I have to share the compliments of my minister, Monte McNaughton, and PA Anand for working together as a team in making certain that Bill 79 becomes law in Ontario.

I’m pleased to rise in the House today for the second reading of Bill 79, Working for Workers Act, 2023.

I have been working with the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development to further support and protect workers and their families.

I would also like to thank and acknowledge our Premier for his tremendous leadership and support for this bill and our last two pieces of Working for Workers legislation. These acts have been helping millions of people, and we will continue moving Ontario forward. Earlier this week, we announced further changes that would, if passed, expand on those successes.

Ontario is experiencing unprecedented labour shortages. Our proposed changes would help increase labour supply and ensure that workers have the right skills for in-demand jobs. The way we work has been changing and evolving for some time, and the last few years have accelerated these changes. Where we work, how we work and the meaning we find in what we do all need to adapt, because an economy that doesn’t work for workers doesn’t work for all. Our government is planning for the workplaces of the future. We are proposing changes to spread opportunities and give Ontario workers a better deal and employment experience.

Nowadays, it’s possible never to go in to an office in a physical location. Technological advances have uncoupled geography from employment. These changes have resulted in globalized competition for highly skilled workers and revealed gaps in our labour and employment laws.

The legislation we introduced, if passed, would make employees who work solely from home eligible for the same enhanced notice of termination as in-office and other employees in a mass termination situation. Ontario’s Employment Standards Act provides for greater notice or pay in lieu of for employees affected by mass termination. Mass termination provisions generally apply if 50 or more employees are terminated at an employer’s establishment within four weeks. Depending on the number of employees terminated in the case of a mass termination, an employee could be entitled to eight, 12 or 16 weeks of notice. Under the Employment Standards Act, an employee’s private residence is not considered part of the employer’s establishment, so fully remote workers may not be included in the employee count when determining whether the 50-employee threshold for mass termination has been reached. The proposed changes in Working for Workers Act, 2023, would help fix this gap. If passed, the changes would broaden the definition of an employer’s establishment to include employees’ private residences if they solely work remotely. This could entitle employees who exclusively work remotely to a longer notice period or pay in lieu of layoff notices.

We have all read about workers employed by billion-dollar tech companies learning that they have lost their job via the media, and that shouldn’t happen, ever. Mass terminations can make it for difficult for employees to find alternate employment, and by providing these protections, our government is standing up for workers who are terminated.

Putting workers first means giving them the tools they need to stay safe. It also means protecting them from bad employers and recruiters.

Ontario relies on foreign workers to help fill labour shortages in our province. However, despite the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act prohibitions, some employers continue to take foreign nationals’ passports and permits. This increases the possibility of exploitation of vulnerable foreign workers.

That is why our government is proposing to strengthen protections for foreign workers by introducing changes that would, if passed, establish the highest maximum fines in Canada—fines that will apply to employers and recruiters who are convicted of taking or retaining a foreign national’s passport or work permit. If amendments are passed, individuals convicted of taking or retaining a foreign national’s passport or work permit would be liable for either a fine of $500,000 or up to 12 months in prison, or both, and corporations will be liable for a fine of up to $1 million. The proposed increase in maximum fines aims to prevent labour trafficking in Ontario. Anyone can be a target of labour trafficking, but migrant workers and newcomers to Canada looking for work can be at higher risk. Our legislation would support government efforts to protect vulnerable workers essential in building up our province’s economy.

Our government is committed to the health and safety of every worker in Ontario. Employers have significant responsibility for health and safety in the workplace. They must keep a safe and well-maintained workplace. Workers need to feel safe on the job, and businesses must be held accountable when violating the health and safety laws of Ontario.

That is why this legislation would amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act to increase the maximum fine for corporations convicted of an offence under the act from $1.5 million to $2 million. This would give Ontario the highest maximum corporate fine under Canada’s workplace health and safety legislation. Corporate fines under the Occupational Health and Safety Act have not been increased since 2017, when the increase was from $500,000 to $1.5 million. The increased fine proposed in the Working for Workers Act, 2023, would, if passed, deter violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act by corporations. It would reinforce the importance of putting workers’ safety first. Workplace injuries and death should not be a cost of business.

Speaker, our government is proud to protect workers who protect us. This includes military reservists, who put their lives on the line for us. Thousands of people in Ontario are reservists. These courageous men and women are integral to the Canadian Armed Forces. They put their full-time career on hold in their communities to join important military missions at home and abroad.

