Government of Newfoundland and Labrador creates protected leave of absence amidst COVID-19
On March 26, 2020, the Newfoundland House of Assembly met with a minimum quorum of members to table and pass Bill 33 – COVID-19 Pandemic Response Act (“Act”).
This omnibus bill amended a number of pieces of legislation, including the Labour Standards Act. The amendments added Part VII.8 – Communicable Disease Emergency Leave (“Part”) to the Act, and set a retroactive commencement date for the amendments to the Act as March 14, 2020.
With respect to designated communicable diseases, of which COVID-19 is expected to be one, this Part creates an entitlement, upon presentation of reasonable evidence, to an unpaid leave of absence where employees are unable to perform their duties in situations where an employee is:
- under medical investigation, supervision, or treatment;
- acting in accordance with an order under the Public Health Protection and Promotion Act;
- in isolation, quarantine, or under any control measure issued by the Chief Medical Officer of Health;
- under an employer’s direction in response to a concern that the employee may expose others in the workplace;
- providing care or support to family, including such situations as school or child care service closure; or
- affected by travel restrictions and, under the circumstances, cannot reasonably be expected to travel back to the province.
However, the amendment provides for classes of employees to be exempted by regulation.
The amendments protect employees who take, apply for, or intend to take this leave of absence, but the period of absence will not count towards the application of rights, benefits, and privileges addressed in the Act, unless explicitly agreed upon by the employer and the employee. However, upon the conclusion of the leave of absence, all rights, benefits, and privileges addressed in the Act will resume and will be deemed to be continuous with the period of work before the leave taken.
These amendments suggest an intention to create protections for employees who have to take leave as a result of COVID-19, including those who contract the virus as well as those who have to care for family due to the resulting circumstances. However, employers and employees alike anxiously await regulations which are expected to determine that COVID-19 is a designated communicable disease under the Act, and provide any employee classes who are to be exempted from this leave.
This article is provided for general information only.
Click here to subscribe to Stewart McKelvey Thought Leadership.
Archive
Mark Tector and Annie Gray This morning, May 30, 2017, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne announced her government’s intention to introduce sweeping legislative reform of labour and employment laws. If passed, the proposed Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017 would…
Read MoreCanada’s Anti-Spam Law (“CASL”) is a federal law in force since July 1, 2014, aimed at eliminating unsolicited and malicious electronic communications and requires organizations to comply with specific consent, disclosure and unsubscribe requirements when…
Read MoreJennifer Taylor Introduction Kirby Elson had been fishing in Newfoundland and Labrador for about 50 years when the policy on Preserving the Independence of the Inshore Fleet in Canada’s Atlantic Fisheries (“PIIFCAF”) was introduced in…
Read MoreRick Dunlop, David Randell, Christine Pound, Sadira Jan and Kevin Landry The federal government’s introduction of the Cannabis Act, the first step in the legalization of marijuana (or cannabis), has understandably triggered a wide range of reactions in the Canadian business…
Read MoreMark Tector and Annie Gray On April 26, 2017, the Government of Nova Scotia announced that amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which were passed in May of 2016, will officially come into force as of June…
Read MoreOn May 2, 2017, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal issued a significant decision in Tibbetts v. Murphy, 2017 NSCA 35, on the proper interpretation of s. 113A of the Insurance Act. Specifically the issue was whether…
Read MoreJoe Thorne and Amanda Whitehead A fundamental principle of our legal system is that all parties to a dispute should be given the opportunity to be heard. However, the law recognizes that some circumstances warrant speedy judicial…
Read MoreDamages for pain and suffering are capped for Nova Scotians who are injured in motor vehicle accidents if their injuries are considered “minor.” The cap was amended for accidents occurring on or after April 28,…
Read MoreGrant Machum & Sean Kelly A recent decision from the Supreme Court of British Columbia, Ly v. British Columbia (Interior Health Authority) 2017 BCSC 42, provides helpful clarification of the law on termination of probationary employees on the basis…
Read MorePerlene Morrison and Hilary Newman The Supreme Court of Canada recently declined to hear an appeal from the Ontario Court of Appeal decision in Campbell v Bruce (County), 2016 ONCA 371. The Court of Appeal confirmed the lower court finding…
Read More