The COVID‑19 pandemic has led to significant changes in our daily lives as governments, businesses, and individuals all try to do what they can to slow the spread of the illness. ‘Social distancing’ has become a term that is familiar to all of us as we limit our physical interactions with one another, and adjust the ways we act when we do meet with others, all in an effort to respond to the advance of this illness.

One aspect of daily life that has changed dramatically for many of us as a result of the COVID‑19 crisis is the workplace. The provincial government has issued an order requiring all non‑essential workplaces to shut down, at least until early April and possibly beyond that. Even before that order was issued, many employers were shutting down their workplaces and requiring employees to work remotely. Further, many employers who are permitted to keep their workplaces open under the government order have nonetheless shut down their workplaces in favour of having employees work from home. And with the impact that COVID‑19 is having on many businesses, some employers are laying off employees.

For many employers, these steps will also raise legal questions and issues. As this whole situation is new to all of us, we expect that the responses to the crisis will raise novel legal questions that were not anticipated. But there are already some legal questions that are arising, and it would be wise for employers to give consideration to the legal implications of any measures they may take, as well as how to respond to questions or resistance from employees. With this in mind, we are setting out a few of the issues that we have already seen, so that you can consider them in making decisions on how to manage your employees through this crisis. This article is not meant to give you the answers as to how to address those issues – that is simply not possible in light of the many different circumstances that each different employer has to address. Instead, it is meant to give you an idea of some of the issues that you might face, to help you to be aware of what you might face, and to help you think about when you might seek professional advice about these issues. Continue reading “Three things to think about as employers during the COVID-19 crisis”