Here’s what the Act to Restore Ontario’s Competitiveness has in it for people who work for a living. (Source: this link. Hat tip to Angie Slingerland.)
1. Allowing employers to ‘average’ time worked across a four-week span. I work with numbers. There is no reason to do this, *except* to deny workers overtime pay. None. It’s called regression to the mean.
2. Not requiring employers to get a signed agreement from workers if they request >48 hours of work per week. This ‘red tape’ creates a record that can be checked up on. Bye-bye record = bye-bye accountability.
3. No longer requiring employers to display posters informing workers of their rights on the job. The Minister of Labour says, “People get information from electronic sources now, more so. They still have to be provided by the employers.” Or they could just, you know, put it out where employees will see it, in a place where they know employees will be — namely, the workplace.
4. Rules requiring industries to keep track of toxic chemicals they use are being eliminated. Because everyone wants more poison around, and no one benefits from knowing about it. Right? It’s more competitive!
Things like this are a test by the Conservatives to see what they can get away with. There’ll be more, and more aggressive, moves later on.
Lorne Beaton's Blog 