Working For Workers Four Act, 2023

November 14, 2023

The Ontario government is introducing new legislation to continue leading the country in ground-breaking protections for workers. These proposed changes expand on the historic measures in the Working for Workers Acts, 2021, 2022 and 2023, which are helping millions of people in Ontario earn bigger paycheques and supporting newcomers in building the province.

Today, the government is introducing the Working for Workers Four Act, 2023, which if passed, would:

• Help workers make informed decisions in their career search by requiring employers to disclose salary ranges in job postings and if artificial intelligence (AI) is used during the hiring process.
• Support injured workers by enabling “super indexing” increases to Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) benefits above the annual rate of inflation to increase pay for injured workers, along with improving cancer coverage for firefighters.
• Make Ontario the first province in Canada to ban the use of Canadian work experience as a requirement in job postings or application forms, so more qualified candidates progress in their job search.
• Strengthen wage protections for restaurant and hospitality workers by banning unpaid trial shifts, making clear employers can never deduct an employee’s wages in the event of a dine and dash, gas and dash, or any other stolen property and protecting their hard-earned tips.

The government will also be launching consultations to:

• Restrict the use of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) in the settlement of cases of workplace sexual harassment, misconduct or violence.
• Create a new, job-protected leave for critical illnesses (like cancer) to match the length of the 26-week federal Employment Insurance sickness benefits.