Yesterday, our government introduced legislation that, if passed, would provide better protection for our reservists and remove barriers to their deployment. The proposed legislation, if passed, would reduce the length of employment needed before going on a reservist leave to just two months of continuous employment, down from the current three months. And there would be no length of employment requirement if the leave is due to deployment to assist during a domestic emergency. The proposed legislation would also expand the reasons for taking the leave, to help our reservists recover from injuries after deployment—reasons that include physical or mental treatment, recovery or rehabilitation related to a military operation or specified activity. These proposed changes build on job-protected leave already in place for reservists, including protections we introduced last year. These changes, if passed, would cover all military reservists in Ontario covered by the Employment Standards Act who participate in Canadian Armed Forces military skills training, are deployed to assist in a domestic emergency, or are deployed abroad. In introducing these changes, we are standing up for our front-line heroes while they protect us. We are trying to give them peace of mind that their job will await them when they return. We are proud to propose changes to make Ontario reservist leave among Canada’s most flexible and comprehensive.

I want to take this moment to talk about another group of heroes, our firefighters, and measures the Ontario government intends to take through regulations to make sure we are leaving no one behind. Firefighters risk their lives to enter smoke-filled buildings to rescue people, battle out-of-control blazes and respond to other emergencies. Their work touches the lives of so many people and communities across Ontario. They are there for us in our greatest need, and we should be there for them.

Firefighters die of cancer at a rate up to four times higher than the general population, with 25 to 30 passing away yearly in Ontario. We owe it to them to ensure they have easy access to compensation for these work-related illnesses. The Ontario government plans to propose a regulatory change to make it easy for firefighters, fire investigators and their survivors to access Workplace Safety and Insurance Board—WSIB—compensation by expanding presumptive cancer coverage for firefighters to include primary site thyroid and pancreatic cancers. By presuming thyroid and pancreatic cancers are work-related, firefighters and fire investigators could get easier access to benefits and the support they need to recover. If approved, they would apply to full-time, part-time and volunteer firefighters, firefighters employed by First Nation band councils, and fire investigators. We want Ontario to know that we have the backs of the brave men and women who protect and serve us daily.

I will conclude by calling for all in this House to support the Working for Workers Act, 2023. The measures we’ve outlined will position Ontario as a front-runner in charting the way forward as workplaces and how we work evolve. By giving workers a better deal, we are not only protecting them, but we are both keeping and attracting more workers to the province and ensuring our economy remains strong.

I hope all members of this House join me in supporting this bill. So please help us vote on Bill 79 as it comes forward.

I thank the minister for his presentation today, and the other members who presented today.

I’m very excited about this proposed legislation because it’s something that people in my riding of Essex have been asking for; I know it because I’ve heard their requests. I’m so proud that this legislation has been tabled, and I hope it will pass so that these great measures can be implemented.

My question to the minister is this: Who else is supporting this legislation?

The Minister of Labour said he won’t tolerate scumbag employers. What did he do to stop the employer who passed Bill 124 and Bill 28, which trampled on workers’ corrective bargaining rights, forced wage caps, working conditions on largely women-led sectors—the same employer that won’t end deeming for injured workers or won’t pass anti-scab legislation?

My question to the minister is pretty simple: What has the minister done to stop that scumbag employer?

My question is to the minister.

The minister started his remarks by boasting about the temporary and inadequate paid sick days program that his government was forced to introduce, but he has told the media that the program has filled its purpose and it is expiring at the end of the month.

The legislation that we have here today would have been a perfect opportunity to amend the Employment Standards Act and finally bring in a permanent paid sick days program, like they have in BC, to cover all Ontario workers not just for COVID, but for any other illness or infectious disease that means that they have to stay home from work. Why did the minister not include that in this bill today?

I want to thank the Minister of Labour and his whole team for this incredible movement in terms of labour legislation. This is part of a huge series of changes that his team, with our government, is making.

One of the changes that is very vivid for my community—we have Base Borden, close to Barrie. When I speak to reservists—and of course, I speak to our local Legion in Belle Ewart—they talk about the mental health impacts of anyone in the Armed Forces.

So what is this bill doing to show respect and honour to not only our veterans, but everyone in the Canadian Armed Forces, and really move the labour pendulum for those workers?

I’m proud that we were the first in the country to bring in job-protected leave to ensure that if there’s a worker out there who is sick, obviously, from COVID, staying home to look after a loved one, having mental health issues—it’s really a flexible job leave—that workers can’t be fired for that. We brought in paid sick days, which the member opposite supported. I think I referenced it; it was probably the fastest bill that ever passed in this chamber since I’ve been here. It has been very successful. Over half a million workers have accessed that, which is good—again, very flexible.

