PUBLIC SERVICE ALLIANCE OF CANADA- PSAC

Union Dues and the Rand Formula

What is the Rand Formula?

The Rand Formula is named after a decision handed down on January 29, 1946, by Mr. Justice Ivan Rand of the Supreme Court of Canada while he was arbitrating the Windsor Strike (September 12 to December 20, 1945). It provides a form of union security whereby an employer deducts a portion of the salaries of all employees within a bargaining unit, union members or not, to go to the union as union dues ("checkoff"). (All workers in a given workplace were required to pay dues on the basis that all workers benefit from the working conditions negotiated by the union for that workplace.) The original formula was based on the assumption that the union is essential for all workers and must be responsible for them. Two interrelated provisions following from this assumption guaranteed the union the financial means to carry out its programs, and established the financial penalties for employees and unions engaging in work stoppages or illegal strikes.

Collective agreements have incorporated a modified Rand Formula throughout Canada, and some provinces have given it legal force.

What is the Windsor Strike, which gave rise to the Rand Formula?

The Windsor Strike took place at the Ford Motor Co. plant in Windsor, Ontario. The walkout of some 17,000 workers was the first and most significant of the many strikes occurring immediately after WWII as Canada's unions attempted to capitalize on their great wartime advances. Most companies were determined to limit organized labour's gains.

There was really only one strike issue at Ford: union recognition. The United Automobile Workers demanded it; the company refused to grant it. "Union shop and checkoff" had been the union's slogan for some time. Negotiations had lasted for almost 2 years, and the plant had been subject to many wildcat strikes during the war. The company, with the help of the provincial government, desperately strove to break the strike. Police attempts to break through the picket line were thwarted by strikers who blockaded all the streets in downtown Windsor, surrounding the plant with their carsparked, locked and abandoned.

On December 13, both parties agreed to binding arbitration under Mr. Justice Ivan Rand of the Supreme Court of Canada. In his arbitration award rendered January 29, 1946, he denied the UAW's demand for a union shop and condemned both the union and the company for their behaviour. Most importantly, he provided for a compulsory checkoff of union dues for all employees in the bargaining unit whether they were union members or not, as all workers benefit from working conditions negotiated by the union. Finally, he developed a system of financial penalties, to be drawn from union dues, which would be levied against the union in the event of a wildcat or illegal strike, based on the duration of the strike. This arbitration ruling, later known as the Rand Formula, is widely used in collective bargaining in Canada.

Topics:

· Union Dues

Our Organization:

· Shop Stewards

· Français

http://psac-ncr.com/union-dues-rand-formula

This is how we worked as federal, provincial, municipal employees in the 70s, 80s and 90s... with honour, and dignity and incredible work ethic - with the goal of making our Canadians who came 2 us for service the highlight and goal of our days.... we worked many hours overtime and never put in for pay, we bagged lunches and used our own vehicles way 2 often and never put in a claim... WTF???

when did this all go wrong.... with the union who hijacked us (and was a chief shop steward who NEVER lost a grivenance) and president - so have been there and bought the t-shirt...... MANDATORY UNION DUES GOING STRIGHT 2 THE NDP POCKETS MADE MANY GOV. EMPLOYEES SCREAM IN FRUSTRATION... one of our closest First Nations even took it 2 Supreme Court and wanted 2 give it 2 CHARITY -OVER NDP DUES .... but we lost... so did War Amps, IWK, Canada Red Cross, and others...

ANYWAY... this is how Canadian ground -community employees honoured and were loved by the people we served... each and every day. In Immigration our foreign students loved us... those visiting and immigrating trusted us ...and refugees honoured our respect of them.... and our cultural learning and hugs...so here go folks... CANADA STYLE... IMHO..

IN CLOSING- – what happened 2 integrity, hard work ethic, honesty integrity... all that Canada sheet we were raised on and raised our kids on cause our parents taught us community first??? the lower ranks honour the rules - and all political greedy parties abuse them -u all kinda suck imho - that's my story and i'm sticking 2 it.

FIRST THE FUTURE... AND HOPEFULLY GOOD STUFF 4 OUR CANADA..

21^st Century Job Quality: Achieving What Canadians Want

Contents

List of Figures ....................................................................................... ii

Foreword ............................................................................. v

Brief Overview ................................................................................ vi

Executive Summary ....................................................................... vii

Acknowledgements ............................................................................. xiii

Introduction ............................................................................................... 1

1. Why Job Quality Matters ................................................................. 3

Mining Canadian Job Quality Evidence ..................................................... 3

International Research on Job Quality .......................................................... 5

2. Job Quality Trendsin Canada .................................... 8

Labour Market Context .................................................................... 8

Precarious Work ............................................................................. 11

Hours and Schedules ................................................................................... 14

Earnings ...................................................................... 20

Benefits..................................................................................... 25

Union Membership ............................................................................... 32

Skill Use and Training ............................................................................ 33

Health and Safety ............................................................................... 38

Work-Life Balance .................................................................................. 40

Job Stress ................................................ 45

Job Satisfaction.............................................................. 51

Summary of Job Quality Trends .................................................................................. 53

3. How Workers Experience Job Quality.............................................. 54

What Workers Want .................................................................................................... 54

What Workers Experience ........................................................................................... 56

4. Understanding the Distribution of Job Quality ................................... 59

Job Quality “Classes” .................................................................................................. 59

Class 1: Total Rewards

................................................................................... 62

Class 2: Decide and Say

................................................................................. 62

Class 3: Relationships and Balance

............................................................... 63

Class 4: Economics and Support

.................................................................... 63

Class 5: Security

............................................................................................. 63

Class 6: Few Rewards

.................................................................................... 64

Implications ....................................................................................................... 64

5. A Model of Job Quality ................................................................................ 65

The Job Quality Nexus ................................................................................................. 66

The Job Quality Model ................................................................................................ 67

What the Model Reveals about Job Quality ................................................................ 68

Implications for Policy and Practice ............................................................................ 70

6. Job Quality and Work

force Renewa

l ......................................................... 72

Grounds for Employer Action ..................................................................................... 72

A National Job Quality Survey .................................................................................... 73

Setting Job Quality Standards ...................................................................................... 74

Appendix I. Rethinking Work

............................................................................. 77

Appendix II. Overview of Job Qualit

y Trends in Canada, 1990s - 2000s ........ 78

Appendix III. Statistical Analysis

(by Jay Cross, Ph.D.) .................................... 80

Latent Class Analysis .................................................................................... 80

Structural Equation Modeling ....................................................................... 81

References

.............................................................................................................. 85

Financial Support ................................................................................................... 91

List of Figures

Figure 1.

Job Quality Framework ....................................................................................... 4

Figure 2.

Employed Population by Age Group, Canada, 1996 and 2006 .......................... 9

Figure 3.

Median Retirement Age, Canada, 1976-2006 ..................................................... 9

Figure 4.

Unemployment Rate, Canada, 1976-2006 .......................................................... 10

Figure 5.

Temporary Employment Rate, Canada, 1996-2006 ........................................... 11

Figure 6.

Self-Employment Rate, Canada, 1976-2006 ...................................................... 12

Figure 7.

Part-Time Employment Rate, Canada, 1976-2006 ............................................. 12

Figure 8.

Involuntary Part-Time Employment Rate, Canada, 1997-2006 ......................... 13

Figure 9.

Average Job Tenure in Months, Canada, 1976-2006 ......................................... 13

Figure 10.

Average Weekly Hours, Canada, 1987-2006 ..................................................... 15

Figure 11.

Incidence of Long Work Weeks, Canada, 1987-2006 ........................................ 15

Figure 12.

Incidence of Paid and/or Unpaid Overtime by Industry, Canada, 2005 ............. 16

Figure 13.

Incidence of Unpaid Overtime by Industry, Canada, 2005 ................................ 17

Figure 14.

Work Schedules, Canada, 1999 and 2003 .......................................................... 18

Figure 15.

Employees Working at Home, Canada, 2003 ..................................................... 19

Figure 16.

Median Earnings (2005 constant dollars) of All Workers by Gender,

Canada, 1980-2005 ............................................................................................. 21

Figure 17.

Average Annual Earnings (2005 constant dollars) of Full-Time,

Full-Year Male and Female Workers, Canada, 1980-2005 ................................. 22

Figure 18.

Percentage of Workers Earning $60,000 and More Annually (2005 constant dollars) by Gender, Canada, 1980-2005 ..................................... 23

Figure 19.

Percentage of Workers Earning Less than $20,000 Annually

(2005 constant dollars) by Gender, Canada, 1980-2005 ..................................... 23

Figure 20.

Growth of Real Compensation per Employee in the Business Sector in

Selected OECD Nations, 1985-2002 .................................................................. 25

Figure 21.

Non-Wage Benefits, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ..................................................... 26

Figure 22.

Percentage of Workplaces Offering Health-Related Benefits by Industry,

Canada, 2003 ....................................................................................................... 27

Figure 23.

Proportion of Paid Workers Covered by a Registered Pension Plan (RPP),

Canada, 1974-2005 ............................................................................................. 28

Figure 24.

Proportion of Employees Receiving No Non-Wage Benefits by Gender and

Age Group, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ................................................................... 29

Figure 25.

Personal and Family Support Programs Available to Employees by Selected

Characteristics, Canada, 2003 ............................................................................. 30

Figure 26.

Employees’ Access to and Use of Personal and Family Support Programs by

Gender, Canada, 2003 ......................................................................................... 32

Figure 27.

Union Membership in Canada, 1971-2006 ......................................................... 33

Figure 28.

Post-Secondary Educational Attainment in the Labour Force, Canada, 1996-2006 ........................................................................................................... 34

Figure 29.

Incidence of Overqualification among Workers Holding University Degrees, Canada, 1993 and 2001 ....................................................................................... 35

Figure 30.

Formal Job-Related Training among Workers Aged 25-64, Canada,

1997 and 2002 ..................................................................................................... 36

Figure 31.

Proportion of Employees Receiving No Training by Gender and Age Group, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ....................................................................................... 36

Figure 32.

Percentage of Employees Receiving Job-Related Training by Industry,

Canada, 2003 ....................................................................................................... 37

Figure 33.

Absenteeism Rates for Full-Time Employees by Gender, Canada, 1997 to 2006 .. 38

Figure 34.

Time-Loss Work Injuries, Canada, 1982-2005 ................................................... 39

Figure 35.

Workplace Fatalities, Canada, 1993-2005 .......................................................... 40

Figure 36.

Dissatisfaction with Work-Life Balance among Full-Time, Full-Year Workers

by Selected Demographic Characteristics, Canada, 1990-2001 ......................... 41

Figure 37.

Dissatisfaction with Work-Life Balance among Full-Time, Full-Year Workers by Industry, Canada, 2001 .................................................................................. 42

Figure 38.

Recent Changes in Work-Life Balance by Selected Worker Characteristics,

Canada, 2004 ....................................................................................................... 43

Figure 39.

Recent Changes in Work-Life Balance by Selected Work Environment

Characteristics, Canada, 2004 ............................................................................. 44

Figure 40.

Percentage of Workers Who Consider Themselves to be Workaholics, Canada,

1992, 1998 and 2005 ........................................................................................... 46

Figure 41.

Self-Perceived Work Stress, Canada, 2001, 2003 and 2005 ............................... 47

Figure 42. Self-Perceived Work Stress by Industry, Canada, 2003 ..................................... 48

Figure 43.

Job Strain by Gender, Employed Population Aged 18 to 75, Canada, 1994/5 and 2002 .............................................................................................................. 49

Figure 44.

Incidence of High Job Strain by Selected Demographic and Employment

Characteristics, Employed Population Aged 18 to 75, Canada, 2002 ................ 50

Figure 45.

Job Satisfaction by Gender, Canada, 1999 and 2003 .......................................... 51

Figure 46.

Job Satisfaction by Age Group, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ................................... 52

Figure 47.

Pay Satisfaction by Gender, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ......................................... 52

Figure 48.

Pay Satisfaction by Age Group, Canada, 1999 and 2003 ................................... 53

Figure 49.

Very Important Job Characteristics, Full-Time Job Permanent Employees, Canada, 2004 ....................................................................................................... 55

Figure 50.

Very Important Job Characteristics by Age Group and Gender, Canada, 2004 ... 56

Figure 51

. Assessment of Current Job Characteristics by Age Group and Gender,

Canada, 2004 ....................................................................................................... 57

Figure 52

. Expectations Gaps between Importance Workers Place on Job Characteristics and Current Job Conditions, Canada, 2004 ........................................................ 58

Figure 53

. Job Quality “Classes,” Canadian Employees, 2004 ............................................ 60

Figure 54.

Latent Class Analysis Results ..................................................................... 61

Figure 55

. Probability of Very Positive Assessments of Job Quality by Latent Class ........ 61

Figure 56.

Model Showing the Impact of Job and Work Environment Characteristics on Satisfaction and Performance ............................................................................. 69

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Canadian please...

ARCHIVED - Service Standards: a Guide to the Initiative

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PART 1 -- INTRODUCTION

The challenge of the '90s: improving services while reducing costs

Canadians often feel that they are not getting value for their hard-earned tax dollars. Departments face the dual challenges of improving services to Canadians while dealing with continued resource restraint and reductions. Managing these challenges is likely to be a preoccupation of Public Service employees for some time. How can we provide improved services at lower cost?

The service standard initiative is aimed at improving the quality of service delivery by making Canadians more aware of the wide array of government services and their associated costs and by improving the client orientation of Public Service employees.

The 1994 Budget announced a number of initiatives for improving service to Canadians while addressing Canada's fiscal reality, including a pledge for more open and responsive government. The Budget stated that

...the government will establish and publish by 1995 standards of services for each government department....The government will issue by the summer of 1994 a declaration of quality service delivery standards to Canadians that all departments and public servants will be expected to honour.

A lot of experience in Canada and abroad suggests that services can be improved and delivered at reduced cost by

refocusing services on clients;
finding out what clients consider to be critical aspects of government services and service delivery;
giving managers the flexibility needed to respond to client needs;
developing proper incentives to promote innovation; and
monitoring and analyzing performance against realistic goals and standards.

Service standards provide a practical way for you to manage performance in an era of fiscal restraint and to help shape the expectations Canadians have about government services.

A public commitment to service standards was first stated in the Public Service 2000 White Paper of 1991, which called on deputies to establish service standards. The commitment was repeated in the 1992 Budget.
Canada is not unique within the international community in encouraging a client-oriented outlook among its public employees. The United Kingdom, under Prime Minister John Major, adopted the concept of The Citizen's Charter in 1991. This movement is now quite advanced. The second Citizen's Charter annual report (March 1994) identified some 38 published charters, covering the complete spectrum of national services. Since 1992, the Prime Minister has awarded 129 Charter Marks to organizations demonstrating exceptional service.
In September 1993, based on recommendations in the National Performance Review, U.S. President Bill Clinton signed an executive order requiring all agencies to develop and publish customer service standards. In September 1994, the President released Putting Customers First: Standards for Serving the American People, a progress report that describes the work done since the executive order was signed, how public services have changed and what is planned for the next year.
France has issued a Charte des services publics outlining the basic principles to which the government adheres when providing services to its citizens: transparency and responsibility, simplicity and accessibility, participation and adaptability, trust and reliability. In addition, many countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have service standard initiatives underway. The OECD itself sponsored a major conference in November 1994 on service standards and related service quality initiatives. Creating a client- or customer-focused Public Service is a key element of public-sector reform in most countries. Increasingly, this task includes visibly communicating service standards to the users of public services.

What are service standards?

