On March 23, Bill 79, known as the Working for Workers
Act, 2023, had its Second Reading as it continues to
progress towards becoming enacted. The third in a series of
legislation passed by the Ontario government to address conditions
for workers amidst a scarce labour pool and a pandemic, Bill 79
contains a number of changes to various labour and employment
statutes that employers will need to be aware of if it passes in
the Ontario legislature.
Changes to Mass Termination Provisions under the Employment
Standards Act, 2000
As it stands, the ESA's mass termination provisions offer
special rules for notice of termination when the employment of 50
or more employees is terminated at an employer's
establishment within a four-week period. The ESA currently defines
an ‘employer's establishment' as a
location at which the employer carries on business. Bill 79 would
expand this definition to include an employee's private
residence if they perform work from there and no
