UTGB Vol 5.pdf - Robson Hall Faculty of Law

70 Underneath the Golden Boy
several Canadian jurisdictions such as British Columbia 80 and Ontario 81 have
fully included domestic workers in employment standards legislation, and even
provided enhanced protections to this group, 82 apparently without adverse
consequences.
In light of the serious equality issues at stake in excluding domestic workers
from the basic protections of the Code, all exclusions should be repealed. The
law also must be clear that domestic workers are entitled to be paid for all hours
of work performed. Furthermore, the Code should be amended to require
employers to provide a written contract to domestic workers setting out their
duties, hours of work, and rates of pay and to require employers to register
information about domestic workers with the Director of Employment
Standards to assist in monitoring compliance.
2. Agricultural workers
Agricultural workers are denied the basic protection of employment standards
law in Manitoba. 83 In Dunmore v. Ontario, 84 the Supreme Court of Canada has
recently recognized that this is a particularly vulnerable group of workers. In
Dunmore, the exclusion of agricultural workers from the Ontario Labour
Relations Act ("LRA") 85 was found to unjustifiably infringe the workers' s. 2(d)
Charter right to freedom of association. The majority of the Court, per
Bastarache J., did not go on to address the plaintiffs' s. 15 equality argument.
However, L'Heureux,Dube J., in her concurring opinion, would have found an
80
For information on British Columbia's standards for domestic workers, see Government of
B.C. Ministry of Labour and Citizens• Services, Information for Domestic Workers and
Employees, online: Government of B.C. Ministry of Labour and Citizens' Services
.
81
For Ontario's "fact sheet" on domestic workers, see Government of Ontario Ministry of
Labour, Domestic Workers, online: Government of Ontario Ministry of Labour
.
82
For example, both British Columbia and Ontario require that employers provide written
contracts to domestic workers which clearly set out their duties, hours of work and wages,
and charge for room and board, among other targeted protections. See, e.g., Employment
Standards Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 113, s. 14. See also Employment Standards Regulation, B.C.
Reg. 396/1995, s. 13 which requires employers of domestic workers to register the employee
with the Director of Employment Standards.
83
Section 3 of the Minimum Wages md Working Conditions Regulation, Man. Reg. 62/99
(March 19, 1999) provides that the minimum standards in Part 2 of the Code, other than
Division 13 (equal wages) do not apply to an employee in agriculture, fishing, fur farming or
dairy farming, or the growing of horticultural or market garden products for sale. This
exclusion remains in the amended Code despite a proposal from the Department that some
coverage be extended to workers in industrial agriculture settings such as hog barn
operations.
84
Supra note 47.
85
S.O. 1995, c. 1, Sch. A.