Summary#

Bill 53, the Government Contract Wages Act, 2018, created a new Ontario law; it does not amend another Act. It was enacted as Chapter 9 of Ontario’s 2018 statutes and came into force on Royal Assent. Its stated goal is to establish minimum wage rates for certain work done under government contracts.

• The Director of Government Contract Wages may set and change minimum rates. Rates may differ by type of work, government entity, contract type or value, location, or a specific contract.
• The law covers certain construction work under government contracts, including subcontracted work, and building cleaning and security work for government-owned and occupied buildings or prescribed leased buildings. It applies only to work done in Ontario.
• The wage requirement applies only if a rate order was made and published before the relevant deadline: before procurement starts for construction, or before a cleaning or security contract is entered into or renewed.
• Employers must keep wage and subcontracting records, provide prescribed information, and post prescribed wage information. They cannot contract out of the law or retaliate against employees for exercising their rights.
• Employment standards officers can investigate and inspect, order unpaid wages or other remedies, and issue penalty notices. A court may impose fines for offences; the maximum for an individual is $50,000 and up to 12 months in prison, or both. Corporate maximum fines rise to $250,000 or $500,000 for repeat convictions.

What it means for you#

• Workers doing covered work: If a rate order applies, your employer must pay at least the latest applicable rate in force when you do the work. The law does not set one rate for all government-contract work, and an order made after the relevant contract deadline does not apply to that contract.
• Workers and subcontractors: Employers must keep specified records about covered work and subcontracting. They must provide prescribed information to the Director and to subcontractors, and post prescribed wage information.
• Workers seeking to enforce their rights: You may complain to the Ministry of Labour. Retaliation for asking about or asserting rights is prohibited. If a collective agreement applies, enforcement generally goes through that agreement; the Director of Employment Standards may allow a Ministry complaint in appropriate circumstances.
• Employers: You must pay an applicable rate and comply with record-keeping, information, and posting duties. Employment standards officers may inspect workplaces and investigate possible breaches.
• Government entities and the public: The law does not require government entities to set rates for every contract or create a general wage floor for all government work. It applies only to the listed types of work when the required rate order and timing conditions are met.

Money#

No cost information is in the available material.

• Employers may have higher wage costs where an order sets a rate above what they otherwise pay, as well as costs for records and required information. No amounts are given.
• The law allows a Director and other necessary staff to be appointed, but gives no staffing number or cost estimate.
• Penalty notice amounts are to be set by regulation; the material does not provide them. Court fines can reach the amounts listed above.

What is unclear#

• The Act does not set wage rates. No publicly available information.
• The supplied material does not say whether any rate orders were made, which government bodies or leased buildings were prescribed, or what regulations were made. No publicly available information.
• The Director must consider relevant information, including collective agreements and government data, but the Act does not set a rate formula or require a particular rate.
• The text does not set out a specific process for public input or an appeal of the Director’s wage orders.
• The actual cost of staffing, enforcement, and employer compliance is not stated.

Case for#

• A possible argument for the law is that it lets Ontario set wage floors for specified work paid for through government contracts, rather than relying only on general employment standards.
• Different rates can be set for different kinds of work, places, contract types, or specific contracts, allowing the rates to reflect different situations.
• The law reaches subcontracted construction work and requires employers to track subcontracting, which can help enforcement follow work through a contract chain.
• Workers have protections against retaliation and access to investigations and orders for unpaid wages.

Case against#

• The law does not itself set a minimum rate or require the Director to make an order. Workers receive this added wage protection only where an order applies.
• The timing rules mean a later order cannot cover construction work under a procurement process already started, or cleaning and security work under a contract already entered into or renewed.
• The Director can set different rates, including for specific contracts, but the Act does not prescribe a rate formula or require public input on orders.
• The law permits a wage order to be revoked; after revocation, no minimum government contract wage applies to covered work done from that date.