Ontario’s Working for Workers legislative agenda continues to reshape employment standards—and big changes are coming your way. Over the next several months, Working for Workers Five and Working for Workers Six will introduce new compliance requirements that every employer should be aware of.

Here’s what you need to know and do to stay compliant and prepare your organization.

1. Extended Long-Term Illness Leave

What’s new: Effective June 19, 2025, the ESA’s new, unpaid “long-term illness leave” will come into effect, providing up to 27 weeks of leave in a 52-week for employees with at least 13-weeks of employment. 

Employees will be entitled to this new leave if the following two conditions are met: 

1. The employee will not be performing their work duties because of a “serious medical condition”; and 
2. A “qualified health practitioner” issues a certificate that (a) states that the employee has a serious medical condition, and (b) sets out the duration of time that the employee will not be working because of the condition. 

It appears that the 27-weeks of this leave do not need to be taken consecutively. Additionally, then new long-term illness leave will be renewable into the next 52-week period if the condition continues or a new condition develops and the employee is able to meet the entitlement criteria. 

What to do now:

• Update your leave policies and employee handbooks to consider how the new leave will interact with existing contractual entitlements, human rights and the duty to accommodate, and existing disability plans and policies.
• Review disability benefits and return-to-work protocols for consistency
• Prepare proactive protocols for managing potential intermittent leave usage. 

2. Mandatory Written Information for New Hires

What’s new: Effective July 1, 2025, employers with 25 employees or more must provide all new hires with written details prior to starting work, including:

• Legal name of the employer, or operating name if different from the legal name
• Employer contact information, including address, telephone number and contact names
• General description of initial work location
• Employee’s starting hourly or wage rate
• Pay period and pay day
• General description of the employee’s initial anticipated hours of work

What to do now:

• Review and update employment contracts and offer letters
• Add onboarding checklists and compliance reminders
• Train managers on ESA documentation timelines

Looking Ahead: New Requirements for Publicly Available Job Postings (Effective Jan 1, 2026)

While not effective until next year, Working for Workers Six introduces new requirements for job postings that are available to the general public. These include:

• Pay Transparency: Postings must include the expected compensation range for the position, unless the position has an expected compensation equivalent to more than $200,000 annually or the upper end of the range exceeds $200,000 annually; 
• Elimination of Canadian experience requirements; 
• Disclosure of whether artificial intelligence (AI) is used in the hiring process to screen, assess, or select candidates; 
• Vacancy Transparency: Postings must include a statement disclosing whether the posting is for an existing vacancy or not. 

Additionally, the ESA will impose a requirement on employers to notify interviewees of hiring decisions within 45 days of the date of the last interview. 

These changes aim to close gender and racial wage gaps, while promoting fairness in the hiring process.

Final Word: Don’t Wait to Comply

These changes are not optional. They reflect Ontario’s broader movement toward fairness, transparency, and modern employment practices.

Action = Compliance = Risk Reduction.
Now is the time to update contracts, train staff, and future-proof your policies.

Need help? We’re here to support your transition. Contact us for a compliance review or customized training session. 

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