Service standards -- a shortened form of the phrase "standards of service" -- are more than service delivery targets such as waiting times and hours of operation. Canadians are entitled to know what they should expect from the government, how services will be delivered and what they cost, and what clients can do when services they receive are not acceptable.
Service standards include five essential elements:
1. descriptions of the service you intend to provide and, where applicable, the benefits clients are entitled to receive;
2. service pledges or principles describing the quality of service delivery clients should expect to receive, focusing on such elements as openness, fairness, courtesy, professionalism, choice of official language where applicable, etc.;
3. specific delivery targets for key aspects of service, such as timeliness, access and accuracy;
4. the costs of delivering the service; and
5. complaint and redress mechanisms that clients can use when they feel standards have not been met.
While each of these elements can exist on its own, it is expected that, in most cases, service standards will eventually cover all elements. However, in a limited number of instances, every element may not be relevant to the situation. In enforcement areas, for example, it may not be very useful to inform the citizen of the cost of his or her arrest!
In many instances, clients for services have responsibilities as well as entitlements. In order to receive the quality of service delivery described in service standards, they frequently must provide required information accurately, present themselves on time, be able to explain their situation, etc. You can write service standards to reflect client responsibilities.

Principles in developing service standards

Federal government service standards should be

meaningful to individuals. Service standards should be responsive. In other words, they should be meaningful to the individuals using the service, relate to aspects of the service clients find important and expressed in terms to which clients can relate. Typically, standards should cover elements of service that are visible and measurable;

based on consultation. You should develop service standards in consultation with your clients;

attainable and challenging. Service standards should be realistic, based on analysis, consistent with program objectives and achievable, while at the same time they should provide a challenge to service deliverers;

affordable. Service standards should include user charges, if applicable, and should be attainable within available resources;

owned by managers and employees. Service standards should be an essential management tool in service delivery. You are responsible for setting and using service standards to continually improve the cost effectiveness of service delivery;

published. You should publish service standards and make them known to clients;

used to measure performance. You should monitor performance achievements against the standards, as well as client satisfaction with the service provided, and give clients that information. The performance measures you use should be comparable over time, across regions or with like services; and

reviewed and updated. You should review service standards regularly and adjust them to reflect new circumstances.

These principles are intended to provide useful guidance in the development of service standards in departments and agencies.
This guide is organized in five parts. Part 2 discusses a series of steps that you can follow to develop service standards. Part 3 examines each of the five components of service standards in greater detail, providing guidance and examples as appropriate. Part 4 discusses managing your organization based on service standards and service quality. Concluding remarks are presented in Part 5. The document also contains a series of annexes, referenced as appropriate throughout the text.

PART 2 -- DEVELOPING SERVICE STANDARDS: STEPS TO CONSIDER

This section outlines key steps to consider when establishing service standards. The development of service standards should be integrated with any other program or service delivery renewal initiatives that you are undertaking.
The process of establishing service standards is evolutionary. It is part of a continuous improvement strategy. You should regularly review and revise standards as your service becomes more efficient and as delivery methods change.

1. Know your business

Knowing your business entails

identifying your clients;

identifying your services;

identifying your partners;

knowing what is being done now; and

knowing what is affordable.

a. Identify your clients
Who are the clients for government services? All those who have dealings with the government. There may be several different clients for each service, each of whom has different perspectives and expectations. Public management is the art of balancing these differing expectations.

Clients are individuals, groups and businesses who deal with government.
At least three types of clients can be identified -- the direct client, who receives the output of the service; the general public, which receives a collective benefit from government services; and the taxpayer, who pays for most government services. The following diagram illustrates these different perspectives. You must consider them all when delivering services.
Clearly, in many cases, the expectations of the direct and indirect clients of services differ and sometimes conflict. Decisions concerning levels of service must take into account the public policy objectives of the program as well as the needs and expectations of direct clients. For example, consumers and taxpayers expect safe, reasonably priced food in the stores. They are not particularly interested in the inspection process itself, other than that inspections be done well and cheaply (so as not to affect food prices). They care about the result: safe food. The food producers, on the other hand, do care about the inspection process and want inspections to be done fairly, quickly, efficiently and at the least cost to them. They also want to know to whom they can complain if the service they receive -- that is, the inspection -- is unacceptable. They want service standards. The food inspection process must meet the public policy objective of safe food while, at the same time, providing a quality service to food processors.
Similarly, citizens want to get new passports quickly. The public policy objective, however, is to ensure that passports are issued only to eligible people at the lowest possible cost. In seeking to provide a quality passport service to Canadians, service standards must also respect the public policy objective.

b. Identify your services

A service is provided every time a client deals with government
Canadians deal with the federal government in a wide variety of ways. They may receive a social benefit cheque, ask for information and advice, or be required to comply with certain laws and regulations. In all these cases, there is a transaction or interaction between the government and the citizen (or business). In all these interactions, the government, using this broad definition, is providing a service. Annex A discusses the types of services provided by the federal government in more detail.
This broad perspective on what constitutes government services is the one adopted by the PS2000 Task Force on Service to the Public and is quite consistent with the latest thinking about public management practices. Appreciating the extent of government services is part of the cultural change required to develop a client-centered Public Service.
In addition to conventional services, where the direct client receives a benefit, the government also provides services when it regulates and when it purchases goods and services. In regulation, while it is the public that ultimately benefits, the interaction with the regulated person or organization should still meet a service standard. For example, taxpayers deal with the government through Revenue Canada. They have the right to expect that their dealings with Revenue Canada will meet a certain quality standard. They expect, for example, to be treated with courtesy and respect; to be served in the official language of their choice where applicable; to be dealt with openly and honestly; to be made aware of their rights; to have good information available on how to comply with the law; and to be dealt with efficiently and promptly. Revenue Canada has responded to these expectations through the service commitments contained in the department's Declaration of Taxpayer Rights, and service standards have been or are being developed for all the department's services.
The key to identifying your services is to identify the various interactions or dealings you have with the public (Canadian residents, businesses, organizations and others having contacts with the government). The list of these interactions is the list of services you provide. It shows you where you should develop service standards.
The focus so far in this guide has been on interactions outside the government with third parties. However, all government departments provide services to their own staff and management, and many provide services to other government departments. These internal services, while not the primary focus of the service standard initiative, can also benefit from the development of service standards. Most departments have quality management initiatives that typically entail some form of service standard development or enhancement. Public Service employees will find it more difficult to provide quality service to external clients if the internal services they receive do not also meet a standard.

c. Identify your partners

Increasingly, federal services are being delivered in partnership with other federal departments, other levels of government and the private sector. These types of arrangements have two primary objectives: to increase the efficiency of service delivery and to provide more rationalized service delivery from the point of view of the client. Thus, knowing your partners in service delivery includes knowing what other related services are being delivered to your clients, so that you can seek out rationalization and efficiencies.
Where joint delivery exists or is under consideration, you will want to arrive at mutually agreed service standards that can serve as performance contracts with other delivery organizations.

d. Know what is being done now
As well as developing service standards to meet fiscal realities and clients' expectations, you must assess these standards in light of your current ability to meet them and your past performance. To determine your current level of service delivery, you will need an appropriate performance measurement and monitoring system. Monitoring performance, which includes assessing client satisfaction, is essential if you want to establish and work to service standards.
Suggestions for monitoring service delivery can be found in Line Managers and Assessing Service to the Public, published by the Office of the Comptroller General in 1991.
Many organizations are rethinking the way they do business. Re-engineering your services can often produce significant resource savings and result in improved services for your clients. In such cases, service standards should not simply mirror current performance but should be sufficiently challenging to encourage the achievement of the benefits of re-engineering. Consulting with staff and clients to establish service standards is a useful step in the re-engineering process, because these people often have valuable suggestions for improving service.

e. Know what is affordable
Before consulting with your clients to find out what aspects of service delivery are most important to them, what needs to be improved and what is working well, it is useful to know both the costs of existing service levels and the major cost drivers. This knowledge will enable you to provide a reasoned response in client consultations on possible changes to service delivery.
In addition, you must plan service delivery in light of current and future budgets. Service standards may have to be adjusted to meet future budget levels. Understanding current costs and the potential for re-engineering will help you to know what is affordable.
Costing of service delivery is usually not a simple task. Section 4 of Part 3 discusses costing in further detail.

2. Consult with clients and staff

a. Consult with clients to find out what is important, how satisfied they are with current service delivery, what's working well and what needs to be fixed
By consulting with Canadians about the services they receive, making them aware of the costs of delivering services and inviting them to select from different delivery approaches, you will find it easier to match your clients' expectations with what your organization can afford. Clients should be partners in the delivery of services. In his 1993 John Manion lecture, Marcel Massé said:

...the consumers of government services will have to act less as recipients and more as partners. They will have to be partners in the substantial decision-making about the kind and quality of services being offered. They will have to be partners in devising the necessary changes in delivery mechanisms, and they will have to be partners in the graduation process from a number of government services.

Canadians are both the clients for government services and the source of funds, through taxes and user fees, for the services. All government programs and services have, as a part of their raison d'être, a public policy objective. Thus, all citizens relate to government services as direct clients, as indirect clients or beneficiaries, and as taxpayers. Government services represent a partnership between the government, the citizen as client and the citizen as taxpayer.
Consultation with clients is important for two reasons. If you form your own ideas of what clients want, you run the risk of being out of touch with what your clients actually consider to be the most important aspects of service delivery. As well, client satisfaction depends not only on the quality of the service, but on clients' initial expectations. You need to know these expectations so you can try to change unrealistic ones -- a tough challenge in situations where clients don't pay for the service directly. In addition, such consultations will indicate where you can improve service to provide the greatest pay-off in terms of increased client satisfaction.
You can assess client satisfaction and expectations by providing suggestion boxes, monitoring the volume and nature of complaints, and conducting surveys, focus groups, client panels and site visits, among other methods.
Your Guide to Measuring Client Satisfaction, intended for line managers, was developed by the Office of the Comptroller General in 1992 to help departments design a client satisfaction monitoring strategy.

b. Consult with your front-line staff to find out how they think service can be improved within existing resource levels
Front-line staff are directly linked to program clients through the program delivery process and can often generate innovative ideas for improving service at no extra cost. Through open and honest consultations, such suggestions can be aired and examined. In addition, to gain their commitment to any new processes and new service standards, it is essential to involve front-line staff in their development. Front-line staff see their job as providing quality service to their clients. Service standards must enable them to do so.

3. Set client-sensitive service standards

Research has shown that clients regard the following factors as critical to good service:

responsiveness;

competence;

easy access;

courtesy;

good communication;

credibility;

reliability and accuracy;

security;

appearance of staff; and

attractive physical facilities.

Keep these characteristics in mind when you develop service standards. In addition, you should consider feedback from staff and clients, and your staff's capabilities.
Service delivery targets (dealing with responsiveness, reliability, accuracy, etc.) and complaint mechanisms should be openly displayed or available to clients. Some organizations may undertake pilot projects to get a better idea of how their standards work in practice. Others may implement standards, monitor them and then adjust them as necessary. Service standards are meant to be monitored, changed and improved over time. They are not cast in concrete once they are set.
Service standards may not be uniform everywhere for a given service. Regional, local or case-by-case decisions on level of service (e.g., based on cost-benefit analysis) may be preferable to across-the-board national standards in certain cases where local circumstances vary.
More information on developing each of the five elements of service standards (description, pledge, delivery targets, costs and complaint mechanisms) is provided in Part 3.

4. Empower and train service providers

a. Train staff in techniques and skills for improving quality and client service
Program clients will not notice an improvement in service delivery unless front-line staff are appropriately trained in techniques for dealing with clients. According to many surveys, government clients perceive that the provision of good service is not important to Public Service employees. While many Public Service employees have extensive experience in dealing with clients, the Canadian Centre for Management Development and many departments also offer service training.

b. Empower the emplyees who serve clients
Front-line staff should have the authority and accountability to make the decisions that matter to clients. They should be properly trained and equipped to make those decisions, and should have access to the tools they need to deliver quality service. Staff cannot be responsive to clients if they are overly restricted by rules and regulations, if the information they need to deliver good service is not readily available, or if they are not encouraged to be innovative and to take measured risks.

5. Communicate service standards and report to clients on performance

Service standards are intended to let your clients know what to expect when they deal with you. They can help to moderate clients' unrealistic expectations for service. Reporting to your clients on your performance against standards is critical if you are to make service standards credible. However, you can only do so if service standards are readily available to your clients either before or when the interaction takes place, and if they are clear and easy to understand. The following principles will help you decide the best way to publicize your standards and report your performance against those standards.

a. Make communication clear and effective

To be effective, communication must capture the audience's attention and be easy to understand. Use "plain language." See, for example, Multiculturalism and Citizenship Canada's publication Plain Language Clear and Simple (Supply and Services, Ottawa, 1991). Write your standards using words and language that are familiar to your clients. Pilot test them to determine how well clients understand and receive them.

b. Build upon current communication methods
Look at the way you are communicating with your clients now and use those methods to start communicating your service standards and performance against them. If you are already letting your clients know about the types of services you offer, you can add value to that information by also communicating your standards for those services. Building on existing methods also reduces the costs of a service standards communication strategy.
Identify all current communication methods you use. These may include posters, pamphlets, brochures, newspapers, association circulars, videos, audio tapes, telephones, meetings, letters, mail outs, press releases, ministerial speeches, internal newsletters, training sessions, orientation packages, e-mail, bulletin boards and suggestion boxes.
Then determine if any of these are cost-effective ways to communicate your standards and your performance against standards. Always look for innovative and cost-effective ways to communicate with your clients, taking into account their characteristics and needs.

c. Determine how you are going to communicate the various elements of service standards to your clients
Service standards have five elements. Different communication methods may be appropriate for different elements of the service standards. For example, you may use a pamphlet to describe the services available and a poster to publicize delivery targets and complaint mechanisms. Remember, however, that your clients must have ready access to all the elements and that you have to report on your performance against the standards.

d. Make service delivery targets and complaint mechanisms clearly visible
Linking service descriptions with the other aspects of service standards is sensible. However, make sure that your clients can focus on the standards, such as delivery times and complaint mechanisms. Avoid distracting your clients with long descriptions of the services themselves.

e. Prepare a long-term communication strategy
Communication about service standards and performance against those standards is a long-term process. You may decide, for example, to announce standards through a news release or in one of your minister's speeches. However, you must make information on your standards and performance readily available to your clients on an ongoing basis.
The communication strategy should include a long-term action plan for keeping clients informed. You might use formal publications, such as the Citizen's Charter in Great Britain, to communicate service standards. Alternatively, you might make service standards and your performance against them part of regular communication with clients. Departments may use different means at varying times to communicate different elements of service standards.

6. Manage to service standards and for service quality

If you are actively involved in quality management and using service standards to manage your organization, , you will be

measuring your performance against your standards;

striving for continuous improvement; and

developing a quality service improvement plan.

Further details on managing to service standards, including a set of TBS expectations for managers, is included in Part 4.

Implementing Service Standards

Service standards should be implemented in a deliberate, planned manner, building on experience. Initial standards for major services should be published as soon as possible and then improved on over time.
Establishing service standards and making them integral to management will take time. You need to develop a careful, well-thought-out strategy that recognizes

the different types of services and clients you have;

your knowledge of your current delivery performance and your ability to monitor performance against standards; and

the visibility of the services you provide to Canadians.

However, rather than wait until complete and "perfect" standards are developed, you should develop standards progressively. Publish standards in service areas most visible to Canadians first. Initial standards may be incomplete or embryonic in some aspects. As you gain experience, you can improve these standards and extend the range of services they cover.
Several of the elements of service standards are straightforward. Service descriptions generally already exist in some form. Service pledges can draw on the Declaration of Quality Service. Complaint and redress mechanisms exist for many services, particularly in the regulatory area. In other areas, it may be necessary to revisit existing complaint systems from the client's perspective and make them more visible to clients. In some cases, simple complaint procedures can be established. In all instances, you should have a coherent and consistent strategy for dealing with complaints from clients.
In most cases, difficulties in establishing standards arise in the areas of delivery targets and complete costing information. Where service delivery targets have been or can be developed, they should be part of the initial service standard publication. In instances where departmental information systems may not be capable of providing the required information and more time and experience is needed, you can use qualitative delivery targets as part of the service pledge. ("We will provide a prompt, reliable response to requests and try to minimize your waiting time.") Hours of operation and service location are certainly already available and should be published.
Appropriate costing of specific services may not be immediately feasible in some cases. You should try to provide clients with cost information that makes sense to them in a practical and feasible manner. Departments -- and areas within departments -- have different levels of cost information, expertise and experience available. You can approach the costing of service delivery in an incremental fashion, using the principles discussed in Part 3. In some cases, this may mean publishing the costs of the particular service transaction (what it costs, for example, to deliver a cheque), while in others, clients may prefer a more aggregate cost that reflects the cost of a collection of services (the cost, for example, of operating a museum). Alternatively, you may use expenditure rather than cost information. Common sense is required. In some situations, informing clients of cost information may not be meaningful or sensible (such as when arresting someone). In others -- for example, when the costs of services are fully recovered -- cost information is redundant.
You should give priority to the more visible interactions with Canadians and to those with a high volume, such as transfers to individuals, income tax, customs, unemployment and training. In the difficult areas of health and safety, you should proceed prudently and in conjunction with the regulatory reviews being carried out.
In most cases, work to establish service standards will not be separate from other related initiatives, but part of a department's integrated strategy for improving services and their delivery. If service standards are not made part of actual service delivery, then efforts made to prepare them will likely be wasted.

