Labour & employment law column by Robert Smithson

On March 22, 2006 at 12:22 a.m., the B.C. Ferries vessel “Queen of the North” plowed into Gil Island at full speed. The ship had sailed through a critical course change at and drove straight on into Gil Island.

After drifting for a little over an hour, the ship sank in 430 metres of water. Ninety nine passengers and crew were rescued and two others died.

Temporary foreign workers in Canada have had numerous employment standards and administrative requirements in place for their protection. Effective April 1, 2011, a range of new safeguards came into effect.

At a high level, the new safeguards comprise a deeper assessment of the genuineness of the job offer from the Canadian employer, a two-year period of ineligibility from hiring temporary foreign workers for employers who fail to meet their commitments, and a four-year limit on the length of time some temporary foreign workers may work here.

Few things seem to stir the pot in B.C. as much as discussion about raising the minimum wage rate. Now, it’s much more than a discussion as B.C.’s new premier has instituted a graduated raise in the minimum wage from $8.00 per hour to $10.25.

I’ve read reviews of this long-awaited increase which variously describe it as “too much, too soon” and “too little, too late”. That shows just how polarized parts of the business community and the labour movement are on this topic.

Last week, I wrote about changes to the Employment Insurance system which blur the traditional line separating independent contractors from employees.  A review of recent decisions in other forums suggests there is an ongoing trend towards treating these two groups as one.

In the E.I. world, previously only true employees were eligible for coverage.  Not having that aspect of our social security net to fall back on was just one of the risks of being self-employed and operating as an independent contractor.