What is this engagement about?

The Employment Standards Act is important legislation that sets minimum standards for workplaces in B.C. However, it has been 15 years since any major changes were made to the Act and 25 years since government’s last comprehensive review.
 
Workplaces have changed significantly in the last quarter-century. The introduction of new technology and mobile workplaces have changed how work gets done. The structure of work has changed, for example, with more part-time employment. The place of work has changed, with more people working remotely, from home or in virtual teams.
 
To reflect modern workplaces and to ensure that employment standards are evenly applied and enforced, the Ministry of Labour is making changes to the Act. In anticipation of these changes, the BC Law Institute carried out the Employment Standards Reform Project, which included a public consultation process and produced a Final Report which outlines a set of recommendations.
 
Along with this report, the Ministry of Labour has heard from workers, employers and groups such as the BC Employment Standards Coalition and BC Federation of Labour. Through this feedback, as well as a review of what’s in place in other jurisdictions, there are several areas where improvements to the Act are under consideration.
 
Now, the Ministry of Labour wishes to hear from the public on the first areas of focus for future changes to the Act. Please read this proposal paper that outlines six themes for potentially modernizing the Act as early as this spring:
 
Theme 1 – Increasing protection of child workers
Theme 2 – Transforming the Employment Standards Branch
Theme 3 – Supporting families through difficult times with job-protected leaves of absence
Theme 4 – Strengthening workers’ ability to recover wages/monies owed
Theme 5 – Clarifying hours of work and overtime standards
Theme 6 – Improving fairness for terminated workers

 
Please email your feedback on the report to ESAReview@gov.bc.ca by March 31, 2019.
 

How can my contribution make a difference?

Your feedback will directly inform changes made to the Employment Standards Act, both this year and for future amendments, reflecting the priorities of workers and employers in today’s workplaces.
 

Details of the Consultation:

Date: February 28 to March 31, 2019

Status: Open

Location: Province-wide

Category: Government

Type: Email