I guess what I don’t understand from the NDP is—I think of our past Working for Workers bills that brought in naloxone kits to workplaces, that improved labour mobility so unionized construction workers could come to Ontario, that brought in foundational rights for gig workers. You opposed those. Why?

The member from Essex is doing such a great job being a champion for folks in his riding, especially around the skilled trades. I’ve been with the member from Essex a number of times, meeting with building trade union leaders from the Windsor-Essex region who are doing a great job. They’re going to be building that new hospital down there, they’re working on the bridge, expanding Highway 3—the list goes on and on and on.

Those men and women who are wearing hard hats every day are heroes. I say that proudly, because for too long in this province, people looked down their noses at people in the skilled trades. They’re heroes. That’s why I’m proud that this government is the first in history to do an inspection blitz to clean up washrooms once and for all for construction workers and to get more women into the skilled trades.

He asked, “Who’s supporting this bill?” I want to pay tribute—and I will do this in the next question—to Joe Maloney, the former head of the international boilermakers union, who is supporting this bill. He now runs Helmets to Hardhats. I’ll speak about him shortly. Unfortunately, he is retiring, but he has gotten men and women who have served the country into the skilled trades.

We will work every day to ensure that the health and safety of every worker is protected.

I do want to get back to my good friend Joe Maloney, who unfortunately is retiring from Helmets to Hardhats. He founded this organization. Joe was the former international vice-president of the boilermakers union, and he did a great job promoting boilermakers as a first career choice for many young people out there. Joe said, “Helmets to Hardhats welcomes the expansion of job-protected leave for military reservists. Reserve force members are a vital component of the Canadian Armed Forces but are also crucial in their civilian careers, including careers within the unionized construction industry. Allowing additional job-protected leave will support retention in the military and the workforce while ensuring Canadian reservists can return to work safely and sustainably.”

Joe, on behalf of the province of Ontario, thank you for your work with the boilermakers’ union and being the founder of Helmets to Hardhats.

Questions?

Je vois dans le projet de loi—on ne voit aucune allocution qu’ils vont retirer le projet de loi 124. Le ministre a utilisé le mots « scumbag employers ». Mais, les personnes qui sont assujetties à la loi 124, je peux vous dire qu’elles se posent seulement une question. La question qu’elles aimeraient qu’on pose au ministre : qu’allez-vous faire—pour utiliser encore vos paroles—des « scumbag employers » et pour retirer le projet de loi 124?

The Burlington Teen Tour Band is Canada’s oldest and largest youth marching band. For over 75 years, the band has been a symbol of pride for the city of Burlington. They are known for their high-energy performances and their ability to captivate audiences with their intricate formations and synchronized movements.

The Burlington Teen Tour Band has had the privilege of performing at some of the world’s most prestigious events, including the Rose Bowl parade, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, the 75th anniversary of D-Day, and the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbour.

Earlier this week, the band returned from their tour in Ireland, where they were in attendance for the St. Patrick’s Day parade and were named best band overall.

One of the things that sets the band apart is their dedication to excellence. The band spends countless hours perfecting their music and choreography. They are a tight-knit community of young people who share a passion for music and performance. Through their involvement in the band, these young musicians—my daughter was one of them—develop important life skills, such as discipline, teamwork and leadership. These skills will serve them well for the rest of their lives.

Today I’m here to speak about Attawapiskat First Nation and the disappointing neglect they have been facing with the government for over 30 years. I was just up in Attawapiskat last week with my staff to offer a clinic and to meet with chief and council. Chief Sylvia and the council are very discouraged, as were their predecessors. They have been asking for help to address their housing crisis and the development of their community for years. Multiple meetings and emails have been exchanged, with no advancement.

In 2014, a joint task force was established with Attawapiskat First Nation and both federal and provincial governments to address their requirements. In 2018, the joint task force established a memorandum of understanding to govern their meetings. In 2019, a renewed relationship commitment was signed to ensure the advancement of this working relationship—signed by the Honourable Minister Rickford, Minister O’Regan and Chief Ignace Gull. In 2023, here we are, in the same place, with no advancement and nothing to show other than an exchange of words.

The community is currently landlocked given its geographical disposition. There are only two ways for them to expand: option 1, remove the dispute on the road due to the De Beers mine; option 2, relocate the airport.

They’re offering solutions so that they can expand their community and address their issues, yet it’s falling on deaf ears.

They are facing a housing crisis, to the point where they do not have a single piece of land to expand their home and infrastructure on their traditional territory—quite ironic.

