just draft a contract that states I’m not withholding Canadian income tax, Canada Pension, and Employment Insurance for my Canadian contractor? After all, I’m in the USA and not liable to the Canada Revenue Agency.
Answer: Tough call. There are specific statutory and common law requirements that prove your contractor is really a contractor. If you do not meet these requirements, expect the Canada Revenue Agency to come calling, demanding that you pay the contractor’s income tax, Canada Pension payments, and Employment Insurance premiums. The CRA has been cracking down a lot lately; if you have any presence in Canada at all (other than the contractor in question), expect them to hit your Canadian operations. But the CRA isn’t bound by borders; it will demand payments from US-based employers if it determines that the employment relationship is that of employer-employee, rather than employer-contractor. Note that the CRA collects first and asks questions later, so even if your contractor is reporting to your US office, your Canadian operations may suffer their demands and their wrath. Consult a Canadian lawyer with the particulars, and heed his or her advice as to how to “CRA-proof” your contractor.
Again, this is general information. For advice specific to your situation, consult a lawyer licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.