PART 3 -- AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT SERVICE STANDARDS

As noted in the Introduction, service standards typically have five separate components:
1. descriptions of the service you intend to provide and, where applicable, the benefits clients are entitled to receive;
2. service pledges or principles describing the quality of service delivery clients can expect to receive, focusing on such elements as openness, fairness, courtesy, professionalism, choice of official language where applicable, etc.;
3. specific delivery targets for key aspects of service, such as timeliness, access and accuracy;
4. the costs of delivering the services; and
5. complaint and redress mechanisms that clients can use when they feel standards have not been met.
This section provides additional information on each of the main components of service standards, as well as some guidelines for drafting standards in light of the potential for Crown liability. Examples of actual departmental service standards can be found in Quality and Affordable Service for Canadians: Establishing Service Standards in the Federal Government (Treasury Board Secretariat, 1995).

1. Descriptions of the service

Part 2 examined the definition of service within the government context. Additional information is provided in Annex A. In describing the services and outputs or benefits that clients can expect to receive, you should use clear, simple and familiar language. Standards should be written in a positive tone that speaks directly to users. Information should be well organized so that users can find important information quickly. Finally, all written text should be understood the first time it is read and should be available in both official languages.

2. Service pledges

In consultation with departments, the Treasury Board Secretariat has developed a draft Declaration of Quality Service outlining general service delivery principles that all departments and Public Service employees are expected to follow in their dealings with the public. The current draft Declaration is included in Annex B.
The Declaration includes the following principles for quality service delivery :

accessibility, dependability and timeliness;

clarity and openness;

fairness and respect;

good value for the tax dollar;

responsiveness and commitment to improvement.

You may wish to refer to the Declaration when establishing your own service pledge (e.g., "This department will follow the principles for quality service delivery outlined in the Declaration"), or you may use it as a starting point in drafting pledges that may be more directly applicable to your particular clientele and circumstances.
The Declaration provides guidelines for developing specific service pledges and the framework for delivering quality service.

3. Specific delivery targets

Delivery targets represent the quantifiable aspects of service, such as timeliness, accessibility or responsiveness. Clients do not always agree with program deliverers about what constitutes quality service, even where quantifiable measures are available. Research shows that, in some cases, clients prefer accuracy in the processing of their requests over speed. In other cases, they want to deal with the department just once instead of participating in several speedy transactions. Without client consultation, you cannot uncover these different preferences. Making program adjustments in the wrong areas not only fails to increase client satisfaction, but also wastes resources and disillusions staff.
The following material is intended to provide guidance and should not be taken as definitive. Rather, it outlines current thinking. It provides a test pad for those of you who are currently drafting service delivery targets.
Timeliness: This refers to the time required to complete the service transaction. It is an apparently simple concept, but one that is filled with subtleties, as discussed later.
Accessibility: This refers to the availability of a service to a client. It includes the number of contacts, locations, or people involved in completing the service transaction; hours of operation; clear language (both spoken and written); convenience, ease of access and design of service location; and the number of service delivery methods available (such as telephone, mail, in-person visits or electronic methods).
Reliability: This refers to the quality of information provided during the service transactions. How do clients perceive the knowledge and competence of the staff? Do they get correct answers? Is information consistent from one employee to another? Do staff protect clients' confidentiality?
Responsiveness: This refers to the way you handle the service transaction. It includes your ability to communicate clearly and easily; your courtesy and helpfulness; your understanding of clients' needs; the pride you take in your work; and your ability to handle diversity.
Service standards grow from these four fundamental service qualities, but you must be more specific when establishing delivery targets. These targets may include the following goals:

physical accessibility (i.e., ease of getting there);

availability (i.e., hours of operation);

waiting time;

waiting environment;

waiting response time (i.e., once served);

accuracy;

satisfaction (i.e., giving clients what they expect).

Many federal departments have set these types of standards. The Passport Office's standard is to have a client's passport ready for pick-up in five working days or mailed to him or her in 10 working days after receipt of the application. Western Economic Diversification is committed to making a final funding decision on projects valued at less than $500,000 no later than 30 calendar days after all required information has been provided. The topographic information section of Natural Resources Canada will respond to enquiries within 48 hours if the response is needed by phone or fax, and within five days if a letter is required.
Several principles guide the writing of delivery targets:

delivery targets must relate to those aspects of the service transaction that are important to the client;

delivery targets must be clear to the client. A delivery target that states, for example, that a service will be delivered "...in five days..." is not clear. A client may well ask: "Will I receive service in five calendar or five working days?" or "Will it be five days from the date I mailed it or five days from the date you received it?";

delivery targets must be meaningful to the client. How meaningful is it to tell the client that "We serve 85 per cent of our clients in 20 minutes or less."? If you were subject to this claim, wouldn't you wonder: "If I don't get served in 20 minutes or less, am I part of the 15 per cent that would not normally be served or am I part of the 85 per cent that should have been served?";

delivery targets must be measurable. How else will you know if you are achieving them? Therefore, use exact delivery targets whenever possible. For example, it is easier to measure your success in meeting a goal that states "We will serve you in 20 minutes or less" than a goal that proclaims "We will serve you promptly." Besides, exact targets let you manage client expectations; vague targets let client expectations manage you;

short, simple delivery targets will be more effective than long, convoluted ones. "We will process your claim in five working days" yields a more powerful standard than "We will process your claim in three days, unless one of those days falls on a weekend, in which case we will normally process your claim in five days"; and

delivery targets should be closed rather than open. A closed delivery target, for example, declares, "We will serve you in 20 minutes or less." By way of contrast, an open delivery target would say, "We serve 85 per cent of our clients in 20 minutes or less." The type of information needed to set closed delivery targets comes from an analysis of service times. In attempting to close a delivery target, however, it is not always desirable to choose a target that is so low that it can always be met. Service standards should be attainable, but also challenging. If you are concerned about the target levels set out in standards, you can close a delivery target by using a two-stage or sequenced standard, such as "We will attempt to reply to all correspondence within 15 days. Where we cannot meet the 15-day standard, we will send an acknowledgement within five days. The acknowledgment will include an explanation of why the standard cannot be met and a commitment to a new day for reply." Alternatively, clients could be divided into classes with separate delivery targets for each, as in the following example: "If visiting our office during the hours of noon to 2:00 p.m., you can expect to wait 40 minutes for service. At other times of the day, we will see you in 20 minutes."

Before starting to write delivery targets, you should define precise terms for service commitments. The definition of time, noted previously, is one such example. Most jurisdictions take care to distinguish between "days" and "working days." Where not stated, the norm is taken to be calendar days. Some jurisdictions achieve precision by stating an exact date for the service, as in: "We will reply by January 5, 1994."
Precision also plays a role in choosing the right action verb. For example, "to pay" differs from "to decide." Similarly, "to acknowledge" differs from "to answer" or "to see." There is also considerable difference between "to initiate" and "to complete." In each of these cases, a different service is offered and a different delivery target is implied.
When wording a delivery target, you must carefully consider whether to frame the standard using the passive or active voice. While there is no right or wrong answer, the active voice (e.g., "This office will serve you in 20 minutes or less") sounds more like a commitment than the passive voice (e.g., "You will be served by this office in 20 minutes or less"). The commitment seems even more powerful when phrased in the personal voice (e.g., "We will serve you in 20 minutes or less") as compared to the impersonal voice ("Service will be provided in 20 minutes or less").
Finally, think about the degree of commitment contained in the delivery target. For example, the order of commitment increases from ''We aim to serve you in 20 minutes or less" to "We will serve you in 20 minutes or less" to "We guarantee to serve you in 20 minutes or less."

4. The costs of delivering the service

Without relevant cost information, service users' expectations may be unrealistic and their preferences for service delivery inconsistent with what you can produce. As taxpayers concerned about costs, they cannot modify their use of the service if they are unaware of service costs.
Routinely disclosing this information will make clients aware of the costs of government services and encourage departments to consult with their clients on less costly service delivery alternatives. Development of cost data will also enable departments to inform ministers of the effects of resource reductions and tell taxpayers what they are getting for their tax dollars.
By informing clients of service costs, you are trying to demonstrate government openness and transparency; modify clients' expectations so that they are more willing to understand changes in service delivery and, in some cases, modify their use of services; improve clients' (and taxpayers') understanding of user charges; and increase accountability of public managers through visibility and comparability of service costs.
The objective for costing services in relation to service standards is to inform Canadians of the costs of the services they pay for as taxpayers and receive as service users. The logistics and cost of producing such information are also important considerations. The principles below will help you balance the need to inform the public with the feasibility of determining and communicating service costs. A Guide to Costing Service Delivery for Service Standards has been prepared.

a. All elements of service cost should be included
All elements of cost should be accounted for at the departmental level. You should follow the full costing approach and methodology outlined in the Guide to the Costing of Outputs in the Government of Canada, originally published by the Office of the Comptroller General and now available from the Treasury Board Secretariat. This method is also the basis of the Treasury Board policy on external user fees.
The full cost of delivering a service is the sum of all costs, direct and indirect, incurred by the government, including services provided without charge by other departments (e.g., accommodation, employer contributions to insurance plans); costs financed by separate authorities (e.g., some employee benefits); depreciation of capital assets; and financing costs.
A key to accurate depiction of cost is to distinguish between cost and expenditures. Cost is the economic value of all resources used to provide goods and services. It is determined using the accrual method of accounting. Accrual accounting stresses matching or offsetting revenue with expenses. It recognizes the consumption of resources in the period in which the related benefits are obtained. Hence, in addition to annual cash outlays, cost includes non-cash outlays such as depreciation of capital assets. Expenditures are cash outlays incurred in a particular period.
Due to lack of data, full costing may not be immediately feasible in some departments. In such situations, you can often display expenditure information until such time as cost data are available. When you display expenditure information, it should include direct expenditures and all indirect items such as overhead and expenditures incurred by other government departments.
When you are using expenditure information rather than cost information to inform clients, you must clearly label it as such, You should also provide a brief statement identifying the excluded elements such as capital assets and financing costs.

b. Service costs should be relevant to the user
Published costs should provide a reasonable idea of the costs to deliver the service. As such, they should clearly state what is being costed and what the cost figures represent. The costs should apply to identified services or groups of services to which clients can relate. The aim is not to achieve auditable costing precision but rather reasonable, timely and informative approximations.

c. A sensible aggregation of services should be costed
Unit costing of each individual service transaction or even a single service line may not always be the most meaningful, appropriate or practical level of costing to use. Examples of aggregation levels include

a set of services being delivered through a single service delivery facility;

a specific service line or product over time; or

an individual service transaction, such as the issuing of a cheque, and custom services unique to each transaction.

To decide on the level of aggregation, consider the time and effort needed to gather data, the cost of gathering data and the usefulness of the aggregation. It should be noted that displaying the average cost calculated over a range of service outputs may produce a very misleading cost figure for the service in question. For example, the average cost per passenger-mile for the whole rail passenger system probably greatly overstates costs for some lines and understates costs for other lines.

d. Service cost information should be displayed along with the service outputs
Generally, you should state the outputs or benefits of the service along with service costs, to indicate what clients are obtaining for the costs incurred. If you are costing a service transaction, the output is probably clear to the client and nothing more is needed. Where you are costing a collection of services or service over time, you should provide a short description of the various outputs.
To provide cost information to program clients at the point of service, you can use many vehicles, including

posters, pamphlets, videos, speeches, etc. that describe the services being provided;

service standards posted in offices, at entrances to parks and museums, in airports and at other points of service;

notices on the form, cheque, licence or ticket used in the service transaction; and

statements included in information provided in response to a request.

e. The service costs displayed must be clear and able to withstand comparison
You should expect -- and, indeed, encourage -- your clients and staff to compare service costs. Comparisons may be made over time, between different services, across locations, between different levels of jurisdiction or with the private sector. Comparing or "benchmarking" is essential to good management. The publication of costing data should encourage you to question your costs and those of other programs or services and, perhaps, learn by sharing experiences and practices.
Costs based on full costing will be comparable between services. However, at present, different costing systems are used across government departments, and experience and capacity in full costing vary widely. This could lead to the publication of what appear to be different costs for similar services across departments. To avoid that, the Treasury Board Secretariat will help departments ensure that similar services are costed in a similar manner. Through the interdepartmental service standards newtworks, departments with similar services will be asked to comment on the proposed cost information. You can then be ready to explain and minimize differences.
A list of publications that address the costing issue is provided in Annex D.

5. Complaint and redress mechanisms

Complaint and redress mechanisms should be seen as providing essential feedback that the organization needs if it is to focus on clients and quality.
Many government services have formal complaint mechanisms, particularly in the regulatory or purchasing areas where judicial or quasi-judicial bodies exist to deal with regulated entities or bidders who believe they have not been treated fairly. While the service standard initiative is intended to include these types of complaint mechanisms, it is also aimed at improving more informal complaint mechanisms. These informal mechanisms can often deal swiftly and effectively with complaints from those who might feel they lack the specific and detailed knowledge required to effectively complain.
The United Kingdom's Citizen's Charter Complaints Task Force has produced a number of principles for effective complaint mechanisms¹. The principles below are based on this work.
Organizations should define what constitutes a "complaint" and ensure that all staff clearly understand this definition. Whatever definition they use, organizations should deal with any expression of dissatisfaction positively and constructively.
Complaint systems should

be easily accessible and well-publicized. Anyone with a complaint about a public service needs to know how to make a complaint, and to whom;

be available in both official languages. Services and their complaint mechanisms should be available in the official language of choice at designated offices. This is a legal right;

be simple to understand and use. Complaints should be dealt with according to clear procedures that are easy to understand. Procedures should, where possible, be consistent across different parts of the organization, and should apply to the entire organization. If a complaint cannot be dealt with on the spot, clients should be given a single contact point for their complaint. All staff who deal with complaints regularly should be appropriately trained to handle complaints and should be aware of their individual responsibilities;

allow speedy handling, with established time limits for action, and keep people informed of progress. Complaints should be dealt with as quickly as possible. This can frequently be done at the point of delivery, without formal complaint procedures. If this is not possible, clients should be told when they can expect a response, kept informed of progress and given an explanation if deadlines are not met;

ensure a full and fair investigation. All complaints should be thoroughly and objectively investigated. Procedures should include, where appropriate, independent review within the organization (i.e., review by someone within the organization but separate from the direct line management of the person or section that is the subject of the complaint). Clients should be told of the various stages of the complaint system and should be satisfied that they have been dealt with fully and fairly, even if their complaint is not upheld;

respect people's desire for confidentiality. In the interests of clients and staff alike, financial or personal details should, as far as possible, be dealt with in confidence during an investigation. Complaint systems should aim to ensure that clients who complain are not subject to discrimination or retribution;

address all the points at issue, and provide an effective response and appropriate redress. Complaints should be directly addressed and, where possible, the cause of complaints remedied. Redress should be readily available and appropriate to the nature of the complaint; and

provide information to management so that services can be improved. Information about complaints can be used to increase public satisfaction with the service. Trends in complaints should be analyzed and appropriate action taken.

Further information on complaint and redress mechanisms can be found in A Guide to Effective Complaint Systems (consultation draft prepared by the Treasury Board Secretariat, 1994).

