On May 11, 2021, the British Columbia government introduced
amendments to the Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c
113. The amendments, which received Royal Assent on May
20, 2021, require employers to provide employees with three days of
paid leave for reasons related to COVID-19. The new provisions
build on amendments introduced in March 2020, which currently
provide employees with unpaid COVID-19-related leave. The move
comes shortly after Ontario introduced similar legislation (see the
Osler National Employment & Labour Group's
previous publication on the Ontario changes). However, unlike
Ontario, British Columbia has also mandated the creation of
permanent paid sick leave that is set to begin in 2022.
