Temporary help agencies are required licenses and $25,000 letter of credit
July 14, 2023
Global Korean Post
–
The Ontario government is protecting vulnerable and temporary foreign workers by requiring temporary help agencies (THAs) and recruiters to have a licence to operate in the province as of January 1, 2024.
Inspections by Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development officers have shown that multiple temporary help agencies in Ontario are illegally paying people below the minimum wage and denying other basic employment rights to gain an unfair competitive advantage over law-abiding agencies by undercutting rates.
Many businesses and jobseekers in Ontario are often unaware if an agency or recruiter they are working with is meeting their employment standards obligations or has a history of violations.
They will now be able to check the ministry’s online database before working with one, to see if they have met the province’s stringent licensing requirements. It will be against the law for companies to knowingly use unlicensed businesses for staffing, and those who hire deceitful recruiters will be required to repay workers for any illegal fees charged to them.
To operate their businesses, THAs and recruiters will need to provide $25,000 in the form of an irrevocable letter of credit that can be used to repay owed wages to employees. Offenders could face up to a $50,000 penalty based on repeat violations – the highest amount in Canada.