6. Service standards in light of potential Crown liability

It is critical to examine the potential for Crown liability where service standards have been established for regulatory, licensing and enforcement programs as well as for such hands-on services as transportation. In such areas, public authorities that are required by law to perform certain functions like inspections are under a legal "duty of care." Thus, you must ensure that your service delivery targets take into consideration the level at which you are planning to meet your duty of care (referred to as standards of care), so that service standards are reasonable and attainable.
On the other hand, service delivery targets that describe in a precise or unqualified way the levels and kinds of service to be delivered could be used by a court to find out whether a department has been negligent. For example, if a department is under a duty of care to maintain a road and the service standard indicates that dangerous trees along the road will be surveyed within 48 hours after every major storm, that standard could be used as evidence in determining whether or not the department has met its duty of care.
Departments should not assume that the absence of service delivery targets, such as those that may be included in service standards or available in internal departmental documentation, will reduce potential Crown liability. In fact, the existence of rational service delivery targets, based on considerations of what constitutes the minimum standard of care needed to meet the legal duty of care and also on resources available to deliver the program, may provide evidence to the courts that such decisions were policy decisions (rather than strictly operational decisions) and, thus, fall outside the realm of potential tort liability.
When preparing service standards, you should consult with your Legal Services staff.
Service standards prepared in the following manner should not increase the potential for Crown liability:

service standards should be realistic but challenging -- that is, you should establish reasonable standards that you expect to meet;

service standards should be carefully worded so it is clear that they represent the government's intended service levels to be pursued on a best-efforts basis rather than a guarantee of the minimum service to be delivered. However, vague and convoluted standards will not be credible to program clients;

appropriate complaint and administrative redress mechanisms should be outlined as part of the service standard, indicating the government's expectation that service standards may not always be met. Resources required to receive and respond to any complaints should be available;

where warranted, a "Rights and Responsibilities" section that outlines what program clients are expected to do if they want to receive the indicated levels of service (e.g., provide timely and accurate information, keep commitments, etc.) should be included;

where standards are posted in office locations, pamphlets that more fully explain the department's programs, service standards and complaint procedures should be readily available; and

performance against standards should be published along with the standards (e.g., printed in pamphlets, posted in offices, etc.), to indicate that the standards represent a best efforts approach to service delivery and may not be met all the time.

PART 4 -- MANAGING TO SERVICE STANDARDS

This section provides practical guidance on using service standards to help manage your organization once they have been developed. It also includes a series of Treasury Board Secretariat expectations for managers and employees that, typically, represent "best practices."

Develop performance measures

Develop ways to measure your performance against standards, and monitor performance constantly. Setting client-driven standards and measuring how well the organization is doing is a continuous process. It should quickly identify problems with client service. All parts of the organization should be involved in finding solutions to these problems and discussing these solutions with clients.
Identifying and developing appropriate performance indicators is a long-term process, particularly in large departments. Introducing a limited number of simple "field-tested" measures on a gradual basis may be the most viable approach.

Continually improve delivery systems and service standards

Review policies, procedures and forms periodically to ensure "client friendliness" and to find new ways to improve services through initiatives such as

using new technology where cost-effective;

cutting red tape;

using plain language;

re-examining and redesigning or streamlining work flow (re-engineering); and

simplifying or getting rid of unnecessary rules and forms.

Continuous improvement will allow you to set higher and higher service standards and maximize client satisfaction. By consulting clients, monitoring performance and encouraging innovation, you will be able to deliver better service.

Develop a service quality improvement plan

Develop and implement a service quality improvement plan, embodying the previous steps, that will

establish and make visible to the client the level of service that will be provided;

clarify the relationship between the quality and level of service, and the cost of providing the service;

indicate the degree of flexibility or discretion available in setting standards, and any associated risks;

outline alternate standards, and the consequences and costs of these alternate levels;

indicate stakeholder views of these alternate standards (derived from consultations);

outline the results that should be achieved; and

indicate how standards relate to program objectives and departmental objectives.

TBS expectations for managers and employees

The Treasury Board Secretariat has established a series of expectations that represent "best practices" for government managers who are managing to service standards. These expectations have been grouped under three categories: establishing services standards, managing to service standards and reporting on performance.

a. Establishing service standards
The Treasury Board Secretariat expects managers establishing service standards to:

assign clear responsibility and accountability for developing departmental service standards under agreed timetables;

identify who the clients are for which services and, through an effective public consultation process, learn what users regard as the most important aspects of the service;

consult with front-line employees who deal directly with clients to gather suggestions for service delivery improvements and to build commitment to the client-oriented culture;

obtain internal agreement on the quality of the service to be delivered within the available budget;

ensure that proper costing methods are used to support decisions and service standards, and that the costing methods themselves are cost effective; and

ensure that clients are informed of the service standards at the point of service.

b. Managing the organization based on service standards
Service standards are an integral part of good management, and the Treasury Board Secretariat expects managers to

behave in consistent and supportive ways that motivate employees to provide good client service. Managers should

clarify accountabilities for results and agree on fair performance measures,

establish clear autonomy limits and fundamental rules that define freedom of action for front-line staff,

ensure that staff are trained in consultation, risk-taking, collaborative behaviour and quality management,

take visible, credible steps that demonstrably shift the reward system towards serving clients,

communicate good practices to staff, and

accept well-intentioned errors by subordinates who take new risks in service innovation as learning opportunities;

regularly monitor the service performance of their units and costs using valid and reliable measures, including the costs of not delivering something right the first time;

know whether content, value and method of delivery of the services meet clients' needs; and

use performance and client satisfaction information to guide operational decisions and continually improve their service standards and actual performance.

c. Reporting on performance
In this area, the Treasury Board Secretariat expects that

managers will develop accountability frameworks for each service area that make clear who is accountable to whom and for what;

performance measures and reports will be readily understandable and useful for making decisions; and

managers will report actual performance against standards to service users and other interested parties.

PART 5 -- CONCLUDING REMARKS

Canadians interact with the federal government both directly (through specific transactions) and indirectly (by benefiting from a public good provided by the government).
When they deal with the federal government, Canadians have the right to expect that

they can find out what kind of interaction or service they should expect to receive;
meaningful information relevant to their concerns is readily available;
they will be treated fairly, courteously, promptly and in the official language of their choice where appropriate; and
they can respond if their dealing with the government is not satisfactory.

The service standards initiative is intended to fulfill these expectations.

Endnote
1The Citizen's Charter Complaints Task Force (1993). Effective complaints Systems: Principles and a Checklist.

http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/opepubs/tb_d3/guid01-eng.asp

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CANADA MILITARY NEWS: Canada does need more Immigrants- NOT Refugees – come on Europeans and Asia with your smarts and culture- we’d love u have u- SOME FACTS ON CANADA LAWS AND REGS.-/Passports/always blogs links.Page 1 and 2

https://nova0000scotia.wordpress.com/2015/06/21/canada-military-news-canada-does-need-more-immigrants-not-refugees-come-on-europeans-and-asia-with-your-smarts-and-culture-wed-love-u-have-u-some-facts-on-canada-laws-and-regs-passportsalw/

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CANADA MILITARY NEWS: Fed. Expense Claims/Quality Standards/Code of Ethics/Conflict of Interest- okay folks as a 26 YR fed employee/prov/municipality- what the f**k happened since the 80s and 90s??? – shame on all of ya... what happened 2 SERVING THE PUBLIC.... regardless of your political crap... that’s all u have 2 do... and staff – honour your family your community and urself- sweet jesusmothermary and joseph/the lower ranks honour the rules - and all political greedy parties abuse them -u all kinda suck imho

http://nova0000scotia.blogspot.ca/2015/06/canada-military-news-okay-folks-as-26.html

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1. Values, Ethics and Professional Public Service - Treasury Board of ...

www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/rp/scv-eng.pdf - Cached - Similar

In 2003, the Government of Canada adopted the Values and Ethics Code for the ..... employment,” help “to attract a better class of applicants,” and in general tend “to ..... The influence of the new public service values was evident in the 1990 ...

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1. Public Works and Government Services Canada Code of Conduct ...

www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/apropos-about/code-cond-eng.html - Cached - Similar

The PWGSC Code of Conduct provides us all with guidance on our conduct in ... a positive workplace, but we also demonstrate to our clients and Canadians as ...

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2. Human Rights Code, RSO 1990, c. H.19 - Government of Ontario

www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90h19 - Cached

Discrimination in employment under government contracts ..... pardon has been granted under the Criminal Records Act (Canada) and has not been revoked, or.

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Canadian Employment Law: Knowing Your Employee Rights

By Mark Swartz
Monster Senior Contributing Writer

“The fundamental principle of decency at work underlies all labour standards legislation...” Fairness at Work: Federal Labour Standards for the 21st Century.

In terms of employee rights, we’ve come an awful long way from 1872. That was the first ever year of our annual Labour Day parade. Back then – if you can imagine this – it was still a crime to be a member of a union in Canada, under the law of criminal conspiracy.

This initial parade called for the release of 24 imprisoned leaders of the Toronto Typographical Union. They’d been arrested for going on strike to (gasp) reduce their work week to a mere 58 hours! Today that standard workweek is between 40 to 48 hours.

Clearly workplace laws have improved dramatically since that Draconian period. Yet many employees still don’t know what their rights and obligations are. Since being informed can help you stand up for yourself in your job, we’ve assembled some helpful resources for you.

Acts That Cover Your Basic Employment Rights

Hours of work, minimum wages, sick days, vacation and severance provisions…all of these and many more related items are spelled out as Employment Standards. These are the are the minimum standards established by law that define and guarantee rights in the workplace.

Most workers in Canada - about 90 percent - are protected by the employment laws of their province or territory. Each province and territory has its own legislation. It’s compulsory to place an Employment Standards Act poster in plain sight of employees for workplaces covered by this legislation.

The other 10% of Canadian employees work in places that are federally regulated. If you are such an employee, the Labour Program administers the federal labour standards that define employment conditions in your place of work. Find out if you work in a federally regulated business or industry. If so your employment is governed by the Canada Labour Code.

Acts That Cover Discrimination and Employment Equity

The Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender, race, ethnicity, age and a number of other grounds. It came into force back in 1985. Since then it has been updated ongoingly.

Another piece of legislation in this area is the Employment Equity Act (EEA), which falls under the Department of Justice Canada. These laws are meant to protect the rights of four “designated groups” in particular: women, people with disabilities, Aboriginal people, and visible minorities.

The Canadian Human Rights Act functions alongside the Employment Equity Act. The major difference between the two is that the CHRA prohibits discrimination in general, whereas the EEA requires employers to use measures that improve employment opportunities for the four designated groups.

Where To Find Out More

Would you like to learn more about what your rights are if you get downsized or your employer goes bankrupt? How about health and safety regulations that are meant to shield you from harm?

The following are some online resources where you can find some initial information:

Federal Department of Labour – Canada’s federal Labour Program promotes “safe, healthy, cooperative and productive workplaces.”

Basic Workplace Standards by Province – A brief comparison of minimum wages, paid public holidays, pregnancy and parental leave, hours of work and overtime, etc.

Workrights.ca - Gives you information on the labour codes to your province, and to compare practices in your region with those of other provinces and territories in Canada.

Canadian Labour Congress – CLC brings together Canada's national and international unions, the provincial and territorial federations of labour and 130 district labour councils.

Be Informed Or Call In The Experts

Think you know your rights as an employee? Probably not as well as you should. For instance, there’s a general misconception that salaried employees (as distinct from hourly workers) are automatically excluded from the Employment Standards Act. Not true. If you’re, say, an Executive Assistant earning $44,000 a year, you could still be entitled to overtime after working 44 hour weeks consistently, depending on the province of employment.

If you feel that your rights are being violated, try having a talk with your Human Resources department or union representative. Should expert advice be needed you should contact an employment lawyer.

130 years ago they were putting Canadians who went on strike into prison. Sure, we’ve evolved enormously since that time. But only by knowing your basic rights – and reaching out for advice when necessary – can you protect yourself from arbitrary actions of unenlightened employers.

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EMPLOYMENT LAW AND COMPLIANCE USA

Photo by: svl861

Employment law and compliance concerns the legal framework within which organizations must operate in their treatment of employees. Employers must comply with a myriad of federal and state laws and regulations. Laws and regulations exist covering a wide range of human resource practices, including recruiting, hiring, performance appraisal, compensation, health and safety, and labor relations.
The discussion that follows identifies and summarizes the major federal laws that comprise employment law.

MAJOR FEDERAL LAWS

Exhibit 1 provides a summary of some of the more important federal employment laws. The exhibit is divided into four sections: anti-discrimination law, compensation law, health and safety law, and labor relations law. The sections that follow provide additional information on each of these areas, with special emphasis on anti-discrimination laws, which probably have the greatest impact on employers.

ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LAWS

TITLE VII.

Without a doubt, the most important anti-discrimination law is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII was initially motivated by the U.S. government's desire to end workplace discrimination against African Americans, which was brought to national attention by the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. However, by the time the law was passed and signed into law in 1964, it had become a comprehensive workplace anti-discrimination law.
Title VII prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, and sex. Affected organizations must not discrimination in any employment decision or in regard to any term or condition of employment. Title VII applies to all U.S. organizations with fifteen or more employees, as well as labor unions and public sector employers. Only a few U.S. employers with more than fifteen employees are exempt from Title VII.
Title VII was amended in 1972 by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. This law strengthened the enforcement of Title VII, which up to that time had been largely ineffective in changing workplace practices. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a quasi-independent federal government agency, is in charge of enforcing Title VII, as well as many other anti-discrimination laws.

Exhibit 1
Sampling of Major Federal Employment Laws

Anti-Discrimination Laws	Major Provisions
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964	Prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, and sex.
Age Discrimination in Employment Act 1967	Prohibits employment discrimination against applicants or employees aged 40 and older.
Americans with Disabilities Act 1990	Prohibits employment discrimination against qualified applicants or employees with a physical or mental disability.
Civil Rights Act 1991	Codifies the "adverse impact" theory of discrimination. Clarifies and strengthens rules for enforcement of the anti-discrimination provisions in Title VII.
Compensation Laws
Fair Labor Standards Act 1938	Requires employers to pay a federal minimum wage to non-exempt workers. Requires employers to pay overtime pay to non-exempt workers.
Equal Pay Act 1963	Requires employers to pay men and women equally for doing substantially the same work, unless differences in pay are based on merit, quantity or quality of production, or any other factor other than sex.
Labor Laws
Wagner Act 1935	Establishes the National Labor Relation Board. Lays out the framework for union organizing activities. Identifies and bans unfair management practices in regard to unionization.
Taft Hartley Act 1947	Identifies and bans unfair labor union practices in regard to union organizing efforts. Bans the closed shop and allows states to pass "right-to-work" laws that give workers the right to refuse to join a union. Allows the president to temporarily stop strikes that imperil the national interest.
Health and Safety Laws
Occupational Safety and Health Act	Establishes general safety standards and standards for specific industries. Requires employers to record and report accidents that occur in the workplace. Lays out rules for federal workplace inspections and penalties for violations of the act.

Employees alleging workplace discrimination that falls under the purview of the EEOC must report the alleged discrimination to the EEOC or one of the state-level fair employment offices that exist in every state. The EEOC has the right to investigate claims of discrimination or to initiate investigations itself. Many times the EEOC will attempt to work out a solution with the affected organization, which may or may not involve an admission of guilt by the employer. If conciliation fails, the EEOC also has the right to bring class-action discrimination lawsuits against organizations on behalf of a "class" of employees who have allegedly suffered from discrimination.
If the EEOC's investigation does not reveal a strong case of discrimination, the agency can still issue a "right-to-sue" letter to a plaintiff, which gives that person the right to bring their charges of discrimination against an employer to state or federal court, whichever is appropriate in a given case. Some claims of discrimination filed with the EEOC do not have merit and the EEOC often issues findings to that effect—but such findings still do not prevent the individual plaintiff from filing his or her own lawsuit against an employer.
For many years, most discrimination claims filed under Title VII were race discrimination cases. However, with the advent of sexual harassment law-suits in the late 1970s and 1980s, sex discrimination cases became quite common, as well. Sexual harassment has become such a major employment law issue that it deserves special attention, which is provided in the next section.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT.

