Ontario Nuclear Power Plant Exclusions

Summary#

This is a proposed regulation called the Ontario Nuclear Power Plant Exclusion Regulations. It would move most workplace rules for employees at Ontario commercial nuclear power plants from parts of the Canada Labour Code and the Non-smokers’ Health Act to Ontario laws. The notice was published April 27, 2024, and the public can comment for 30 days.

What it does#

• Defines a “nuclear power plant” as a Class IA nuclear facility built to generate electricity or heat for a commercial purpose and located in Ontario.
• Shifts industrial relations (union and collective-bargaining) matters away from the federal code and to the Labour Relations Act, 1995 — but keeps sections 121.1 to 121.5 of the Canada Labour Code in force for these workers. It also adapts some provincial rules for how they apply (for example, who counts as an employee for bargaining).
• Moves occupational health and safety rules to the Occupational Health and Safety Act (Ontario), while keeping sections 158 to 160 of the federal code. It makes specific adjustments for on-site emergency responders and says the Nuclear Safety and Control Act will take priority if its rules conflict with provincial rules.
• Moves labour standards (hours, pay, leave rules) to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (Ontario) except that sections 265 to 267 of the federal code remain in force.
• Transfers workplace smoking rules to the Smoke‑Free Ontario Act, 2017, while keeping sections 8.1 and 8.2 of the Non-smokers’ Health Act.
• Repeals several older federal exclusion orders and regulations that previously covered Ontario nuclear facilities.
• If the regulation is approved as written, it would come into force on the day it is published in the Canada Gazette, Part II.

Who's affected#

• Employees who work on, or in connection with, commercial nuclear power plants in Ontario.
• Employers and operators of those plants, and any contractors who supply on-site workers.
• Unions, the Ontario Labour Relations Board, provincial workplace inspectors, and federal nuclear regulators (because nuclear safety rules still override provincial law where there’s a conflict).
• The notice invites comments from anyone; submissions must be sent within 30 days. The contact named for representations is Marie‑France Sanschagrin (the Canada Gazette notice includes an email address for submissions).

Why it matters#

• For workers and employers at Ontario nuclear plants, this would generally mean Ontario labour, safety and smoking rules — not most parts of the federal code — decide day‑to‑day workplace rights and obligations.
• The change could affect union certification, collective bargaining, work‑site safety practices, schedules, and pay rules on these sites.
• The federal nuclear regulator will still control technical nuclear‑safety requirements, and those rules override provincial ones if they clash.
• Because this is a proposed regulation, the final text could change after the public comment period.