Updates from Consult Carswell
Ontario workers could gain right to object to medical disclosures
Ontario’s Bill 110, the Good Government Act, 2010, would give an injured worker an opportunity to object to the automatic disclosure to her employer of the assessment report by the workers’ compensation board’s physician. If this bill passes, an employer may have to provide justification for why it should be entitled to a copy of a report. It passed first reading on Oct. 5.
B.C. reconsidering regulations for late-night workers
British Columbia has released its proposed 2011 amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation. At the same time, the subject of worker safety at night has come up for debate once again with the release of a discussion paper for consultation. Currently, night workers must be separated physically from their customers if they are working alone. However, some businesses that have implemented physical barriers have experienced a resulting decrease in sales and little change in theft while some customers were more aggressive and employees had concerns about the strength of the barriers. More information is available at ww.worksafebc.com/regulation_and_policy/public_hearings/2011ProposedAmendments/default.asp.
Change from DB to DC violates Alberta pension laws
The Alberta Court of Appeal has ruled a pension plan that changed from a defined benefit (DB) plan to a defined contribution (DC) plan, while locking the benefits of DB members as of a certain date, violated the terms of the plan itself and the Employment Pension Plans Act (Halliburton Group Canada Inc. v. Alberta, 2010 ABCA 254). This decision could affect employers that have made, or are considering making, a similar DB to DC switch. However, it was based in large part upon the precise wording of the pension plan itself, so its application to other situations will depend on the degree of similarity in pension plan documents.
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