Sexual harassment at the workplace is a long-standing problem, affecting working women, as well as many men. Sexual harassment came to light during the mid-1970s and has since gained a great deal of national attention. The growing attention to the topic stems from a number of well-publicized cases in the 1990s—the Clarence Thomas hearings, the 1991 Tailhook Convention where several women were severely harassed by naval pilots, and the accusations made by Arkansas state employee Paula Jones about then-governor Bill Clinton.
Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination and therefore violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The number of sexual harassment complaints filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has increased at an alarming rate; it rose from about 6,000 in 1991 to more than double this number in 2004. The majority of these complaints involve claims of unwanted physical contact, offensive language, sexual propositions, and socialization or date requests.
An employer should establish a written sexual harassment policy. The policy should specify grievance procedures by which employees can bring claims of harassment to management's attention. These procedures should provide employees with opportunities to bypass their supervisor if the supervisor is the one being accused. The company should also provide supervisory training that focuses on the legal definition of sexual harassment.
In addition to holding formal training sessions, top management should also meet with employees to emphasize management's strong commitment to keep the workplace free of harassment. The employer should also have investigative guidelines that maintain employee confidentiality. The EEOC recommends that a committee that consists of both men and women should investigate sexual harassment claims. Committee members should receive investigative training.

AGE DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT ACT.

The federal government added to employment law in 1967 by passing the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. This law prohibited discrimination in employment decisions on the basis of age, provided the person affected was between 40 and 70 years old. Initially, the law allowed mandatory retirement policies, but was later amended to remove the upper limit on age initially imposed by the law. Thus, as it stands today, the ADEA prohibits discrimination against applicants or employees who are aged 40 and older, with no upper age limit.
For many years, age discrimination suits have been more difficult to prove against organizations because the person alleging discrimination had to show that the employer had a specific intent to discriminate on the basis of age, that there was no other explanation for the employment decision other than age, and that there was a specific employer policy or procedures that was discriminatory. In short, the person had to prove what is called "disparate treatment" under employment law.
However, a 2005 Supreme Court decision involving public workers in the city of Jackson, Mississippi, appears to have changed the interpretation of the law. Although the ramifications of this case remain to be fully determined, and will probably depend on its use in future court rulings, it appears that those alleging age discrimination can now proceed under what is called the "disparate impact" theory of discrimination. This means that the person or persons alleging age discrimination would not have to prove discriminatory intent. Instead, the person would only have to show that some action by the employer had a disproportionately negative effect on workers 40 and older. Once this was done, the employer would have the burden to show that the discriminatory action was job-related or consistent with business necessity. If this ruling's interpretation stands, it will probably increase the number of age discrimination cases filed against employers in the U.S.

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT.

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) prohibits discrimination in any employment decision against qualified applicants or employees with a disability. It also requires employers to reasonably accommodate the disabilities of applicants and employees. The ADA applies to the same set of companies covered by Title VII.
Three definitions are key to understanding the ADA. First, is the definition of disability, which is any physical or mental impairment that prevents the person from engaging in a major life activity. Covered disabilities include both physical and mental impairments. The extent of the disabilities covered is one of the more controversial aspects of the law. Some conditions are specifically excluded from coverage, including pyromania and kleptomania.
A second key definition is that of qualification. Under the ADA, a person with a disability is qualified for a job if he or she can perform the essential functions of the job with or without accommodation. This means that the person does not have to be able to do every single duty of the job, if they are very minor, but that he or she must be able to perform the major responsibilities of the job.
A third important definition under the law is reasonable accommodation. A reasonable accommodation is one that does not cause an undue hardship on the employer. Undue hardship would be determined on a case-by-case basis, and consider the cost and inconvenience to the employer of accommodating the disability.
The ADA has resulted in many disability discrimination complaints with the EEOC, as well as many law-suits against employers. Although the law, like most, has had unintended consequences, its net effect appears to have been a positive one, as it seems to have increased opportunities for qualified, disabled workers.

CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1991.

In the late 1980s, the Supreme Court decided several employment discrimination cases that made it more difficult for employees to prove discrimination cases in court. Concerned about these cases, the U.S. Congress addressed several issues by passing the 1991 Civil Rights Act.
The law did several major things. First, it codified the "disparate impact" theory of discrimination, which means that employees alleging discrimination can sometimes more easily prove a discrimination case. Second, the law allowed plaintiffs to have jury trials under some circumstances, instead of "bench" trials decided by a federal judge. Juries tend to be sympathetic to plaintiffs, particularly those suing large corporations, so this was a major victory for employees. Third, the law extended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to certain types of organizations that had not been covered before (for example, the law extended the reach of Title VII to the federal government, which prior to passage had been exempt). Finally, the law banned the "race norming" of employment test scores.

COMPENSATION LAWS

FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT.

The most important compensation law is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), passed in 1938. This law provides the basic framework within which millions of U.S. workers are paid. These workers are called "non-exempt" workers. These workers are those that, by virtue of the type of jobs they hold, must be paid in accordance with the FLSA. Exempt workers, who are not covered by the law, are primarily executive, managerial, professional, and highly-paid technical workers.
One important provision of the law is the federal minimum wage provision. Non-exempt workers must be paid a basic minimum wage, which has periodically been raised to higher levels. Non-exempt workers must also be paid overtime for hours worked in excess of a standard workweek, which in most industries is 40 hours per week.
A final provision of the act does not involve compensation directly, but the employment of minors. The law prevents the employment of minors in almost all jobs before the age of fourteen, and places fairly stringent restrictions on the employment of children between the ages of fourteen and eighteen.

EQUAL PAY ACT.

The Equal Pay Act was passed in 1963 as an amendment to the FLSA. The Equal Pay Act requires a single employer to pay men and women equally for doing "substantially" the same job for the employer. An employer is allowed to pay men and women differently if the difference is based on merit, quantity of production, quality of production, or any other factor other than gender. Thus, the law does not mean that men and women doing the same work can't be paid differently, only that the difference must not be based on the sex of the worker.

LABOR RELATIONS LAWS

THE WAGNER ACT.

The Wagner Act, otherwise known as the National Labor Relations Act, provides the basic framework within which labor union and management interact in the United States. The law was passed in 1935. It guarantees workers' basic right to organize. It created the National Labor Relations Board to oversee union-management relations. It provided for an election process for unionization efforts in U.S. businesses. It prohibited five major "unfair labor practices" on the part of U.S. employers.

THE TAFT-HARTLEY ACT.

In 1947, the U.S. Congress enacted the Taft-Hartley Act by overriding President Harry Truman's veto. Whereas the Wagner Act is "pro-labor" in its effect, the Taft-Hartley Act is most decidedly "pro-business" in its provisions.
The Taft-Hartley Act banned the union security arrangement known as the closed shop. In a closed shop, individuals must belong to the appropriate union before they can be hired by a company. This arrangement is now banned in all but a handful of situations.
Taft-Hartley also gave the states the right to pass what are called "right-to-work" laws, which create "open shops." An open shop exists when no individual can be compelled to join a union before or after they are hired, even if the employer's workforce is organized. Labor unions detest open shops, as they make it difficult for unionization efforts to succeed. Twenty-two states are "right-to-work" states; most in the South and Southwest.
Taft-Hartley also laid out several "unfair practices" of labor unions and banned them. Finally, the act gave the U.S. president authority to issue an injunction temporarily stopping a strike, if the strike is deemed to be causing a threat to national security or creating an emergency detrimental to the national interest.

HEALTH AND SAFETY LAWS

The primary law relating to the health and safety of U.S. workers is the Occupational Safety and Health Act, passed in 1970. This law is controversial because it imposes very complex and detailed safety standards on thousands of U.S. businesses. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was created to administer and enforce the law.
OSHA has general safety standards for almost all employers and specific standards for certain industries. It has workplace inspectors who have the right to, with a search warrant, inspect the conditions in almost any business in the United States. OSHA has the right to respond to employee complaints of unsafe conditions and in fact, the highest priority for OSHA inspections are those situations that pose an imminent threat to the health and safety of workers.
OSHA has the power to impose penalties on employers who violate its provisions. The severity of the penalties will vary based on the seriousness of the violation, a first or repeat offense, the cooperation of the business, and the size of the business. Although many U.S. companies do not like dealing with OSHA, it does appear that the law and its enforcement has resulted in improvements in the health and safety conditions in U.S. businesses.

OTHER MAJOR LAWS

THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 requires all employers with fifty or more employees to grant workers up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave per year for the care of a newborn child, an ill family member, or their own illness. Employees may take the leave all at once or in increments.
While it helps employees, the FMLA can be quite costly to employers when they must replace workers on leave. Because women are more likely to use these leaves, companies that employ a majority of women are especially hard-hit. Consider the case of Sibley Memorial Hospital of Washington, D.C.: The hospital ran into difficulty when trying to replace an employee on leave. Because she worked in an extremely specialized position, the hospital could not find a replacement locally. In addition to paying the on-leave employee's medical benefits, Sibley had to pay for the replacement worker's round-trip airfare, weekly housing, car rental, and salary. At the end of the original employee's leave, she informed the hospital that she would not be returning to work.
The FMLA protects employers from this type of problem in two ways: (1) it allows employers to exempt workers with highest earnings, and (2) it requires employees to reimburse the employer for insurance premiums paid during the leave if they are able to return to work, yet choose not to do so. While Sibley Memorial Hospital was not able to utilize the first protection (the employee's salary was not among the top 10 percent), it was reimbursed for its insurance payments.

EMPLOYEE PRIVACY LAWS.

Privacy has become one of the most important workplace issues of the twenty-first century. Privacy concerns surface at the work-place when organizations attempt to collect and/or disseminate information about employees in ways that intrude upon their privacy. Privacy issues also surface when employee behavior is constrained by certain workplace rules and policies, denying employees the right to be "let alone," or to do as they please.
Employees may justifiably lodge an invasion of a privacy claim if the information collected by an employer is irrelevant to the employer's business needs. A company should have a clear business reason for each piece of information collected and maintained on an individual. For example, a company should not collect information about an employee's spouse unless that information is needed for benefits administration or some other useful purpose.
As a general rule, information pertaining to such personal issues as home ownership, previous marriages, sexual orientation, parents' occupations, and previous arrest records are usually of no concern to employers, and efforts to collect such information could pose legal threats to the company.

PRIVACY ACT.

Should employees have access to data kept on them? According to the Privacy Act of 1974, public-sector employees must be given access to any information in their files. Specifically, the act states that employees have the right to:

Determine what information is being kept on them by their employers.
Review that information.
Correct erroneous information.
Prevent the information from being used for a purpose other than that for which it was collected.

While the Privacy Act does not cover private-sector employees, most companies do allow employees to access to their own records as a good employee-relations gesture. Prohibiting employees from seeing their own files may create doubts and suspicions regarding the company's good faith efforts to create business-relevant personnel files.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.

The release of information maintained by government agencies is regulated by the Freedom of Information Act of 1966. The purpose of the act is to make most government records available to the public. Specifically, the act states that any individual may gain access to these records with proper authorization.
The act makes exceptions for personnel files and medical information. However, the public may still be given access to this information if its right to know outweighs the individual's right to privacy. In the private sector, legal constraints in this area stem from the common law of defamation. When releasing information about an employee, the employer must ensure that the information is given in good faith, no malice is intended, and the receiving party has a legitimate reason for the information.
SEE ALSO: Diversity ; Employment Law and Compliance ; Human Resource Management ; Quality of Work Life ; Safety in the Workplace
Lawrence S. Kleiman
Revised by Tim Barnett

User Contributions:

Bob Baxter

Jul 28, 2006 @ 2:14 pm

During orientation for new employees, employers seldom cover the federal laws regarding employee rights or the proper procedure for reporting violations of such laws. Are they not required to give their employees this information?

Joel

Dec 18, 2007 @ 1:13 pm

I am a Federal employee. If I request sick leave due to a confiditual health issue, can my superviosr deman the reson why I waht to take the leave? I am of the opinion my health is my buisness as long as it does not stop me form doing my job. Can you provide my any law references to support my position?

JD

http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Em-Exp/Employment-Law-and-Compliance.html

employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers

Employer Compliance

The Labour Program aims to foster voluntary compliance with Part III of the Canada Labour Codethrough enhanced awareness and education. When these approaches prove ineffective, however, minimum labour standards must still be maintained and employers brought into compliance through other means.

Compliance with Federal Labour Standards

The Labour Program supports voluntary compliance through education and consultation while ensuring that enforcement—when required—is fair, foreseeable and nationally consistent.

Part III of the Canada Labour Code regulates minimum employment standards for wages, benefits, policies and practices. The federal government prohibits employers and employees from operating below these minimum standards, even if they voluntarily agree to do so. Establishing minimum standards of compliance ensures a level playing field for all federally regulated industries.

The Labour Program response to non-compliance concerning federal labour standards involves five key actions that escalate in consequence as an employer fails to address the issue at hand:

1. Assurance of Voluntary Compliance: an employer's written commitment to a labour standards inspector that a monetary or non-monetary violation of the Code will be corrected within a specified period of time.

2. Letter of Determination: When a violation is identified, the employer is formally requested, in writing, to correct the non-compliance situation. The employer may, for example, be asked to pay wages or other amounts owing immediately, or to implement appropriate workplace policies and practices.

3. Payment Order: When an employer refuses to pay an employee the amounts owing, the inspector may issue a written payment order to the employer or the directors of the corporation. In some cases, a Labour Program regional director may issue a payment order to a third party who is indebted to the non-compliant employer. A payment order may be filed in federal court to ensure it is enforceable as a judgment of that court.

4. Appeals: Those directly affected by a payment order may appeal the inspector's decision. Orders to debtors of employers, however, cannot be appealed.

5. Court Actions: Prosecutions may be undertaken when an employer does not correct a breach of Part III of the Canada Labour Code—despite the efforts of an inspector—or wilfully breaks the law while fully aware of all legal obligations. Repeat violations are one indication of such intentional, or wilful, action.

For information on how complaints are handled, please consult the following Labour Program pamphlets:
#1A – Filing a Complaint, #11 – Wage Recovery, and #11A – Wage Recovery – Guide to an Appeal Hearing.

Keeping Records

Accurate records are essential to a well-run business: in particular, they are the evidence an employer relies on to prove compliance whenever questions related to minimum employment standards arise in the workplace.

Section 24 of the Canada Labour Standards Regulations identifies the records federally regulated employers are required to keep on file for inspection should the need arise.

Generally speaking, an employer must keep payroll and other employment records for at least 36 months.

For general information, please consult Keeping of Records (Pamphlet 14 – Labour Standards).

