Client Update: Time Off To Vote
OCTOBER 19, 2015 – FEDERAL ELECTION
A Federal election has been called for Monday, October 19, 2015. Polls are open in Atlantic Canada from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Advance polls are open from noon to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, October 9, Saturday, October 10, Sunday, October 11, and Monday, October 12. Individuals may also register to vote by special mail-in ballot at www.elections.ca.
Qualified Elector
Every Canadian citizen, 18 years or older on polling day is entitled to vote.
Three Consecutive Hours
Qualified electors are entitled to three consecutive hours on voting day to cast their ballots during polling hours (i.e., 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.). If the employee’s work schedule prevents having three consecutive hours off to vote, the employer must provide the time off to meet the three consecutive hours rule. The following are examples of what time off to vote looks like when voting hours are 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m:
-
- The employee works from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. – no time off required because the employee has 4.5 consecutive hours off of work to the time polls close at 8:30 p.m.
- The employee works from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. – no time off required because the employee has three consecutive hours off of work to the time polls close at 8:30 p.m.
- The employee works from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. – the employee may be permitted to arrive late or leave early to provide three consecutive hours off of work.
The employer has the right to decide what time off to provide to an employee in order to meet the required three consecutive hours and is under no obligation to make allowance for “travel time” to vote for the employee. The Canada Elections Act prohibits any deduction or reduced pay or imposing any penalty for time off to vote as required by the Act.
Employees of a transportation company (i.e., transporting goods or passengers by land, air or water) who are employed outside their polling division in the operation of transportation are not entitled to time off if it cannot be provided without interfering with the transportation service.
What’s the Penalty?
An employer who is convicted of a violation under the Canada Elections Act (e.g., failing to provide time off or reducing an employee’s pay) may be liable for up to a $2000 fine and/or three months imprisonment, or both.
Archive
Rick Dunlop and Will Wojcik Nova Scotia’s COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Program (“Program”) is now open for applications. Employers can now be reimbursed for employees’ time off work to comply with public health requirements, including…
Read MoreSean Kelly and Will Wojcik A recent decision of the Human Rights Tribunal of Alberta (“Tribunal”) dismissing a customer’s allegations of discrimination based on physical disability and religious belief against a Natural Food Store’s mandatory mask…
Read MoreClarence Bennett and Lara Greenough In ExxonMobil Business Support Centre Canada ULC v Birmingham, the New Brunswick Court of Appeal considered the equitable remedy of unjust enrichment in the context of an ordinary wrongful dismissal…
Read MoreBrian Johnston, QC and Katharine Mack COVID-19 vaccination policies have become more prevalent. Public sector employees have been mandated to get vaccinated in a number of jurisdictions, the federal government has mandated vaccinations in the…
Read More*Last updated: December 17, 2021 (originally published December 1, 2021) Mark Tector and Will Wojcik Bill 27, Working for Workers Act (“Act”), 2021, received Royal Assent on December 2, 2021, and is now in force in Ontario.…
Read MoreIncluded in Discovery: Atlantic Education & the Law – Issue 09 (also available in French, here) Tessa Belliveau In its recent and interesting decision regarding Zaki v. University of Manitoba, 2021 MBQB 178 (CanLII), the…
Read MoreIncluded in Discovery: Atlantic Education & the Law – Issue 09 Conor O’Neil and Sarah-Jane Lewis Construction lien legislation exists in every province and territory in Canada. Liens are a creature of statute introduced, at…
Read MoreChristopher Marr, TEP and Michael Forestell As detailed in our previous update , in March 2020 New Brunswick implemented the Unclaimed Property Act (“Act”), with the intention that the New Brunswick Financial and Consumer Services…
Read MoreMargaret Anne Walsh and Graeme Stetson Beneficial Ownership and Corporate Transparency On September 1, 2020, the Government of Prince Edward Island proclaimed into force Bill no. 34 which amends the Business Corporations Act (“BCA”). The…
Read MoreIncluded in Discovery: Atlantic Education & the Law – Issue 09 Brendan Sheridan With the 2021 fall school semester under way, it has been a year and a half since the COVID-19 pandemic first resulted…
Read More