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This guide is a convenient source of information about essential sections of the ESA. It is for your details and support just. It is not a legal document. If you need details or exact language, please describe the ESA itself and its policies.

This guide ought to not be used as or thought about legal suggestions. You might have greater rights under an employment agreement, cumulative arrangement, the typical law or other legislation. If you're uncertain about anything in this guide, please talk with a lawyer.

Topics covered by the ESA?

These include:

advantage strategies
bereavement leave
kid death leave
crime-related child disappearance leave
critical health problem leave
stated emergency situation leave
domestic or sexual violence leave
the work standards poster: circulation requirements
equal spend for equal work
family caretaker leave
household medical leave
household duty leave
suing
hours of work, eating periods and rest durations
transmittable disease emergency situation leave
licensing - short-term assistance firms and employers
lie detector tests
base pay
non-compete agreements
organ donor leave
overtime pay
payment of earnings
pregnancy and parental leave
public holidays
reservist leave
severance of work
sick leave
temporary aid companies
termination of employment and short-lived layoffs
tips or gratuities
getaway.
written policy on disconnecting from work.
written policy on electronic monitoring of workers.
Reprisals are prohibited

Employers are prohibited from penalizing workers in any method because the staff member exercised ESA rights.

Clients of short-lived help firms are forbidden from penalizing task employees in any method due to the fact that the project worker exercised ESA rights.

Recruiters are restricted from penalizing potential staff members who engage or utilize the employer's services in any method for particular reasons, employment including asking the employer to abide by the Act or making inquiries about whether an individual holds a licence as required by the ESA.

Employers, clients of short-term aid companies and recruiters who dedicate a reprisal can be:

- purchased to compensate the worker, task worker or prospective worker.
- purchased to restore the employee or assignment worker (if the reprisal was dedicated by an employer or client of a temporary help company).
- bought to pay a charge.
- prosecuted.
Find out more about reprisals.

Greater right or benefit

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

No waiving of rights

No staff member can consent to waive or quit their rights under the ESA (for employment example, the right to get overtime pay or public vacation pay). Any such agreement is null and 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 arrangement of the ESA was contravened. Examples consist of:

- an order to pay.
- a compliance order.
- a ticket.
- a notification of contravention with a financial charge.
- an order to reinstate and/or .
- prosecution.
Other workplace-related laws

The ESA contains only some of the guidelines affecting work in Ontario. Other provincial and federal legislation governs concerns such as workplace health and safety, human rights and labour relations.

Related Ontario laws include the:

Occupational Health and Safety Act.
Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.
Labour Relations Act, 1995.
Pay Equity Act.
Human Rights Code.
For additional information 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 impacting offices include statutes on earnings tax, employment employment insurance and the Canada Pension.

For additional information about federal laws, call the Government of Canada information line at 1-800-622-6232.

Who is not covered by the ESA?

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

- workers and companies in sectors that fall under federal work law jurisdiction, such as airline companies, banks, the federal civil service, post offices, radio and tv stations and inter-provincial railways.
- people working under a program approved by a college of used arts and innovation or university.
- individuals working under a program that is approved by a career college registered under the Ontario Career Colleges Act, 2005.
- secondary school trainees who work under a work experience program licensed by the school board that operates the school in which the student is registered.
- people who do neighborhood involvement under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.
- law enforcement officer (except for the lie detectors arrangements of the ESA, which do apply).
- inmates taking part in work or rehabilitation programs, or individuals who work as part of a sentence or order of a court.
- individuals who hold political, judicial, religious or chosen trade union workplaces.
- significant junior ice hockey players who satisfy certain conditions related to scholarships.
- individuals who satisfy the definition of organization consultant or infotech consultant under the ESA if particular conditions are satisfied.
For a complete listing of other individuals not governed by the ESA, please check the ESA and its guidelines.

Employee misclassification

Employers are restricted from misclassifying employees as independent specialists, interns, volunteers or any other type of employee not covered by the ESA.

Discover more about staff member misclassification.

Additional resources

In addition to this guide, the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) has extra resources available to assist 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 analysis, administration and enforcement of the ESA.
- Staff at the Employment Standards Information Centre are offered to answer your concerns about the ESA. Information is readily available in many languages. You can reach the information centre from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.