Province extends temporary layoff provision

The province has extended the temporary layoff provision to a maximum of 24 weeks ending on Aug. 30, B.C. Labour Minister Harry Bains announced Thursday.

The move comes after a meeting between Bains and B.C. business associations who are worried that an end to the temporary layoff period would make COVID-19related temporary layoffs permanent — thus forcing companies to pay severance and take another major financial hit.

“We heard loud and clear from employers that they need this extension,” Bains said in a statement, but added Thursday’s extension is meant to work in conjunction with Section 72 of the B.C. Employment Standards Act — which puts the onus on business owners to work with employees to extend temporary layoffs in a joint application.

“We also know it is important to ensure that workers know that they have to be involved in the agreement with the employer to extend the temporary layoff,” Bains said, adding that workers also have the right to “decline the layoff and accept the compensation for length of service which they are entitled to.”

The government said officials will do everything in their power to make sure applications for temporary layoff extensions to be processed in a timely manner.

Earlier in the week, Bains came under heavy fire from Liberal

MLAs for not extending the temporary layoff period to Aug. 31. The original period was to end in July after a duration of 16 weeks — after having been extended once already from 13 weeks.

At the time, Bains said the province does not plan on extending the temporary layoff period until after speaking with business stakeholders on Thursday.

Bains mentioned the availability of Section 72 applications in B.C. — something that is unique among Canadian jurisdictions.