Labour law hearings come to region

MPPs hear from both sides as province mulls raising minimum wage

KITCHENER — Some people believe the proposed changes to Ontario’s labour laws, aimed at protecting vulnerable workers and lifting lowincome earners out of poverty, can’t come soon enough.

Others fear the measures — including a 32 per cent increase to the minimum wage by 2019 — are simply too much, too soon, for many businesses to bear.

A multi-party panel of MPPs, including Kitchener Centre Liberal Daiene Vernile and Kitchener-Conestoga Progressive Conservative Michael Harris, heard passionate arguments from all sides Tuesday as travelling consultations on the proposed changes made a stop in Waterloo Region. The 10-community tour wraps up on Friday.

Graham Oliver, who owns nine Tim Hortons restaurants in Kitchener and Waterloo, said he’s the first to value the people behind his counters as much as those walking in the door.

“We’re an entry-level employer, but in the same breath, we want to provide opportunities,” he told those gathered in a ballroom at a Kitchener hotel.

His 347 employees — many of whom already make more than the current $11.40 hourly minimum

wage, he noted — are also eligible for such things as incentive and RRSP programs, a scholarship program and a bereavement policy.

But the “unprecedented pace” of hiking the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2019 is clearly challenging, he said. “It’s going to be much more expensive to do business … There’s going to be some fundamental changes.”

Oliver was among other speakers in urging the government to undertake an economic impact study first.

Darren Drouillard of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce was blunt in his assessment of the proposed Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs legislation, calling it “unreasonable, unmanageable and unfair.”

He said the minimum wage issue — which has been getting the most attention — “is only the tip of the iceberg that will cause irreversible damage to Ontario’s economy.”

Changes to scheduling provisions, for example, that would require employers to pay for three hours of work if an employee’s shift is cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice, would have a tremendous impact on weather-dependent industries like construction, Drouillard said. He suggested these types of employers should be exempt from such a provision.

“Let’s ensure that ‘fair workplaces’ considers employers as well.”

The proposed changes would also boost vacation entitlement, provide 10 personal emergency or sick days a year — two of them paid — and ensure part-time workers get equal pay for equal work performed by full-timers.

The bill comes on the heels of a review of precarious employment that found that about one-third of Ontario’s 6.6 million workers are vulnerable, with 30 per cent making less than $15 an hour.

“It’s about building a business model that’s built on decency and fairness,” said Mary Gellatly of Toronto’s Parkdale Community Legal Services.

While Gellatly said the proposed legislation makes a number of important strides, she urged politicians to strengthen certain areas, such as the language around equal pay. “Amendments are essential to make equal pay a reality for those in precarious work,” she said.

And Deena Ladd of the Toronto-based Workers’ Action Centre called on the government to implement tighter restrictions on the use of temporary workers.

“We need to ensure that workers are not being used as perma-temps,” she said, adding that temporary workers should be hired on by companies after three months. “We’re not talking about widgets, we’re talking about human lives here.”

While he praised the government for its efforts, CUPE Ontario president Fred Hahn said additional amendments are needed.

Two paid sick days a year simply are not enough, he said, in suggesting that workers should be able to bank sick days and have access to seven paid days a year. “Working sick isn’t good for those workers, but it’s certainly not good for the rest of us.”

Victims of sexual or domestic violence should have access to separate paid leave, Hahn added.

These consultations are occurring early on in the legislative process, Vernile noted. “The legislation is not written in stone at this point,” she said.

The goal, Liberal MPP Mike Colle said, is to address the “tsunami of change” that has taken place in Ontario workplaces.

“It’s about the fact that all these workers deserve the same protection that unionized workers get and full-time workers get,” he said.

“We have too many people who have basically fallen through the cracks.”