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On November 30, 2021, Ontario officially passed the Working for Workers Act (the “Act”). On December 2, 2021, the Act received Royal Assent and will effect a number of significant legislative amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and related legislation. These amendments include the requirement for certain employers to create a “right to disconnect” policy, the prohibition of the use of non-competition provisions in employment contracts, additional licensing requirements for temporary help agencies and recruiters and the removal of Canadian work experience as a requirement for foreign professional registration and licensing. Read the full article here.

Pursuant to section 129 of the Municipal Act, 2001, S.O. 2001, c. 25, municipalities in Ontario have the authority to prohibit and regulate noise by passing and enforcing by-laws that regulate noise disturbances. In drafting such by-laws, municipalities must take care to ensure that the parameters of what is and what is not permitted are clearly set out, as Ontario Courts have struck down noise by-laws in their entirety where the Court has determined that the by-laws were vague and uncertain. Read the full article here.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published the emergency temporary standard (ETS) on November 5, and it was immediately met by pushback. The ETS requires employers with at least 100 workers to mandate that their employees either get vaccinated, or that they get tested weekly and wear a mask. Several lawsuits were filed by Republican state attorneys general, business alliances, companies and other groups that argued the ETS was an overreach of power by the federal government. Read the full article here.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has updated its guidance on COVID-19 (What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws) to address when COVID-19 might be considered a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Read the full article here.

A construction project is a marathon and not a sprint. Rushing through the project without preparation and a plan for the long game, will ultimately lead to errors, cost overruns and delays. For that reason, we counsel our clients about the importance of assembling the right team for success, engaging in active project management, and planning for and knowing how to adapt to project pitfalls. Both anecdotal evidence and industry studies have confirmed, there is usually a positive financial return realized in cost and time savings from assembling the correct project team and engaging in early project planning. Read the full article here.

As discussed in our previous article, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIAJ) passed last month retroactively terminated the employer retention tax credit for wages paid after September 30, 2021, except for wages paid by employers that qualify as recovery startup businesses. Read the full article here.

Who didn’t feel a bit overwhelmed when, Friday the 13th of March 2020, the world stopped, and uncertainty gripped us? The pandemic continues. Sadly, the world has suffered a loss of life that is hard to process. But there is good news. Vaccines are here. Vaccination rates are increasing. Life is resuming. Yet, many of us are still overwhelmed in a way that far exceeds any bad day in the pre-pandemic years. Additionally, some (perhaps many) of us have suffered a trauma that needs careful nurturing and intentional work. Read the full article here.

It’s 7:30 a.m., with one school drop-off complete. I power up my tablet and start writing. But my morning is not for briefs, memos, or emails, but rather my “morning pages.” Whether I’m working on my next screenplay, that pesky, never-complete novel, or that how-to book that I never get to, the quiet morning is for creative writing, not work. Read the full article here.

In a significant decision regarding workplace mandatory vaccination policies, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) has found that a mining employer had not met its consultation obligations when introducing a mandatory vaccination policy. Read the full article here.

We discuss a business’ obligation to notify affected individuals of a data breach and explore possible ways to cut through notification fatigue. Read the full article here.

We review the current tax residency tests for individuals and discuss how a proposed new framework may change the landscape. Read the full article here.

The Australian Government recently released an exposure draft of so called “anti-trolling” legislation, which has the dual purpose of protecting owners of social media pages and unmasking online trolls. Read the full article here.