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Ontario Looking to Add Layoff Protections for Remote Workers

Province looking to require employers to give remote workers the same amount of notice as "in-office" staff in mass termination situations

The Ontario government is looking to give remote workers more protections in the event of mass layoffs. 

The province has proposed updates to employment laws that would require employers to give staff who work solely from home the same enhanced notice as "in-office" and other workers in mass termination situations. 

Labour Minister Monte McNaughton made the announcement today, saying this would give remote workers the same eight-week minimum notice of termination or pay-in-lieu as other employees. 

"Whether you commute to work every day or not shouldn’t determine what you are owed. No billion-dollar company should be treating their remote employees as second-class," said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development. "The future of work is here, and our government will continue to lead the country in ensuring workers have the protections they need to find better jobs and earn bigger paycheques in the 21st century economy."

McNaughton also notes this could increase the amount of money a worker gets in a layoff by as much as eight time. 

The minimum severance pay for an individual layoff is one week, but the minimum for a mass layoff is eight weeks. 

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