For technical guidance, please consult Determining the Employer/Employee Relationship (IPG-069) andDetermining the "Real Employer" (IPG-068).

http://www.labour.gc.ca/eng/standards_equity/st/compliance.shtml?pedisable=true

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federal and provincial jurisdiction In Canada, the power to make laws is divided between the federal and provincial governments. In the area of employment law, the federal government has jurisdiction over employment laws for specific works and undertakings within exclusive federal constitutional jurisdiction, such as shipping, railways, broadcasting, airlines and banks. Many employment relationships, however, do not come within exclusive federal jurisdiction and are governed by the law of the province in which they are located. Only the federal laws will be addressed in this summary. minimum standards of employment The Canada Labour Code (the “Code”) sets out the minimum standards that govern the basic terms and conditions of employment for federal workers, including minimum wage levels, vacation and holiday pay, hours of work, maternity leave, notice periods for termination, and severance payments. Employers and employees are not permitted to contract out of these minimum standards. Some of the minimum standards for federal workers at the time of writing are set out below: minimum wage Federal workers must be paid (at least) the minimum hourly wage rate set by the province in which the employee is usually employed. In Ontario the minimum wage rate for most adult workers is $10.25 per hour. hours of work 8 hours per day 40 hours per week Overtime paid at 1.5 times regular wage public holiday 9 holidays (New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day) paid vacation Two weeks after 12 months of employment for those employed for less than 6 consecutive years; three weeks after 6 consecutive years of employment 4% of wages as vacation pay for those employed less than 6 consecutive years; 6% of wages as vacation pay after 6 consecutive years of employment pregnancy leave 17 week job-protected leave without pay parental/adoptive leave 37 week job-protected leave without pay; 37 week aggregate leave for two employees in relation to the same birth or adoption employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca EMP-FE-0612 compassionate care leave 8 weeks job-protected leave without pay so an employee can care for or support a family member if a qualified medical practitioner issues a certificate stating that there is a serious medical condition with a significant risk of death within 26 weeks termination of employment Termination of employment is one of the most significant areas of employment law. Usually, the analysis of a termination begins with an examination of whether there is “cause” for the termination, followed by an assessment of the employer’s obligations in connection with the termination. termination for cause There is no employment “at will” in Canada. An employer is generally only entitled to dismiss an employee from employment without notice where it has “cause” in law to do so. There is no end to the various types or degrees of conduct or misconduct that can constitute cause for the termination of an employee’s employment. However, cause may be thought of as existing on a spectrum, with single incidents of serious employee misconduct at the “high” end of the spectrum, and minor but repeated incidents of unsatisfactory conduct at the “low” end. In all but the most serious of misconduct cases, a single incident of employee misconduct usually does not constitute cause for termination of the employment. Single incidents of serious misconduct that constitute cause do occur from time-to-time. For example, employees are sometimes caught stealing or misappropriating significant assets or resources from their employer. In such cases, where strong evidence of the theft or misappropriation is obtained, cause for the termination of the employee’s employment may exist. However, such cases are relatively rare. Normally, cause or potential cause cases arise in the context of much less serious conduct, such as attitude, attendance or job performance problems. Cause may exist in these cases, but usually only if the employee has continuously failed to meet the employer’s reasonable, expressed expectations, despite repeated warnings to the contrary. In that regard, the Courts (and other authorities of this jurisdiction) generally require the employer to provide a series of clear, written warnings to the employee regarding the employee’s unsatisfactory conduct and the need to improve or correct that conduct, before terminating the employment relationship for cause. The employee should be notified that the employment relationship is in jeopardy as a result of the maligned conduct, and should be given a reasonable opportunity to improve or correct the conduct before being dismissed for cause. As should be clear from the foregoing, termination of employment for cause is considered “exceptional”, and a substantial burden is placed on an employer to establish that it has cause to end the employment relationship without notice. Employers should note that under the Code non-unionized employees have recourse to an “unjust dismissal” provision. The right to file a complaint under the Code is in addition to the right to commence an action for wrongful dismissal. The provision provides that an employee who has completed twelve (12) consecutive months of continuous employment may file a complaint if the employee considers the dismissal to be “unjust”: that is, without cause. The complaint will be referred to an adjudicator for hearing to determine whether the employee’s dismissal was unjust, notwithstanding any termination payments in lieu of notice offered by the employer, or alternatively whether the dismissal is exempt from the unjust dismissal provision for other reasons. These exemptions include where the employee has been laid off because of “lack of work” or because of “the discontinuance of a function”. If so, the adjudicator will McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers not hear the complaint on its merits. However, in order to demonstrate that an exemption applies, the employer will be required to provide evidence as to why a particular employee was dismissed for “lack of work” or because of “the discontinuance of a function” as opposed to another employee. When a complaint of unjust dismissal is upheld, the employee may be awarded reinstatement as well as additional compensation. Under the Code, an “unjust dismissal” complaint does not apply to an employee who is a “manager”. However, the threshold established under the decided cases as to who is a manager so as to be disentitled from accessing this Code provision is extremely high. termination without cause In the absence of cause for dismissal, employers must generally provide employees with working notice of termination of employment or pay in lieu of notice. A federal employee’s entitlements on termination without cause arise from three potential sources: i. minimum standards established by the Code; ii. the right to reasonable notice of termination at common law; and iii. termination provisions in an enforceable, written employment contract. Each of these is briefly discussed below. A. Canada Labour Code: Notice and Severance Pay The Code sets out minimum standards for two types of potential termination entitlements: notice of termination and severance pay. These obligations may be avoided where there is cause for the dismissal of an employee, although the Code does not define what constitutes just cause for dismissal. Determinations of whether there is cause for dismissal will be made on a case-by-case basis, based on common law principles. In the absence of such cause, notice and severance pay obligations must be considered, and each of these is discussed below. 1. notice of termination The Code provides minimum standards for individual notice of termination obligations and, where 50 or more employees are terminated from an establishment within a four-week period, mass termination obligations. An employer can comply with the notice requirements under the Code by providing working notice, termination pay in lieu of notice or a combination of both. During the statutory notice period, the employer must maintain group health and welfare benefits whether or not the employer chooses to dismiss the employee immediately. individual notice Individuals employed less than three consecutive months are not entitled to notice. All employees who have completed three consecutive months of continuous employment or more are entitled to two weeks of notice. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers 5 mass terminations Additional requirements must be complied with in the case of a mass termination, which is the termination of 50 or more employees at the employer’s establishment within a four-week period. In addition to providing notice to the individual employees affected, as prescribed above, an employer undertaking a mass termination must comply with certain statutory obligations including the provision of written notice to the Minister of Labour. Such notice must be provided to the Minister at least 16 weeks before the date of termination of the employment of the employee in the group whose employment is first to be terminated. The written notice is to include information about the terminations, including the number of affected employees, the location at which the termination is to take place, the dates on which the terminations are to occur, the nature of the industry of the employer, the reason for the intended terminations and the name of any trade union certified to represent any employee in the group of employees whose employment is to be terminated. The employer must provide copies of this notice to the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Canada, the Canada Employment Insurance Commission and any trade union representing an employee whose employment is to be terminated. 2. severance pay Severance pay is payable under the Code to all employees who have completed twelve consecutive months of continuous employment, unless: i. the employee has been dismissed for just cause; or ii. the employee is, either immediately upon ceasing to be employed by the employer or before that time, entitled to a pension under a pension plan contributed to by the employer or under a federal or provincial pension plan. Severance pay is payable at the greater of: iii. two days wages at the employee’s regular rate of wages for regular hours of work in respect of each completed year of employment that is within the term of the employee’s continuous employment by the employer, and iv. five days wages at the employee’s regular rate of wages for his regular hours of work. Unlike the requirement to give notice of termination, severance pay obligations cannot be discharged by way of working notice: severance pay is pay. B. the common law: reasonable notice The entitlements to notice of termination and severance pay established by legislation are minimum standards only: greater obligations may be imposed by the terms of an employment agreement or, in the absence of an agreement, by common law. Common law is the law that has developed in the courts. Where there is no explicit agreement between the employer and the employee that governs termination or notice, the court will imply into the parties’ employment contract an unwritten term for termination on “reasonable notice”. Such a contract term imports an obligation on the employer to provide reasonable notice of termination of employment or payment in lieu of notice, in the event of a termination without cause. The failure to provide an employee with reasonable notice gives rise to an action for damages for “wrongful dismissal”. McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers Reasonable notice at common law is usually in excess of the statutory minimum entitlements to notice and severance pay. The determination of reasonable notice varies from case-to-case, and is dependent upon a number of factors, including the following: • the employee’s age; • the position and responsibilities held by the employee; • the length of the employee’s service; • the quantum of the employee’s remuneration; and • the availability of replacement employment. A rough rule of thumb in respect of reasonable notice is that a managerial or professional employee is entitled to a month of notice, or pay in lieu of notice, for each year of service. This, however, is a very rough rule, and some courts have expressly disapproved of the use of such rules. At the lower range of service, awards of notice for managerial and professional employees are generally greater than one month per year of service, whereas at the higher range of service, the awards are often less than one month per year. When dealing with non-managerial or non-professional employees, the common law entitlement to notice may be in the range of two-to-three weeks per year of service, although it may vary from that range. Is there a “maximum” notice entitlement at common law? A 24-month “cap” on notice has been tacitly acknowledged by some courts, and is rarely exceeded. This level of award is generally reserved for employees of very long service, who are at a professional or managerial level. It is sometimes said that determining reasonable notice for employees is more of an “art” than a “science”. Employers are encouraged to avoid formulaic approaches to assessing notice obligations, but rather to obtain legal advice on a case-by-case basis. A claim for damages for wrongful dismissal brought about by the failure to provide reasonable notice includes claims for all compensation which should have been provided during the period of notice, less any income from alternative employment (or self-employment) earned during the notice period. However, employees are entitled, at a minimum, to their notice and severance pay entitlements under the Code, regardless of whether they earn income from other sources following termination. Reasonable notice of termination at common law is inclusive of minimum statutory notice and severance pay entitlements under the Code. Where pay in lieu of reasonable notice is given, rather than working notice, it may also be inclusive of severance pay under the Code. Again, the common law notice entitlement can be satisfied by way of working notice, compensation in lieu of notice or a combination of both. Courts have also recognized that employers are held to a duty of good faith and fair dealing when terminating a person’s employment. At a minimum, employers are expected to be fair, candid and compassionate in the manner of dismissal and not, for example, to allege just cause for termination without such cause. Failure to act fairly may result in an award of a lengthened reasonable notice period. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 7 C. contract The parties to every employment relationship have an employment contract with one another, whether they realize it or not. An employment contract or agreement need not be in writing but may in fact be oral or implied. The terms of the employment agreement may provide for such matters as the length of the employment relationship, and the obligations arising in connection with the termination of the relationship. Generally, however, the terms of the employment agreement relating to such matters must be reduced to writing in order to be enforceable. It should be clear from the foregoing summary of common law entitlements that it is generally advisable, if possible, to enter into properly-drafted written agreements with employees, that define (and limit) employee entitlements upon termination of employment. Otherwise, a dismissal can be an uncertain and expensive exercise. Provided the notice provisions of a contract are properly drafted and satisfy at least minimum statutory obligations for termination, the employment contract may generally be terminated in accordance with such provisions, notwithstanding what the employee may have been awarded at common law. In the absence of such provisions, however, the termination obligations of the parties may be determined at common law, by a third party such as a Court or adjudicator. Therefore, employers are advised to consult with employment law counsel when preparing employment agreements. unionized employees It should be noted that the common law principle of reasonable notice does not apply to unionized employees. A unionized employee’s entitlements under the Code on termination derive from two sources: the right to notice and severance and any bargained rights set out in an applicable collective agreement. Canadian Human Rights Act Prior to the introduction of human rights legislation in Canada, freedom of contract reigned supreme. The notion of discrimination in contract, employment, housing or services was historically rebutted at common law. In response, comprehensive human rights statutes were introduced in Canadian jurisdictions as early as 1962. Employers engaged in federal undertakings must abide by the provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Act (the “CHRA”). purpose of the Canadian Human Rights Act The CHRA is a federal law that confers equal rights and opportunities without discrimination in specific areas such as jobs, housing and services. prohibited grounds of discrimination Accordingly, the CHRA, subject to numerous exceptions and qualifications, prohibits discrimination on the basis of certain personal characteristics which are known as “prohibited grounds of discrimination.” McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers With respect to employment, prohibited grounds of discrimination include: race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, age, sex (including sexual harassment and discrimination based on pregnancy), sexual orientation, marital status, family status, disability and conviction for which a pardon has been granted. The term “disability” means any previous or existing mental or physical disability and includes disfigurement and previous or existing dependence on alcohol or a drug. Harassment in the workplace based on any prohibited grounds is equally prohibited. The right to “equal treatment with respect to employment” covers applying for a job, being recruited, training, transfers, promotions, terms of apprenticeship, dismissal and layoffs. It also covers rates of pay, overtime, hours of work, holidays, benefits, shift work, discipline and performance evaluations. direct and indirect discrimination Both direct and indirect discrimination are prohibited under the CHRA. Direct discrimination arises where a requirement or qualification is on its face discriminatory. “ABC Co. looking for strong men for yard work” is a clear example of direct discrimination as it excludes women from the selection process, and thus constitutes discrimination based on sex. Indirect discrimination arises when a requirement or qualification, although not discriminatory on its face, has an adverse effect on a person identified by any one of the prohibited grounds of discrimination. “ABC Employer seeks applicants for great position. Applicants must have perfect vision.” The requirement of “perfect vision” would have an adverse effect on the visually challenged, and therefore could constitute discrimination on the basis of disability. bona fide occupational requirement and duty to accommodate A discriminatory standard, requirement or qualification may be justified in certain circumstances, but only if it can be established that the discriminatory standard, requirement or qualification: a. is rationally connected to the function being performed; b. was adopted in an honest and good faith belief that it was necessary to the fulfilment of that purpose; and c. the individual cannot be accommodated without causing undue hardship to the employer, taking into account factors such as cost, financial assistance, if any, and health and safety concerns, if any. complaint and adjudication process An individual who has reason to believe that he/she has been discriminated against can pursue the matter by filing a complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission (“Commission”) setting out the particulars of the allegation. The Commission has the exclusive jurisdiction over allegations of discrimination, save and except in the unionized environment where parties may proceed by way of grievance arbitration if they so elect. No court action lies for claims of discrimination. Once a complaint is received, the Commission will determine whether the complaint is warranted or is frivolous or vexatious. The Commission does not adjudicate complaints – it only serves to screen complaints. Moreover, the Commission has the authority to refuse to entertain a complaint on various grounds. