Workers' Rights and Responsibilities in a Changing World of Work

Hook: is that allowed?

Kai, who is 16, just started at a local café. In the first two weeks:

• The manager says the first three shifts are an unpaid "trial."
• Kai works from noon to 7 p.m. with no break.
• When the cash drawer is $10 short at the end of a shift that three people worked, the manager takes $10 off Kai's pay.

Which of these are legal in Ontario? By the end of this lesson you will know, and you will know where to get help. The curriculum's B1 expectation asks you to understand work trends including their effects on workers' rights and responsibilities. Rights are not just rules on paper: they change as work changes.

The Employment Standards Act: your basic rights

Ontario's Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) sets the minimum rules for most employees. An employer can give you more than the ESA, never less. Young workers (the Ontario government uses this term for workers under 25) have the same ESA rights as everyone else.

• Minimum wage (rates in effect since October 1, 2026): $17.95 an hour general minimum wage; $16.90 an hour student minimum wage, for students under 18 who work 28 hours a week or less during the school year, or who work during a school break or summer holidays. Ontario's minimum wage normally goes up every October 1, so check ontario.ca for the current rate.
• Eating periods: you cannot be made to work more than 5 hours in a row without a 30-minute eating period (usually unpaid). Employers don't have to give coffee breaks.
• Hours of work: most employees can't be required to work more than 8 hours a day or 48 hours a week without a written agreement. You must get at least 11 hours in a row off each day.
• Overtime: most employees earn overtime after 44 hours in a week, at 1.5 times the regular rate.
• Public holidays: 9 in Ontario: New Year's Day, Family Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Most employees who qualify get the day off with public holiday pay, or premium pay if they work.
• Vacation: with less than five years at an employer, at least 2 weeks of vacation per year and vacation pay of at least 4% of wages.
• Three-hour rule: if you usually work more than three hours a day and are sent home early, you are generally owed at least 3 hours' pay.
• Pay stubs: you must get a wage statement on or before each pay day.
• Deductions: an employer can't take money off your pay for a cash shortage when other people had access to the register, or for spoiled work or damaged tools. Your tips belong to you (except for a legal tip pool).
• Trial shifts: training and trial shifts are work, and must be paid.

A few groups have special rules. For example, high school students in a school-board-approved work experience program (such as a co-op placement) are not covered by the ESA, so they are usually unpaid: they are earning credits, not wages.

Human rights and health and safety

The Human Rights Code. In Ontario it is illegal for an employer to discriminate against or harass you in hiring, pay, training, scheduling, promotion or firing because of a protected ground, such as race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed (religion), sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status or disability. Employers also have a duty to accommodate needs related to these grounds (for example, a schedule change for a religious observance, or equipment for a worker with a disability) unless it would cause undue hardship.

Health and safety (the Occupational Health and Safety Act). If you took Grade 9 technology, you met the three rights of every worker: the right to know about hazards, the right to participate in health and safety, and the right to refuse unsafe work. New and young workers are more likely to be hurt in their first months on the job, so ask questions and ask for training. Ontario also sets minimum ages: generally at least 14 for offices, stores and restaurant serving areas, 15 for factories (including restaurant kitchens and warehouses), and 16 for construction.

No reprisal. Your employer cannot punish you for asking about or using your rights.

Responsibilities go with rights

Workers have responsibilities too. Under the law and in practice you are expected to:

• Work safely: follow safety rules, use the protective equipment you are given, and report hazards and injuries right away.
• Be reliable: show up on time, follow your schedule, and give notice if you can't make a shift or if you are quitting.
• Be honest: record your hours accurately and handle money and information carefully.
• Respect others: treat co-workers and customers without discrimination or harassment.
• Do the work well: follow reasonable instructions and ask when you don't understand.

Rights and responsibilities work together: you can only report a hazard (your responsibility) if you know you won't be punished for it (your right).

How trends are changing workers' rights

Laws change when work changes. Here are recent Ontario examples linked to the trends from the last lesson:

• Gig work → a new law. The Digital Platform Workers' Rights Act, 2022 came into force on July 1, 2025. It covers people who do paid ride-share, delivery and courier work assigned through apps. They now have a right to at least the general minimum wage for their work time on assignments (not time spent waiting for offers), to keep their tips, to get written information about how pay is calculated, to a written explanation if they are removed from the app, and usually to two weeks' written notice before a removal of 24 hours or more.
• Remote work → the right to disconnect. Since 2022, Ontario employers with 25 or more employees must have a written policy on disconnecting from work (not having to answer emails after hours, for example) and a written policy on electronic monitoring that says how they watch employees' computers or devices.
• AI and hiring → new job-posting rules. Since January 1, 2026, Ontario employers with 25 or more employees must, in publicly advertised job postings, say whether they use AI to screen or select applicants, include the expected pay or pay range (the range can be no wider than $50,000 a year, for jobs paying up to $200,000), state whether the job is an existing vacancy, and not require Canadian work experience.