Employers and employees are often enticed into entering into
what are commonly known as "under the table" payment
schemes. The reasons for this are fairly obvious. Employees are
often enticed into these schemes by getting paid for work without
paying the corresponding taxes. For the employer, the enticing
benefits are often seen as avoiding the costs of complying with the
Employment Standards Act, 2000
("ESA"); Workplace Safety and Insurance Act
("WSIA"); and other relevant legislation.
However, the vast majority of these cases turn into textbook
examples of the old adage "short term gain for long term
pain" and this is equally true for both employers and
employees.
As most everyone knows, these arrangements are illegal. These
schemes are often entered into hastily without the participants
being aware of, or simply not thinking about, some of the
consequences.
