COVID-19 Proposed Amendment To BC Employment Standards Act

The BC government has tabled an amendment to the Employment Standards Act ("ESA") that will increase employees' rights to unpaid leave not only during the COVID-19 pandemic, but also into the future.  The proposed amendment grants employees the right to an indefinite amount of leave if they are dealing with specific disruptions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The government has indicated that this section is time-limited and will be repealed after the pandemic.  In addition to the response to COVID-19, the amendment also proposes to grant employees the right to three days of unpaid illness or injury leave each year.  This is intended to be a permanent change and brings the ESA into harmony with employment legislation in other provinces.