It is time to respect the—

We’re working for workers every single day. That’s why we’re bringing forward not just nation-leading changes to our labour laws to rebalance the skills, to help those everyday heroes out there, but a lot of the changes we’re doing haven’t been done across North America.

I think of what we’re going to do around portable benefits. There are millions of workers today in the province who don’t have health and dental benefits. We’re going to be the first in North America to bring in a portable benefits plan.

Speaker, I think of the support we have for this legislation. The head of the provincial building trades, who represents literally hundreds of thousands of unionized construction workers in this province, is supporting this legislation—to clean up washrooms on job sites, to create a washroom on a large site specifically for women, to ensure that there’s adequate lighting, to ensure that these washrooms that don’t have covers on them are banned in the province of Ontario.

For the life of me, I do not understand why the NDP are objecting to this legislation—it’s to help people. This should be a non-partisan issue. All of the changes we’re bringing are to improve the lives of workers in this province.

We’re going to clean up washrooms for every construction worker. There are 16,000 women and men today working on job sites in the province—we’re going to clean it up for them. They’re heroes in this province.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

First off, I’d like to thank the minister for all his hard work, as well as the parliamentary assistants today for their speeches.

I’d like to give an example of something the minister mentioned today about encouraging women to join the skilled trades. In my community of Newmarket–Aurora—I spoke to this before in a member’s statement—we have a Blue Door enterprise called Construct. I spoke specifically with a young woman who started this program. She was on social assistance—

Since 1993, March 22 has been observed by all UN member states as World Water Day.

Our province is blessed to be a world leader in fresh water with more than 250,000 lakes—roughly 20% of the world’s fresh water. The word “Ontario” itself is said to derive from portions of the Huron word for “great lake” and the Iroquois word for “beautiful water.” Our government has and will continue to protect Ontario’s waters.

For example, in 2020, Ontario partnered with Pollution Probe to collect plastic waste from the water at marinas around the province using innovative plastic capture technology.

In 2020-21, our government invested almost $11 million in more than 98 projects to help improve the health of the Great Lakes, including cleanup projects which prevented over 250,000 pieces of litter from entering Lake Ontario.

We enhanced Ontario’s water-taking program and issued new guidance on managing water-taking in areas where sustainability is a concern.

Additionally, the Wetlands Conservation Partner Program has invested $15 million to protect, restore and rehabilitate over 2,600 hectares of wetlands across Ontario.

The Great Lakes provide drinking water directly to 60% of Ontarians. Ontarian’s drinking water protection framework received an A rating from Ecojustice Canada’s drinking water report card as it implements “the most ambitious source water protection program in Canada,” with some of the strongest protections available.

On this day and every day, we will work to protect this great resource for future generations.

I invite all members and all Ontarians to raise a glass to toast Ontario’s fresh water. Happy World Water Day.

Constituents in my riding are struggling to make ends meet. More families are accessing food banks because the cost of food has skyrocketed. Many people are living in deep poverty. Seniors are cutting pills in half or skipping doses. They can’t afford their medication and rent or food.

We have a housing crisis in Windsor-Essex and across Ontario. Housing remains unaffordable and unattainable for many. Young people and families are unable to buy a home in the community they grew up in. The cost of rent has increased dramatically because rent control was scrapped by this government.

More people are experiencing homelessness, yet shelters in my community aren’t receiving the funding needed to provide supports. The Welcome Centre Shelter for Women and Families says that 61% of the individuals accessing supports are children and youth. The largest predictor of future shelter use is the children accessing those shelters now, yet this government gives no thought to young people and their future.

The people of Windsor West and across Ontario deserve a government that supports them and takes action to make life better for everyone, not just the wealthy friends and donors of the Conservatives. We need a budget that will bring relief for the rising cost of living.

The Conservatives want the people of Ontario to settle for less, to think that this is normal. We must demand better, because better is possible.

We can double social assistance rates to lift people out of poverty. We can build more affordable housing while protecting green space. We can protect workers’ rights and ensure that good-paying jobs are available to everyone.

Budgets are all about priorities. This upcoming budget is an opportunity for the Conservatives to prioritize the people of Ontario. Maybe they’ll—

Thank you very much.

Members’ statements?

This morning, I was on the phone with Gimaa Craig Nootchtai, the Chief of Atikameksheng Anishnawbek. His people’s traditional territories are home to almost all of the mines in Nickel Belt—mines that play a big role in this government’s upcoming budget.

Gimaa Nootchtai and his council were invited to an information session on Bill 71, the Building More Mines Act. They put in a lot of time and effort preparing for this information session, as Bill 71 will have multi-generational implications for their people. Gimaa Nootchtai and his team were shocked when the government declared after the start of the information session that this virtual meeting would satisfy the government’s duty to consult First Nations on Bill 71.

