Issued: February 14, 2013

The Temporary Help Agency (THA) Blitz that commenced on June 1, 2012 and ended August 31, 2012 was the first Employment Standards (ES) blitz conducted by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development.

The purpose of the blitz was to ensure compliance with the Employment Standards Act (ESA) in the THA sector, as well as to educate employers in this sector and provide them with informational materials. The blitz aimed to conduct 100 proactive inspections of THAs, primarily in the Greater Toronto Area.

Notification letters about the THA inspection initiative were mailed out in advance May 2012 to over 550 THA employers across the Province. During the blitz inspections, officers delivered 105 educational packages, one to every workplace inspected, with the following key resources:

  • Employment Standards Poster
  • Temporary Help Agency Information Sheet employers must provide to assignment employees
  • Hours of Work Information Sheet
  • Young Workers Tip Sheet
  • Employer Workbook
  • Health and Safety Fact Sheet for Assignment Employees

Results

105 inspections were completed and 216 compliance tools (e.g. Compliance Order, Notice of Contravention or Part 1 Ticket) were issued:

  • 27 employers were compliant and no violations were found
  • 76 employers had monetary violations and compliance tools were issued:
    • All employers found in violation of a monetary standard voluntarily corrected the violation. Generally, the most common monetary violation was for public holiday pay
  • 2 employers had non-monetary violations where no compliance order was issued as the employers corrected the violations immediately

Generally, the most common non-monetary violations were for:

  • Hours of Work (Limits on daily/weekly hours)
  • Written agreements with respect to vacation pay
  • THA Information Sheet was not provided to the assignment employee
  • Record keeping

Compliance tools breakdown

An employment standards officer can issue a non-monetary Compliance Order if the officer finds that the employer has contravened the ESA. The officer can order an employer or other person to stop contravening a provision and to take certain steps in order to comply.

  • 198 compliance orders were issued.

Employment standards officers also have the power to issue a Notice of Contravention with prescribed penalties starting at $250 when the officer determines that an employer has contravened a provision of the ESA.

  • 4 Notices of Contravention were issued.

An employment standards officer may also issue a Part I Ticket in accordance with the Provincial Offences Act, carrying a fine of $295 plus a victim fine surcharge.

  • 14 Part 1 Tickets were issued.

Re-inspections

Approximately 30 per cent of the THAs inspected during the blitz had been inspected previously for ES violations. Overall, fewer violations were found upon re-inspection as compared to the initial inspection.