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 9 If the Commission does not reject or otherwise refuse to deal with a complaint, the subject of the complaint will be served with a copy of the allegations. The Commission will request that a reply be provided within a set time line. After receiving a reply, the Commission may attempt to mediate the issues between the parties. Alternatively, the Commission may appoint a conciliator. If neither of these options prove successful, the Commission may then proceed to formally investigate the complaint. Investigators nominated under the CHRA have broad powers to enter premises, interview individuals and review documents. If, after an investigation, the Commission is satisfied that there are valid grounds to pursue the matter further, the complaint will then be referred to a Tribunal, which is the administrative body responsible for adjudicating human rights complaints under the CHRA. potential remedies/damages If the Tribunal finds that there has been a breach of the CHRA, it may exercise its broad remedial powers. For instance, it can order: a. adoption of a special program or plan to reduce disadvantages that are likely to be suffered by a particular group based on or related to the prohibited grounds; b. rights, opportunities or privileges that were denied as a result of the discriminatory practice be made available to the victim; c. compensation for past wage losses, compensation in lieu of reinstatement as well as for other expenses incurred by the victim as a result of the discriminatory practice; d. compensation of up to $20,000 for any pain or suffering experienced as a result of the discriminatory practice; and e. other more general measures designed to prevent future discriminatory practices. It is public policy in Canada to preserve and recognize the inherent dignity and self-worth of every individual regardless of the individual’s color, sex, etc. Employers are well advised to take human rights into consideration when defining and developing their hiring, recruiting and promotional practices, and other employment policies. Workplace Safety And Insurance Act In Canada, provincial governments have the right to require federal sector employers to participate in provincial workers’ compensation schemes. Thus, federal sector employers who have employees in Ontario are covered under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (the “WSIA”), which is Ontario’s nofault compensation insurance scheme for worker injuries arising out of, or in the course of, employment. As the product of historical bargaining between workers and employers, the WSIA provides for benefits to workers injured in the course of employment or disabled by specified industrial diseases. In exchange, workers relinquish their rights to commence civil actions against employers for negligence causing bodily harm, if their WSIA claims are covered under the insurance plan. McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers administration Responsibility for administrating the WSIA rests with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (“Board”). The Board adjudicates claims, dispenses benefits, manages early and safe return to work programs and generally mediates and adjudicates disputes between employers and workers concerning workers’ compensation and their rights and obligations under the WSIA. Employers or workers discontent with a final decision of the Board may have a right of appeal to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal. Appeals must be filed within prescribed time limits. who is covered? The vast majority of employers are covered under the WSIA. The WSIA mandates that certain federal sector employees be covered including certain employees involved in railroads, shipping, telecommunications and airlines. However, certain industries, including banks, are not required to participate in the no fault insurance plan. Where employers are not required to participate in the provincial plan, they are required to subscribe to a plan that provides an employee who is absent from work due to work-related illness or injury with wage replacement, payable at an equivalent rate to that provided for under the applicable workers’ compensation legislation in the employee’s province of permanent residence. Note, however, that employers operating in industries not subject to the WSIA may elect coverage under the WSIA. The WSIA sets out procedures and requirements (including costs) for doing so. Sole proprietors, partners and executive officers, who are generally not subject to the WSIA, may also elect coverage. registration Employers operating in industries subject to the WSIA must register their businesses with the Board within 10 days of hiring their first employee. Failure to do so could lead to a prosecution under the WSIA and, if convicted, a substantial fine. premiums Employers collectively fund the WSIA insurance program by way of premiums. An employer who comes within the scope of the WSIA is required to contribute, while others who are not may elect to do so, if they wish. Different costs, rights and protections apply to those who do not come within the scope of the WSIA but nonetheless elect coverage. For administrative purposes, employers are divided into industry classes and subclasses, depending on their hazard potential. Premiums are based on regular assessments, which take into account such factors as payroll, industry classification (i.e. hazards) and experience ratings. Thus, employers judged more likely to cause compensable injuries contribute a proportionally greater share to the accident fund. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 11 compensable injuries Not all injuries, illnesses or accidents are compensable under the insurance plan. A worker (or his or her beneficiary, as the case may be) who is injured or dies as a result of a work-related accident, or suffers a work-related illness, generally qualifies for benefits. Entitlement, however, may be denied if the injury is due solely to wilful misconduct, unless it results in severe injury. In some instances, it may be difficult to determine whether an injury arises out of, or in, the course of employment. Therefore, the Board has developed policies on the issue in an effort to assist all parties concerned. claims A worker who sustains an injury, or becomes ill as a result of being exposed to hazardous substances in the workplace, must notify his or her employer as soon as possible to begin the claim process. Upon learning of a workplace injury or illness, an employer has three (3) days to report the accident or illness to the Board in a prescribed form. In any event, workers must submit their claims for benefits within a period of six (6) months from the date of the accident or learning of their illness, which time frame may be extended by the Board in some circumstances. compensation benefits If the Board approves a claim, the worker may be eligible for any of the following benefits depending on the circumstances and nature of the injury/illness: 1. benefits for Loss of Earnings (LOE) Workplace insurance presently pays workers a percentage of their take home pay, up to a prescribed maximum. The Board regularly revises the threshold of insurable earnings. 2. benefits for Non-Economic Loss (NEL) Workers who suffer permanent impairment may receive a non-economic loss benefit to compensate physical or psychological loss. Again, the WSIA sets out maximum amounts that workers may recover on account of permanent injuries. 3. benefits for Future Economic Loss (FEL) Benefits to replace future income losses may be available to workers who were permanently injured after January 1, 1990 but before January 1, 1998. 4. health care Costs for health care services may be paid by workplace insurance (i.e. doctor’s or chiropractor’s visits, prescription drugs, etc.). 5. return to work assistance The Board assists workers and employers in facilitating workers’ early and safe return to work following injuries or illnesses. Employers are required to reinstate certain workers back into their employment. When an employer is incapable of re-employing a worker after an injury or illness, the Board may provide programs to help the worker to re-enter the workforce in another job or business. McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers Labour market re-entry plans are generally assessed directly against an employer’s account, and thus are generally very expensive endeavours. 6. survivor benefits The Board provides benefits to the survivors of a worker who dies as a result of a workplace accident or injury, including the following types of benefits: i. survivor payments (lump sum and monthly payments); ii. funeral and transportation costs; iii. supportive and financial counselling; and iv. assistance in entering the workforce, if applicable. 7. retirement benefits The Board sets aside a percentage of all loss of earning benefits to create a retirement fund for workers 64 years of age and under who have received benefits for 12 consecutive months, to create a retirement fund for such persons. retaliation A worker who has sustained a workplace injury or illness and is receiving or has received benefits as a result, is entitled to be free from retaliation from the worker’s employer. bar against civil actions WSIA benefits replace and preclude a worker’s right to commence a civil action against the worker’s employer, save and except for prescribed exceptions (i.e. where a third party is involved and the worker elects to pursue a civil action). The WSIA provides an adjudicative mechanism process should an issue arise as to whether the WSIA bars a worker’s civil action against either the worker’s employer or a third party. Finally, it should be noted that the WSIA confers various rights on workers and employers alike, and further prescribes numerous duties on all affected parties. Thus, reference should always be made to the statute in any given situation. Occupational Health and Safety, Part II of the Code Employers and employees both have a vested interest in workplace health and safety. Accordingly, occupational health and safety legislation places reciprocal rights and obligations on management and labour in an effort to ensure that Canadian workplaces are safe and healthy environments. The Code contains provisions regulating occupational health and safety in relation to federal employers. Like most other occupational health and safety legislation in Canada, the Code sets out a comprehensive standard of conduct for both management and labour, all in the interest of health and safety in the workplace. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 13 The Code sets out the rights and duties of management and workers generally, while the Regulations prescribe specific rights and obligations applicable to a variety of different workplaces, industries and a number of toxic substances. The Code may not apply to certain workplaces; thus reference to the statute is always recommended. administration and enforcement The Canada Industrial Relations Board and health and safety officers delegated by the Minister of Labour administer the occupational health and safety provisions of the Code. Health and safety officers are nominated under the Code to enforce its provisions, to inspect workplaces for compliance and to investigate serious accidents or workplace fatalities. Federally regulated workplaces are subject to routine compliance inspections and investigations. Officers possess extensive statutory powers, including, among others, the authority to: enter any workplace, question any individual, handle, use or test any equipment or machinery, inspect documents, take photographs, issue compliance orders and commence prosecutions. general rights and duties The Code attempts to balance the general right of management to direct its workforce and control its production process with workers’ legitimate concerns for health and safety. Aside from the multitude of specific duties imposed on employers in the Regulations, employers are guided in the Code by an allencompassing duty to protect the health and safety of workers. Recognizing that responsibility for health and safety in the workplace does not solely rest with employers, the Code is guided by three basic tenets: the right to participate As noted above, employers and workers share mutual obligations and rights for health and safety in the workplace. Thus, although liability for health and safety in the workplace may ultimately rest with employers (and owners, supervisors, corporate directors and officers, contractors and suppliers of equipment, etc.), workers also have extensive roles in ensuring safe and healthy workplaces. Worker participation is generally done through a joint health and safety committee or, for smaller employers with fewer than 20 employees, a health and safety representative. Both work alongside the employer, supervisors, etc. to oversee and enforce health and safety in the workplace. Specifically, some of their responsibilities include: 1. participating in the monitoring of work accidents, injuries and health hazards; 2. making recommendations on ways to improve workplace health and safety; 3. assisting in the development of health and safety policies and programs; and 4. participating in inquiries, investigations, studies and inspections pertaining to occupational health and safety. The Code places a general duty on employers to cooperate with and assist joint health and safety committees or representatives to carry out their statutory obligations. All federal sector workplaces are required to have either a health and safety committee or a health and safety representative, unless exempted by a health and safety officer as a result of a similar provision in a collective agreement. The McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers Code sets out specific thresholds as to when committees or representatives are required, and further defines rules respecting eligibility for membership in health and safety committees. the right to know Workers have the right to know about any potential or real hazards to which they may be exposed. This extends to a right to be trained and to have access to information on machinery, equipment, working conditions, processes and hazardous substances. As a corollary to this right, employers are required under the Code to, among other things: 1. instruct, inform and supervise workers to protect their health and safety; 2. appoint competent persons as supervisors; 3. ensure committees and health and safety representatives carry out their duties; 4. prepare and post a written occupational health and safety policy; and 5. comply with all prescribed duties, including: i. provide and maintain in good condition any prescribed equipment, materials and protective devices; ii. if required, establish and maintain an occupational health service for workers; iii. maintain an inventory of biological, chemical or physical agents, substances and records of the handling, use, storage and disposal of such agents; and iv. carry out prescribed training programs for workers, supervisors and committee members or health and safety representatives. Employers are required to ensure that supervisors are adequately trained in health and safety and are informed of their responsibility under the Code to ensure standards are met. the right to refuse work Workers are entitled to outright refuse work, or to refuse to work with machinery or equipment that they believe is dangerous to either their own health and safety, or the health and safety of another worker, without retaliation from their employer. If a worker refuses work, the worker must immediately inform the worker’s supervisor or employer. The Code sets out specific procedures that must be followed in the event of a work refusal. In short, the Code mandates an internal investigation process, which involves the worker and any one of the following: a joint committee member, a health and safety representative or another worker. If the investigation does not resolve the work refusal, then either the employer or worker must notify a health and safety officer, who will then investigate and resolve the work refusal. The Code spells out in great detail the worker’s and employer’s rights and obligations during a work refusal. Thus, reference should be made to the Code should a work refusal arise. Notably, specific procedures must be followed in the event of a refusal to work by an employee on a ship or aircraft. offences and penalties The Code can be enforced against anyone who has any degree of control over a workplace, materials or equipment found in a workplace, or control over the direction of the work force. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 15 If the internal, self-enforcement mechanism of the Code fails to adequately address any health and safety issues in a workplace, or if the Code or the Regulations enacted under it are not complied with, the Ministry of Labour has the authority to enforce the law. The Ministry of Labour may prosecute any person for a violation of the Code or its regulations, or for failing to comply with an order from a health and safety officer or the Minister of Labour. Presently, if prosecuted and convicted of an offence under the Code, an individual (i.e. supervisors, directors and officers) can be fined up to $1,000,000 and/or imprisoned for up to two years. A corporation may be fined up to $1,000,000. The regulation of occupational health and safety is also covered by the Criminal Code. The Criminal Code imposes liability on employers, their corporate directors, executive officers, operations managers, plant managers, production managers and any other person who exercises control or who has authority over a workplace. Employment Insurance Act Most Canadian workers and employers contribute to a statutory income replacement insurance program administered under the authority of the Employment Insurance Act (the “EIA”). The insurance scheme is entirely funded by employer and employee premiums, which are calculated based on “insurable earnings,” a defined term in the EIA. As a general rule, most employment in Canada is insurable unless specifically stated otherwise in the EIA. Under the system, employers are required to contribute a certain percentage of employees’ insurable earnings into the fund, and withhold at source and remit their employees’ contributions, up to a prescribed maximum insurable amount. The following highlights basic obligations imposed on employers. It is intended to assist managers and human resource professionals in responding to enquiries that are made from time to time from employees contemplating sick, maternity or parental leave. eligibility and types of benefits available There are essentially five (5) types of benefits available under the EIA, each intended to provide temporary income support in different circumstances. They are: 1. regular benefits An employee who has lost his or her job through no fault of his or her own (i.e. layoff, etc…) may be eligible for income replacement benefits known as regular benefits. If eligible, the claimant may be paid regular benefits for a certain period, the length of which depends upon the employment rate in the claimant’s region at the time of filing the claim and the amount of insurable hours the claimant has banked. Eligible claimants must first observe a two week unpaid waiting period before receiving benefits. To qualify for regular benefits a claimant must have been without work and without pay for at least seven consecutive days and have worked the minimum prescribed number of insurable hours in the 52 weeks immediately prior to the claim. The minimum number of insurable hours required to qualify for regular benefits varies from region to region and from time to time, thus reference should be made to the EIA and its Regulations. The number of weeks for which benefits are payable to eligible claimants is contingent on the amount of insurable hours worked and the unemployment rate in the claimant’s region, which again change from time to time. McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers 2. sick benefits An employee whose earnings are interrupted as a result of illness, injury or quarantine, may apply for sick benefits. Sick benefits are payable to eligible claimants for a maximum period of 15 weeks. To qualify for sick benefits, the claimant must have accumulated at least 600 insurable hours in the previous 52 weeks or since the person’s last claim. Qualifying requirements are amended from time to time. Thus reference to the EIA is always recommended. 3. maternity benefits Pregnant employees who have accumulated at least 600 insurable hours in the last 52 weeks (or since their last benefits claim) are eligible for maternity benefits. Maternity benefits are payable for a maximum period of 15 weeks. 4. parental benefits An individual who has accumulated at least 600 insurable hours in the last 52 weeks (or since the person’s last benefits claim, save and except a claim for maternity benefits), is entitled to parental benefits. Parental benefits are available to natural or adoptive parents who wish to remain at home to care for one or more newborn children or one or more adoptive children. Parental benefits are payable for a maximum period of 35 weeks. 5. compassionate care benefits On January 4, 2004, amendments to the EIA and Regulations came into force introducing compassionate care benefits. Employees may be paid a maximum of six weeks of benefits during a leave of absence taken in order to care for gravely ill family members at risk of dying within 26 weeks. To qualify, employees must have worked a minimum of 600 insurable hours in the last 52 weeks. They must also be able to prove that their income has dropped because they have taken time off to care for a seriously ill relative and they must provide a medical certificate. The EIA sets out various rules, requirements, limitations and exceptions that may affect entitlement to income replacement benefits, which are frequently amended from time to time. Therefore, reference should always be made to the EIA and its Regulations. benefits - quantum At the time of drafting, the basic benefit rate under the EIA is 55% of a claimant’s average insured earnings up to the maximum amount set out in the legislation, which varies depending upon the year in which the claimant’s benefit period begins. The EIA sets out a specific formula for calculating “average insured earnings.” Benefits under the EIA are considered taxable income; therefore, provincial and federal taxes will be deducted. employment law in Canada - federally regulated employers McMillan LLP | mcmillan.ca 17 Claimants are entitled to earn up to a certain allowable amount while receiving income replacement benefits under the EIA, without affecting their benefit entitlement. Any monies earned over and above the allowable amount will be deducted dollar for dollar from the benefits. employer obligations The EIA sets out a number of obligations for employers. Particularly, employers are required to: 1. issue a Record of Employment (ROE) within five calendar days after an employee: (a) quits employment, (b) was laid off or (c) has had his or her earnings interrupted for a period of seven (7) consecutive days; 2. keep records of insurable hours worked for each employee, for a period of six years after the relevant year for which the records relate (since benefits are based on an hourly qualification system); 3. deduct and remit employment insurance premiums for each dollar of insurable earnings up to the yearly maximum; and 4. report severance payments, if any, paid to dismissed employees. In addition to the foregoing, the EIA sets out a number of other obligations and offences, breach of which could lead to penalties, fines and prosecution. Thus, reference should be made to the EIA and its Regulations should issues arise. administration The Employment Insurance Commission (the “Commission”) oversees the EIA and manages the insurance fund. Human Resources and Social Development Canada administers income replacement benefits to eligible employees. If an employer or a claimant disagrees with the Commission’s decision to either deny or grant income replacement benefits, then either party can appeal the decision within prescribed time limits to the adjudicative bodies authorized under the EIA to hear the appeal(s). a cautionary note The foregoing provides a summary of aspects of Canadian law that may interest investors considering doing business in Canada. A group of McMillan lawyers prepared this information, which is accurate at the time of writing. Readers are cautioned against making decisions based on this material alone. Rather, any proposal to do business in Canada should most definitely be discussed with qualified professional advisers. (The information in this brochure is current to September, 2011)