Gimaa Nootchtai said, “I told them that ‘consultation’ should have started when the proposed changes were first conceptualized so that we could truly participate in drafting legislation that directly affects our lands and rights.” I agree, Speaker.

This government has a duty to consult First Nations. Why are they not taking this responsibility more seriously? Why is it that this government seems bound and determined to continue to treat First Nations with such disrespect? This has to change.

When will this government consult Atikameksheng Anishnawbek on the changes to the Mining Act?

Je veux profiter encore une fois de l’occasion pour souhaiter une joyeuse Semaine internationale de la Francophonie, non seulement aux Franco-Ontariens mais à tous les francophones à travers la planète.

Merci à la ministre des Affaires francophone, son adjointe parlementaire et son équipe pour avoir organisé une rencontre lundi ici même à Queen’s Park. Ça a été une belle occasion de rencontrer des représentants de plusieurs organismes francophones de différents secteurs et de différentes régions de notre belle province. Merci à mes collègues députés et leurs adjoints qui font partie d’un groupe de nombreux d’Ontariens qu’on appelle des francophiles. Je suis très reconnaissant pour leur participation à cet évènement.

J’ai aussi participé à un évènement lundi en soirée à l’Université de l’Ontario français. J’ai eu l’occasion de me joindre à mes collègues et à plusieurs membres de différents organismes qui font rayonner la francophonie dans notre province.

Vous savez, monsieur le Président, il y a beaucoup d’activités cette semaine par rapport à la francophonie. Hier encore, j’ai pris part à la cérémonie de l’Ordre de la Pléiade dans la suite de la lieutenante-gouverneure ici même à Queen’s Park pour reconnaître des personnes exceptionnelles qui ont grandement contribué à la francophonie de notre province. Vous avez vous-même, monsieur le Président, eu la chance de recevoir ces invités : M. Donald Lemaire de Hearst, M^me Claire Forcier de Hearst, M. Denis Chartrand d’Ottawa, M^e Mark Power d’Ottawa, M^me Lauraine Côté de Mississauga et M^me Ursule Leboeuf de Pointe-aux-Roches.

Je tiens à réitérer mes sincères félicitations aux récipiendaires pour leurs contributions exceptionnelles aux communautés francophones de l’Ontario et à l’ensemble de la province. Leur travail acharné et leur dévouement ont eu un impact significatif et durable sur la vie de nombreuses personnes.

Imagine waking up to the sound of cracking thunder and pouring rain in the middle of the night. You just can’t sleep, so you tiptoe downstairs to the basement to watch some television. Here, you are met with ankle-deep water and maybe even sewage soaking your freshly carpeted floors. This comes as a complete shock. You don’t live near any flood plains, rivers or streams, so you never expected a flood in your home. Why would you? You try your best to subdue the damage by using towels and sandbags, but there is nothing you can do besides wait for the downpour to be over. You sit and watch your possessions decay and await the $43,000 price tag to clean up your basement.

Basement flooding is not normal, but it is common. All of this could potentially have been averted if Bill 56 was law. It’s time for proactive solutions, not reactive measures.

Flooding is the most common disaster in Canada, and it now costs Canadians more than any other natural disaster.

Bill 56 will save your constituents and you from unnecessary hardships—financially and physically and mentally. I know this issue is close to home for many of you, as you have shared your basement flooding stories with me personally. By implementing this bill, money can be saved and headaches can be avoided. Ontarians—

Today, I want to sing the praises of two young ladies from my riding. On March 5, Tatum Hutchison and Taylar McCallum won the Ontario youth bowling championship. They will be headed off to Regina in May for the Canadian championships. These young ladies are only 10 years old. They’re the youngest bowlers from Peterborough to win an Ontario championship. Both Tatum and Taylar started bowling around the age of four or five.

For Taylar, this must be in her genes, because she’s following in her father’s footsteps, who is also a former provincial champion.

The girls have been bowling together for the last five years and have become great friends and partners. They attribute their success to collaboration, friendship and the ability to not put too much pressure on themselves or one another. That’s a recipe for success that we can all learn from.

Every Wednesday, they come down to Lakeview Bowl to practise.

I know they’re excited to represent not only Peterborough but all of Ontario.

I truly don’t want to put too much pressure on them, but Taylar and Tatum, I know I speak for everyone in Ontario when I say this: We are very proud of you, and we believe in you. No matter what happens in Regina, you are champions. From not only me but everyone here in the Legislature, good luck.