Nadia Zaman - Articles & Videos

If you thought the Driver Inc. controversy was just background noise in the trucking industry, think again. The government is stepping up enforcement in a big way, and businesses that have turned a blind eye to worker misclassification could soon find themselves in the hot seat — facing hefty fines, back payments, and legal exposure. Let’s be clear: this isn’t just a “trucking problem.” It’s a worker misclassification problem, and it’s about to land squarely on the desks of employers and workers alike.

Significant changes are coming to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits that could have a major impact on you, especially if you’re a long-tenured worker or facing a job loss.

Ontario’s employment landscape is undergoing significant shifts, with new legislative developments aimed at enhancing worker protections and ensuring fair treatment. As of June 19, 2025, a new long-term illness leave has come into effect. Instead of employers having to go through the usual accommodation process – considering options for accommodation and proposing a reasonable accommodation based on the employee’s legitimate needs – this new leave is now codified under the statute, with specific eligibility and evidentiary requirements. Will this make things easier for employers and employees? Presumably yes, but only time will tell.

The current economic climate, marked by tariffs, economic uncertainty, layoffs and restructuring, has understandably created concerns for many employers and employees.

Knowing more information about an employee than is necessary can expose employers to substantial liability.

Employment is a legal relationship. The good news is that this means you can protect yourself in the event of a layoff.

Whether you are an employer or an employee, you have rights and obligations at each stage of the relationship and you do not have to necessarily “tolerate” ghosting from the other side.

Put simply, employers are required to accommodate individuals to the point of “undue hardship” where the need for accommodation relates to a ground protected by human rights legislation, such as family status.

In Leason v. ADAMANDA INC. o/a Dairy Queen Grill and Chill, Huntsville, the applicant brought a reprisal complaint against the respondent employer. In that case, conduct that might have been unlawful in most cases was found not to be, because the parties were all related.

The AODA requires employers within Ontario with 20 or more employees to file their Accessibility Compliance Reporting Form by December 31, 2023.