Evidence of meeting #52 for Finance in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was clauses.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Tamara Jansen Conservative Cloverdale—Langley City, BC
Yes. I'm hoping we can get a bit of an explanation on each of these clauses, if that's all right.
Barbara Moran Director General, Strategic Policy, Analysis and Workplace Information, Labour Program - Policy, Dispute Resolution and International Affairs Directorate, Department of Employment and Social Development
Thank you.
Clause 246 includes changes to part 1 of the Canada Labour Code. It would extend the equal remuneration protection to all federally regulated employees covered by a collective agreement in the air transportation sector who are working at airports. As well, it would also provide a regulation-making authority to extend this provision to other industries.
Conservative
Ted Falk Conservative Provencher, MB
I'm just wondering how that is different from the way it is now.
Director General, Strategic Policy, Analysis and Workplace Information, Labour Program - Policy, Dispute Resolution and International Affairs Directorate, Department of Employment and Social Development
Thank you for the question.
What's in the Canada Labour Code right now is to provide that equal remuneration protection only for pre-board security screeners. What this would do is extend it to all of those individuals who are working in the air transportation sector and working at airports who are covered by a collective agreement. It extends it.
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
We have Mr. Charter here on part four, division 23, clause 247.
Are there any question on that?
Conservative
Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC
Could we get an explanation on that like we were getting earlier?
David Charter Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
Division 23 amends part three of the Canada Labour Code to set a free-standing federal minimum wage. Clause 247 provides that an employee should be paid at least the new federal minimum wage, which is specified later in clause 248 as $15 per hour. It also specifies that if a provincial or territorial minimum wage rate is higher, the employee should be paid that higher provincial or territorial rate.
In addition, if the provincial or territorial minimum wage rate is based on age, the highest rate should be used to determine whether the federal, provincial or territorial rate prevails.
Finally, there is also a consequential amendment to ensure that when the minimum wage is calculated on a basis other than time, or a combination of time and some other basis, the minister would be able to, by order, fix a rate that is equivalent to the new federal minimum wage or the provincial or territorial rate, whichever is higher.
Conservative
Tamara Jansen Conservative Cloverdale—Langley City, BC
Do I understand correctly that you will disregard the minimum wage if it's lower in a province? Is that correct? You'll disregard it. It will be $15 regardless of what the minimum wage is set at in the province.
Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
The minimum wage for employees working in the federally regulated private sector will be $15 unless there's a higher provincial or territorial rate, for example, in Nunavut. In that case, that wage would prevail.
Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
It's not lower.
(Clause 247 agreed to on division)
(On clause 248)
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
On clause 248, is there an explanation here? Then there's NDP-10.
Mr. Julian, we'll go with the explanation first.
Mr. Charter, go ahead.
Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
Clause 248 establishes the $15 per hour baseline federal minimum wage. It also sets out how the minimum wage will be adjusted to keep pace with inflation, starting the year after these provisions come into force and based on the increase in the consumer price index for the previous calendar year.
It also clarifies that the average of the all-items, not seasonally adjusted, consumer price index, should be used. It stipulates that there would be no adjustment to the minimum wage if the consumer price index decreased the previous year.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
There is an amendment, but I don't see the mover of the amendment. If the mover is not here, we'll move on.
Mrs. Jansen, go ahead.
Conservative
Tamara Jansen Conservative Cloverdale—Langley City, BC
Does it cause a problem where you have competition between the federal and the provincial sectors? Would that put pressure on the provincial wages?
Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
Some stakeholders have pointed to the possibility that there could be competition between the new federal minimum wage and a different provincial minimum wage rate, now that there would be a free-standing federal minimum wage.
On the other hand, some stakeholders have stated that putting in place a free-standing federal minimum wage would address the divergence in minimum wage rates for employees in the federally regulated private sector across different provinces before this free-standing minimum wage was put in place.
(Clause 248 agreed to on division)
(On clause 249)
Director, Workplace Information and Research Division, Labour Program, Department of Employment and Social Development
Clause 249 sets out that these amendments would come into force six months after royal assent.
(Clause 249 agreed to on division)
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Division 24 deals with the Canada Labour Code and leave related to the death or disappearance of a child.
We're only dealing with two clauses here, clauses 250 and 251, so can we see them together? Okay.
(On clauses 250 and 251)
Ms. Moran, please go ahead.
Director General, Strategic Policy, Analysis and Workplace Information, Labour Program - Policy, Dispute Resolution and International Affairs Directorate, Department of Employment and Social Development
This relates to the federal income support for the parents of murdered and missing children program, which was replaced in 2018 by the Canadian benefit for parents of young victims of crime. These two clauses amend the sections of the Canada Labour Code to align the eligibility for the leave related to the death or disappearance of a child as the result of a probable Criminal Code offence with the improved eligibility criteria for the Canadian benefit for parents of young victims of crime.
What follows is a series of subamendments that do just that.
Subclause 250(1) replaces the definition of child to specify that a child refers to a person who's under 25 years of age. It extends eligibility for the leave to parents of children who are between 18 and 24 years of age. Again, it's all about aligning with that recent change to expand eligibility for the benefit to parents of children under 25.
It also replaces the definition of parent to more clearly delineate persons who are eligible to take the leave. Specifically, it simplifies the language around what “parent, with respect to a child” means. It specifies that “a curator to the person of the child” in Quebec—that's someone who's legally responsible for the affairs of an incapacitated person over 18—is considered a parent under this section and includes persons prescribed by regulations. It also ensures that the definition of parent includes a person who has decision-making responsibility in respect of the child.
Subclause 250(2) would increase the maximum length of leave from 52 weeks to 104 weeks for an employee who's a parent of a child who has disappeared, probably as a result of a crime. It also amends the code to specify that an employee is ineligible to take a leave of absence if the child was 14 years of age or over at the time of the crime and it is probable, considering the circumstances, that the child was a party to the crime. Again, this amendment is consistent with the change to the benefit that prevents parents from receiving the benefit if their children were over the age of 14 and were a probable party to the crime.
Subclause 250(3) specifies that the period during which an employee may take a leave of absence ends 104 weeks after the day on which a disappearance occurs.
Subclause 250(4) specifies that the period during which an employee, who is a parent of a child who has disappeared, may take a leave of absence ends 14 days after the day on which the child is found, if the child is found within the 104 week period, but not later than the end of the 104 week period.
Subclause 250(5) would increase the aggregate amount of leave that may be taken by employees in respect to the disappearance of the same child or children who disappeared in the same event from 52 to 104 weeks.
Finally, clause 251 is a consequential amendment. It relates to the section of the code that deals with victims of family violence. It ensures that the definition of parent, as amended in the previous clause that I just described in this bill, is also applied with respect to the leave for victims of family violence. The clause also specifies that a child with respect to the leave for victims of family violence refers to a person who is under 18 years of age.
Thank you.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Thank you.
I see no questions. It was explained previously as well.
Mrs. Jansen.