http://www.mcmillan.ca/files/Employment%20Law%20in%20Canada%20-%20Federally%20Regulated%20Employers.pdf

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Employment and Labour Law in Canada

by JIM HASSELL & SVEN POYSA

The constant change associated with employment and labour law in Canada poses a signi!cant challenge for employers doing business here. That challenge is compounded by the fact that employers with operations across Canada may be subject to di"ering employment laws in each province.

Both the federal and provincial levels of government have jurisdiction over employment and labour matters for certain types of employers. The level of government that has jurisdiction is determined by the industry in which an employer operates. For example, industries that are inter-provincial by nature – such as airlines, telecommunications and railways – are regulated by the federal government. Most other industries – which account for the majority of employers in Canada – fall under provincial jurisdiction. Employment Standards The employment standards legislation in each jurisdiction sets out mandatory minimum conditions of employment governing areas such as hours of work, overtime pay, minimum wages, holidays, vacations, employee bene!t plans, pregnancy, parental leave and other leaves of absence, notice of termination of employment, and severance and termination pay. Certain categories of employees may be exempt from certain standards. As a result of these varying legislative requirements, U.S. employee policies on the above issues need to be adapted for use in Canada. Human Rights/Non-Discrimination (Equal Treatment) All jurisdictions in Canada have administrative agencies that handle human rights complaints and legislation designed to address discriminatory practices in the workplace on the basis of, for example, race, creed, colour, ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, ancestry, place of origin, family status, record of o"ences and disability. Ontario employees may either add such a complaint to a wrongful dismissal lawsuit or !le a complaint with by JIM HASSELL & SVEN POYSA Doing Business in Canada Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP Page 41 chapter 09 Employment and Labour Law in Canada a human rights tribunal. The tribunal may award monetary compensation; order reinstatement of a terminated employee; and require an employer to take steps to prevent discrimination and harassment. a) Age Discrimination & Mandatory Retirement Most provinces in Canada have expanded the de!nition of “age” to protect those 65 years of age or over from discrimination, thereby eliminating mandatory retirement. That said, exceptions continue to exist allowing di"erentiation among employees on the basis of age for pension and group insurance plans. In addition, potentially discriminatory di"erences based on age (or other enumerated grounds of discrimination) may be permitted if the employer can establish that such di"erences constitute a “bona !de occupational requirement.” b) Employees With Disabilities: the Duty to Accommodate Courts, tribunals and human rights commissions have become increasingly activist in promoting the protection of disabled employees under human rights legislation. Employers have a duty to accommodate disabled employees to the point of “undue hardship” – a high standard under Canadian human rights law. Employers usually are expected to go to considerable lengths to provide time o", modi!ed duties and other assistance to accommodate disabled employees. c) Drug and Alcohol Testing Employees who are addicted to drugs and alcohol are considered to be disabled and thus drug and alcohol testing can raise human rights concerns. Appellate courts in di"erent provinces have issued seemingly contradictory decisions about an employer’s ability to conduct pre-employment drug testing. Random drug and alcohol testing has largely been found to violate human rights legislation, but may be permitted in certain circumstances, such as where the employer can demonstrate that testing is required for safety reasons. Workers’ Compensation Canada’s provinces and territories have no-fault insurance systems to compensate employees for workplace injuries and most (but not all) employers must participate in these systems. Generally, an employee may not sue an employer for personal injury or an accident arising out of and in the course of employment, but rather can claim compensation from the no-fault insurance accident fund. The workers’ compensation board in each province is responsible for the applicable legislation and has broad powers of enforcement. There is no federal workers’ compensation legislation and thus federally-regulated employers in Ontario and elsewhere often have the choice of “opting-in” to the provincial regime. Doing Business in Canada Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP Page 42 chapter 09 Employment and Labour Law in Canada Employment Equity (A!rmative Action) Some provinces, like Ontario, have abandoned employment equity legislation. However, mandatory federal employment equity laws apply to provincially-regulated employers who bid on federal government contracts. Under the Canadian Employment Equity Act, a federally-regulated employer must prepare and submit annual reports about its workplace, such as occupational groups, salary ranges, hiring and terminations. Failure to submit complete and accurate reports is a violation of the Act. These same requirements are applied by the federal government to any employer who has a contract with the federal government valued at $200,000 or more. Pay Equity (Equal Pay) In Canada, “pay equity” refers to wage parity between male and female job classes who perform work of equal value to redress systemic discrimination. Ontario’s Pay Equity Act is one of the most far-reaching pieces of legislation of its kind in any Canadian jurisdiction. For employers in the province who have not maintained their pay equity arrangements which have been required since the mid-1990s, an employee complaint may result in a signi!cant potential liability in retroactive wage adjustments to current and former employees. The Act provides for a proactive enforcement mechanism under which employers can be found liable for non-compliance even if no employee lodges a complaint. The Pay Equity O#ce ensures legislative compliance through periodic audits and by investigating complaints. Legislation in most other provinces provides for a complaint-driven process under which an employer may be held accountable only if an employee or union !les a complaint. Executive Compensation Designing, implementing and administering compensation and bene!ts arrangements for foreign businesses operating in Canada must take into account Canadian tax and employment laws, securities disclosure and compliance requirements, and heightened scrutiny by shareholders and other stakeholders, regulators and the courts. Director and O!cer Liability If a company fails to pay its employees due to insolvency or other reasons, business corporations statutes and/or employment legislation in certain Canadian jurisdictions impose personal liability on directors and o#cers of the company for unpaid wages and certain other amounts that may be owing to employees. Doing Business in Canada Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP Page 43 chapter 09 Employment and Labour Law in Canada Occupational Health and Safety Occupational health and safety legislation across Canada requires employers to provide workers with a safe workplace. Most provinces also impose a number of speci!c duties (i.e., preparation of a written occupational health and safety plan and establishment of a joint health and safety committee certi!ed members of which may order a work stoppage where dangerous circumstances exist). In most jurisdictions, a worker has the right to refuse unsafe work. Fines for violations of health and safety legislation can be signi!cant and are rising. Recent changes to Canada’s Criminal Code provide for the prospect of criminal charges for senior managers, o#cers and directors of corporations for health and safety violations. A criminal conviction may result in a jail sentence. In recent years, a number of jurisdictions in Canada have added requirements to protect workers from workplace violence and harassment. Health Tax Some jurisdictions pay for health care out of general tax revenues. The “Ontario Health Insurance Plan” (OHIP) is available to all Ontario residents and is funded in part by a graduated payroll tax paid by employers. The Ontario “health premium” is paid by employees according to their income level. Termination of Employment “At-will” employment does not exist in Canada and, as such, an employer cannot terminate an employee’s employment without notice (or pay in lieu), unless the employer has “just cause,” which is a very high standard. Employees who are terminated without cause are guaranteed certain minimum entitlements under applicable employment standards legislation as well as potential common-law and/or contractual termination entitlements. a) Minimum Notice of Termination Employment standards legislation in each jurisdiction sets out varying minimum notice of termination requirements – and, in some cases, statutory severance pay – or pay in lieu of notice for employees terminated without cause. Statutory notice typically ranges from one to eight weeks’ written notice, based on an employee’s length of service. Most jurisdictions require enhanced notice when an employer terminates or inde!nitely lays o" a certain number of employees within a speci!ed period. b) Common Law or Civil Law Requirements Although employment standards legislation sets out minimum standards, non-union employees are also entitled to “reasonable” notice of termination under the common law (or under the Civil Code of Doing Business in Canada Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP Page 44 chapter 09 Employment and Labour Law in Canada Québec for employees in Québec). Such notice is often substantially longer than the statutory minimums and depends on such factors as the employee’s position, length of service, re-employment prospects and age. An employee who has been terminated with notice in accordance with the applicable employment standards legislation may still sue the employer for more pay in lieu of notice. Court awards of a year or more are not unusual for senior management employees, with awards of up to 24 months for long-service, senior employees. In the absence of a contractual provision limiting termination entitlements, short-service employees have also been found to be entitled to common-law reasonable notice that may be equal to or even longer than their service with the company. c) Contractual Termination Provisions Employers and employees may enter into a written contract that speci!es entitlement on termination of employment. This contractual severance will replace the common-law default of reasonable notice, as long as the contract meets or exceeds the minimum statutory entitlements. Such provisions can limit employers’ exposure while also providing certainty to both parties. Union Certi"cation and Labour Relations Approximately one third of the Canadian labour force is unionized. By law, employees are free to join a union of their own choice and to participate in its lawful activities. The rules for certifying unions vary between jurisdictions. For example, Ontario currently requires the union to win a vote which is only held after at least 40% of the employees have signed union cards. Other jurisdictions provide for unionization without a vote when a certain percentage of employees (usually a majority) have signed union membership cards. An employer faced with a union organizing campaign may not make threats or promises intended to in$uence the employees’ decision; otherwise, the labour relations tribunal charged with adjudicating the dispute may, in certain jurisdiction, automatically certify the union. Following certi!cation, the parties must bargain in good faith in an attempt to reach a collective agreement. Strikes and lockouts are not permitted during the term of a collective agreement. Sale of a Business – Successor Employers As a successor employer, the purchaser of a business can inherit a wide variety of employment-related liabilities and obligations from the vendor. These can include termination costs, employment Doing Business in Canada Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP Page 45 chapter 09 Employment and Labour Law in Canada Osler’s Employment & Labour Department offers practical and resultsoriented advice that recognizes the value and importance of human resources to an organization’s success. Jim Hassell and Sven Poysa are members of our Department. contact jim hassell jhassell@osler.com 416.862.6623 sven poysa spoysa@osler.com 416.862.5934 standards violations, workers’ compensation costs, pay equity adjustments, collective agreements and union bargaining rights. Accordingly, only careful due diligence can bring to light the liabilities being acquired along with a business. To reduce such liabilities, transactions can be structured in various ways and vendors may provide appropriate indemnities. Employee Privacy A number of jurisdictions, including the federal government, British Columbia, Alberta and Québec, have introduced privacy legislation covering the employment relationship. Previously, few rules governed how employers gathered and managed personal information respecting employees. Employers operating in jurisdictions with privacy legislation are now expected to establish policies for the collection, storage and disclosure of employee information. This new legislation also further limits the circumstances in which employers may conduct surveillance for the purpose of discovering employee wrongdoing or poor performance. Employers must also be aware that, under privacy legislation, they are accountable for any personal information transferred to suppliers; therefore, precautions should be taken to ensure the con!dentiality and security of such information. Unique Québec Considerations The province of Québec has language and employment law considerations which are unique to that province. Please see Chapter 17, “Doing Business in Québec,” starting on page 86.

https://www.osler.com/uploadedFiles/News_and_Resources/Publications/Guides/Doing_Business_in_Canada_-_2011/DBIC-Chapter9.pdf

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BLOGSPOT:

CANADA MILITARY NEWS- April 6/15 Hey Canadians lets hug our troops close and just make Canada great- USA CHINA IMF OWN WORLD ECONOMY… so let’s just make our Nature’s last home on this planet, our Canada, totally self-sufficient like our forefathers/mothers did

http://nova0000scotia.blogspot.ca/2015/04/canada-military-news-2015-love-our.html

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Canadian immigration is the set of rules, regulations, directives, policies and the Act of Parliament that regulates the entry of each person in to Canada. Immigration, the entrance of people into a country for the purpose of settling there, has always played a central role in Canadian history. It was as much a feature of ancient times, when the ancestors of Canada's native peoples migrated from Asia by land via Beringia or by sea via the Japanese current, as it is of the present day, when immigrants from around the world come to this country in the thousands.

Over the period of time, the complexity of Canadian immigration has attracted Canadian immigration lawyers to develop practice in the area of Canadian immigration law. Primarily, Canadian immigration lawyers assisted families in Canada to sponsor their family members abroad, assisted Canadian businessmen to recruit foreign workers and also represented those people who were subject to deportation order from Canada.

The Canadian immigration department has developed very systematic immigration criteria to recruit economic class immigrants, which includes skilled worker, and business class immigrants in to Canada. The present Canadian Immigration and Citizenship department, also known as CIC Canada, is the most important department of the Canadian government.
In order to apply for Canadian immigration, the applicant is required to make the application using the prescribed immigration application forms. The Canadian Citizenship and Immigration Canada also maintains statistics of the number of immigrants entering Canada, number of applications approved, the kind of people entering Canada and such other data.

Like any other country, Canadian Immigration policy is divided in two parts:

Temporary entry into Canada:

Permanent Immigration to Canada:

Independent Class or professional class or skilled worker class;
[Occupation under which application for immigration to Canada can be made as of 26.06.2010]
If you are not on this occupation you have following options to apply for immigration of Canada:
(i) If you have 2 years of experience of working in Canada in last 3 years you can apply for immigration of Canada under Canadian Experience class;
(ii) If you have studied in Canada for 2 years and have one year work experience you can apply for immigration of Canada under Canadian Experience class;
(iii)If you are ready to learn French language you can apply under Quebec skilled worker class.
(iv) If you are on H1B visa in USA you can apply under Alberta Skilled worker program.
(v) If you have company to sponsor you in Canada, you can apply with confirmed job offer.
Business Class;
Self - employed class;
Family sponsorship;

Government Visa Fees:

Government of Canada's visa fees and Right of Landing Fee(ROLF)
This means an individual can come to Canada under any of the above two broad classes.

TEMPORARY ENTRY INTO CANADA:

Under this class an individual can make an application under the following three categories when he/she is OUTSIDE of Canada.

1. Applying for Visitor visa ( Tourist visa ): Canada Immigration
An application maybe submitted under this class if the applicant wishes to come to Canada as a visitor or tourist. The purpose of such a visit should be to visit relatives, to attend a business meeting, to attend a conference or convention, pleasure trip, participating in a cultural show and such other purpose.

2. Applying for Student authorization ( Student visa): Canada Immigration
An application maybe made under this class if the applicant wishes to come to Canada for purpose of study as an international student.

3.Applying for Employment authorization ( Work permit ): Canada Immigration
An applicant can make application under this class if he/she wishes to come to Canada and work for a Canadian company. This is similar to a H-1 visa of USA. In many countries it is also called as work permit visa.
If you have come to Canada under any of the above visa categories, you may apply for extension of your visa while you are WITHIN Canada:
OR
WHILE IN CANADA, you may also apply for any of the following type of visa and change your visa status. This may lead you to permanent immigration visa of Canada.

Applying for immigrant visa of Canada as Conventional refugee, also known as political asylum. Canada Immigration
Applying for work permit visa as a Live-in-caregiver also known as nanny or domestic help or au pair. One may apply under this class if he/she wishes to work in Canada as a household /domestic help or take care of a child (ren) or elderly person. Canada Immigration Reg. Sec.20(1.1)
Applying for Immigrant visa of Canada as a spouse. One may apply under this class if he/she gets married in Canada while on a temporary visa.
Applying for immigrant visa of Canada under the Humanitarian and compassionate reasons. Canada Immigration Reg. Sec. 6.

B. PERMANENT IMMIGRATION TO CANADA:
Under this class, one can make application for PERMANENT IMMIGRATION TO CANADA under the following three categories when he/she is OUTSIDE of Canada.

Applying for immigrant visa of Canada under the Independent Class. Canada Immigration

This class has become very popular and also known as professional class or skilled worker class and the application is assessed based on a point system. An individual should make an application under this class if he/she wishes to come to Canada based on his/her qualification, work experience and knowledge of English or French language.

Applying for immigrant visa of Canada under the Entrepreneur class, investor class or self employed class. Canada Immigration

This class is also known as business immigration class. One should make an application under the entrepreneur class and self-employed class if he/she wishes to start a business in Canada. A person should make an application under the investor class if he/she DOES NOT wish to start a business in Canada.

Applying for immigrant visa of Canada under the Family class. Canada Immigration

If an individual has close relatives in Canada, he/she may apply under this class for family sponsorship.

SPONSORSHIP BY A CANADIAN CITIZEN OR PERMANENT RESIDENT:

Canadian citizens and permanent residents may make an application to sponsor their relatives under one of the following class;

Family class relatives. Canada Immigration Reg. Sec.6(2)(a).
Private sponsorship of refugees. Canada Immigration Reg. Sec.7(2).

APPLICATION BY A PERMANENT RESIDENT OF CANADA FOR:

!. Returning Resident Permit : A person may make this application if he/she is a permanent resident of Canada and wishes to or has to stay outside Canada for more than six months. Canada Immigration Reg. Sec.26.
2. Application to change the Immigration Record of Landing or IMM 1000 form.

CANADIAN CITIZENSHIP:

As a general principle a person may apply for Canadian citizenship provided he/she is a permanent resident of Canada for more than three years.
Applying to find proof of citizenship, also called citizenship certificate. This maybe undertaken while the applicant is within Canada or outside of Canada.
Applying for search for citizenship record.

http://www.canadaimmigrationvisa.com/visatype.html

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