This guide is a hassle-free source of information about crucial sections of the ESA. It is for your information and assistance just. It is not a legal document. If you need information or precise language, please describe the ESA itself and its regulations.

This guide must not be used as or thought about legal recommendations. You might have greater rights under a work contract, collective arrangement, the common law or other legislation. If you're unsure about anything in this guide, please speak to a lawyer.

Topics covered by the ESA?

These consist of:

advantage strategies
bereavement leave
kid death leave
crime-related child disappearance leave
vital illness leave
stated emergency situation leave
domestic or sexual violence leave
the employment standards poster: circulation requirements
equivalent spend for equal work
household caretaker leave
family medical leave
family responsibility leave
suing
hours of work, consuming periods and job pause
infectious illness emergency situation leave
licensing - short-lived help agencies and employers
lie detector tests
minimum wage
non-compete arrangements
organ donor leave
overtime pay
payment of earnings
pregnancy and adult leave
public holidays
reservist leave
severance of work
authorized leave
temporary aid firms
termination of work and temporary layoffs
pointers or gratuities
getaway.
written policy on detaching from work.
composed policy on electronic tracking of staff members.
Reprisals are prohibited

Employers are restricted from penalizing staff members in any method since the employee exercised ESA rights.

Clients of momentary assistance agencies are forbidden from punishing task workers in any way due to the fact that the task staff member exercised ESA rights.

Recruiters are restricted from penalizing prospective workers who engage or utilize the recruiter's services in any method for certain factors, including asking the employer to adhere to the Act or making queries about whether a person holds a licence as needed by the ESA.

Employers, customers of temporary help companies and employers who dedicate a reprisal can be:

- bought to compensate the worker, project staff member or potential staff member.
- bought to restore the staff member or project employee (if the reprisal was devoted by a company or customer of a temporary aid firm).
- bought to pay a penalty.
- prosecuted.
Find out more about reprisals.

Greater right or benefit

If an arrangement in a work contract or another Act provides an employee a greater right or benefit than a minimum work requirement under the ESA then that provision uses to the employee rather of the employment requirement.

No waiving of rights

No staff member can consent to waive or offer up their rights under the ESA (for example, the right to get overtime pay or public holiday pay). Any such contract is null and job void.

Enforcement and compliance

Violations of the ESA can result in enforcement action.

The type of enforcement action that can be taken depends upon 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 renew and/or compensate.
- prosecution.
Other workplace-related laws

The ESA includes just a few of the guidelines affecting work in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs problems such as workplace health and safety, human rights and labour relations.

Related Ontario laws consist of the:

Occupational Health And Wellness Act.
Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.
Labour Relations Act, 1995.
Pay Equity Act.
Human Rights Code.
To find out more about other Ontario laws, 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 workplaces consist of statutes on income tax, employment insurance and the Canada Pension.

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

Who is not covered by the ESA?

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

- workers and employers in sectors that fall under federal work law jurisdiction, such as airlines, banks, the federal civil service, post workplaces, 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 licensed by the school board that runs the school in which the student is enrolled.
- individuals who do community participation under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.
- police officers (other than for job the lie detectors provisions of the ESA, which do use).
- inmates participating in work or rehab programs, or people who work as part of a sentence or order of a court.
- people who hold political, judicial, spiritual or elected trade union offices.
- significant junior ice hockey players who satisfy certain conditions connected to scholarships.
- people who meet the meaning of organization expert or infotech expert under the ESA if certain conditions are satisfied.
For a total listing of other individuals not governed by the ESA, please inspect the ESA and its guidelines.

Employee misclassification

Employers are forbidden from misclassifying employees as independent contractors, interns, volunteers or any other kind of employee not covered by the ESA.

Learn more about employee misclassification.

Additional resources

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

- The Employment Standards Act Policy and Interpretation Manual is the main referral source for the policies of the Director of Employment Standards appreciating the interpretation, administration and enforcement of the ESA.
- Staff at the Employment Standards Information Centre are offered to address your questions about the ESA. Information is available in lots of languages. You can reach the info centre from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.