Introduction

Ontario continues to reshape its employment landscape, this time with Bill 30, the Working for Workers Seven Act, 2025.  Introduced on May 28, 2025, by the Ontario Government, Bill 30 is the latest in a series of Working for Workers Acts, and proposes further amendments to various workplace and employment-related statutes.

If you are an employer, HR professional, or legal advisor, you should know that the latest round of legislative proposals may affect job posting practices, workplace safety policies, layoff procedures, and exposure to penalties.

Understanding these changes now can help you stay compliant, mitigate risk, and plan ahead.

What is Bill 30?

This proposed legislation is the latest in a series of reforms aimed at strengthening worker protections and modernizing Ontario’s employment laws. It includes targeted amendments to several key statutes, including the:

  • Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”);
  • Occupational Health and Safety Act (“OHSA”);
  • Ontario Immigration Act, 2015 (“OIA”); and
  • Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 (“WSIA”).

It also touches on municipal skills development, though this article focuses on the provisions most relevant to private-sector employers.

1. New rules for job posting platforms

If you operate a job board or HR platform, take note. Bill 30 introduces compliance obligations that could impact platform design and user experience.

Specifically, it would require job posting platforms to:

  • Adopt policies to prevent fraudulent job postings; and
  • Offer a reporting mechanism for users to flag suspicious or fake listings.

It should be noted that job posting platforms are defined to exclude single-employer platforms, therefore, these requirements will not apply to single-employer systems.

These provisions reflect growing government concern around job scams and fraudulent recruitment schemes. Operators of job platforms will need to review their terms of use, vetting processes, and reporting infrastructure.

2. Job-seeking leave and extended layoffs

Bill 30 proposes new entitlements under the ESA, including:

  • Allowing for three days of unpaid job-seeking leave to employees who receive notice of termination as part of a mass termination (50 or more employees); and
  • Providing an option to extend layoffs of non-union employees for up to 52 weeks in a consecutive 78-week period, upon the agreement of the workplace parties and with the approval of the Director.

This extended layoff window may provide employers with breathing room during restructuring efforts, especially in volatile economic sectors.

3. Health and safety reforms: penalties and support

Bill 30 proposes to amend the OHSA by:

  • Creating a new administrative penalty scheme with specific prescribed fines for non-compliance;
  • Providing limited immunity from quasi-criminal prosecution when administrative penalties are issued for the same violation; and
  • Reimbursing certain employers for the cost of supplying workplace defibrillators (AEDs) in the workplace.

These changes aim to increase employer accountability while offering modest financial support for critical safety equipment.

4. Expanded inspection powers in immigration matters

Bill 30 would amend the OIA by:

  • Empowering inspectors to require a person to attend a separate in-person interview as part of the inspection process.

Employers involved in international recruitment or immigration-related compliance should prepare for more robust inspection procedures.

5. Stricter workplace safety and insurance

The proposed changes to the WSIA introduced by Bill 30 would include:

  • Prohibiting employers from making false or misleading statements to the Board in relation to employee benefit claims under the WSIA;
  • Creating new provisions relating to administrative penalties for making false statements, failing to pay premiums or failing to produce accurate wage records;
  • Establishing the offence of failing to pay premiums when due and empowering the courts to order restitution; and
  • Increasing the maximum penalty to $750,000 for persons convicted of two or more counts of the same offence in the same legal proceeding, as well as setting out enumerated aggravating factors to be determined in assessing penalties.

These changes emphasize transparency and financial responsibility in employer dealings with the WSIA.

Key takeaways for employers

If Bill 30 passes, then:

  • Operators of job posting platforms must prepare anti-fraud policies and user reporting tools;
  • Employers must accommodate job-seeking leave when engaging in mass terminations;
  • Extended layoffs may be approved for up to a year, but only with consent and regulatory approval;
  • Non-compliance with health and safety laws may lead to administrative penalties, even where no prosecution follows;
  • Fines for WSIA-related violations will increase significantly, particularly for repeat offences; and
  • Inspection powers in immigration matters will be expanded and people may need to attend separate in-person interviews during audits.

Next steps: Prepare before Bill 30 becomes law

While Bill 30 has not yet been passed, its provisions reflect the Ontario Government’s clear direction: greater accountability, modernized compliance, and stronger worker protections.

Employers should begin reviewing their current practices, especially in the areas of job advertising, layoff management, wage reporting, and safety policies.

We will continue to monitor Bill 30’s progress and provide updates. In the meantime, if you have questions about how the bill could affect your organization—or need assistance updating your policies, please contact our Labour Relations and Employment Group.