MakeWay is the legal employer for all Project employees; therefore, the ethical and legal responsibilities for employees ultimately rest with MakeWay.

Guided by its values of respect, open communication, collaboration, and appreciation of diversity, MakeWay strives to: 

• Promote best HR practices.
• Help establish and maintain effective and efficient work relationships.
• Provide equitable and comprehensive benefit packages that are competitive in the non-profit sector for eligible employees.
• Assure compliance with federal and provincial laws, regulations, and training requirements.

To do this, MakeWay provides a full range of HR activities and tools to support Projects: 

Payroll and Benefits Administration

• Payroll administration including remitting contributions and premiums such as CPP, EI, WCB, and EHT.
• Paperless, online pay statements and tax forms (i.e. T4s, T220s, etc.).
• Benefits administration for eligible employees including health, travel, dental, life, and long-term disability insurance, provincial health coverage, and an Employee Assistance Program.

Employee Training

• Online training that is user-friendly and easily accessible, and covers all of the training required by the regulatory bodies in the province or territory in which the employees work.
• Free access to an extensive training library on topics like workplace wellness, leadership, email writing and etiquette, health and safety at work, and much more.

Employee Administration

• Employee records management.
• Performance management templates. 
• Significant life events (e.g. parental leave, unpaid leaves of absence).  
• Vacation and leave record keeping.

Hiring a New Employee and Changes to Work Processing

• Assistance with job postings and job descriptions. 
• Templates for interviewing and conducting reference checks. 
• Tools to determine the of status of a worker (i.e. employee vs. contractor).  
• Employment agreements.  
• Payroll and personnel forms.
• On-boarding Checklist
• Change letters confirming new terms of employment.

Employee Termination

• Labour law and employment agreement compliance.  
• Preparation of notices of termination and releases.  
• Preparation and online submission of Records of Employment (ROE).

HR Advice and Consultation

People Engagement and Learning is always willing to answer questions and give advice on issues regarding employee management, compensation, HR best practices, etc. 

Projects and their employees are supported by, and must comply with, MakeWay's policies and practices. These are outlined in the following documents:

• Core Organization Policies
• Employee Handbook

MakeWay’s policies are designed to protect Projects and their employees, as well as the integrity of MakeWay as a whole.

All Project employees have the right to file a grievance with People Enagement and Learning if they experience treatment that is inconsistent with MakeWay’s policies. 

Project can establish policies and practices in addition to those set by MakeWay, such as:

• Additional paid holidays.
• Scheduled paid/unpaid office closures.
• More generous vacation and paid sick leave entitlements.
• Optional benefits such as RRSPs, paid parental leave, paid family leave, professional development, tuition reimbursement, sabbaticals, etc. 

Project-specific policies and practices must be fair and consistent for all Project employees, and must be approved by the Project's Steering Committee and People Engagement and Learning. 

Templates are available to help with developing Project-specific policies such as Sick and Personal Leave, Training and Development, and Police Reference Checks. 

MakeWay, its supervisors, and its workers (employees, contractors, consultants, and volunteers) must make every effort to provide work environments that are designed and maintained in accordance with established provincial occupational health and safety standards. Refer to MakeWay’s Health and Safety Policy for basic resources.

Projects must take all reasonable precautions to prevent injuries and occupational diseases, and eliminate risks to personal security. Projects are responsible for creating secure, safe, and healthy working conditions at their work sites. In addition, Projects must create and document a safety plan that addresses the particular needs of Project employees and the work they perform, whether that is regular computer use, high-risk outdoor activities, or working in areas at risk for violence.

Employees are provided Workers’ Compensation coverage beginning on the first day of work. Workers’ Compensation benefits are normally available when workers are incapacitated by injury or illness arising out of their employment. Workers’ Compensation premium rates are assigned by province and calculated based on the employee’s salary. These premiums are calculated by Payroll and allocated by the Project. 

MakeWay welcomes the diversity and the synergy that stems from the perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences of our employees.

MakeWay provides a respectful workplace and equal employment opportunities for all employees and applicants for positions regardless of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status and family status, disability, or conviction for an offence for which a pardon has been granted. Refer to MakeWay's Respect in the Workplace Policy for more details. 

MakeWay offers eligible employees a comprehensive range of benefits including:

• Extended medical, dental, and life insurance.
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
• Travel insurance.
• Accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance.
• Long-term disability (LTD) insurance.
• Optional supplemental life insurance.

Who is eligible?

Permanent employees or employees with a fixed-term contract of one year or more, working at least 20 hours per week, are eligible for extended medical, dental, life insurance, and EAP benefits for themselves and their dependents. LTD insurance is only available to permanent employees or those with a fixed term of at least two years.

Who pays the premiums?

The Project is responsible for paying 100% of the premium costs for extended medical, dental, travel, life insurance, AD&D insurance, and EAP. The employee is responsible for paying 100% of the premium costs for LTD and optional supplemental life insurance. Refer to the Summary of Benefits Coverage for more details.

MakeWay provides the training required for compliance with the regulatory bodies in the province or territory in which Project employees work:

• Health and safety standards.
• Employment standards.
• Accessibility.

This training is available at no cost to the Project. 

This training is easily accessible through HR Downloads. All new employees will receive an email from HR Downloads on the date of their first payday prompting them to login to their training profile and start the training. Employees must complete all required training within two months of receiving their login information. People Engagement and Learning can provide Project Directors with a summary of the training completed by their employees. 

An extensive training library is also available to employees free of charge. Contact PEL to add modules to an employee's training profile.

You may think that it is quicker and cheaper to hire someone as an independent contractor rather than as an employee. However, the financial consequences of misclassifying an employee can be significant.  

If the Project hires someone as an independent contractor and, at a later date, the CRA determines that they are an employee, the Project will be responsible for all payroll taxes owed (both the employer’s share and the employee’s share) plus interest and penalties, which can be substantial.

Please review this Guidance Document and use it to complete the Employee vs. Contractor checklist before starting any contract process. For more information, please listen to this helpful 15-minute Vantage Point podcast.

Projects set the salaries of their employees.

However, these salaries must be reviewed by the Steering Committee and then approved by Human Resources. MakeWay reserves the right to reduce or adjust salaries if necessary, e.g. per grant restrictions on compensation levels, significant changes in job duties, internal equity considerations between positions due to restructuring, lack of project funds, etc.

Projects can only host unpaid interns, or hire interns at less than minimum wage, if they are enrolled in a college or university placement program where the internship is part of the person’s formal education. The Project must enter into a written internship agreement with the participating school.

Projects can engage unpaid volunteers for short-term activities that would not otherwise be undertaken by employees (e.g. greeter at an event, guest blogger, etc.). Volunteers are not paid for their work. However, if the Project budget permits, the Project Director has the discretion to give volunteers a nominal honorarium.

Projects should consult their Project Specialist prior to hosting an intern or engaging volunteers in unpaid project work.

The Project may be required to run a criminal records check on prospective employees or volunteers if they will be working directly with minors or individuals considered to be at-risk. Additional checks may be required if the employee or volunteer may potentially work alone with this group. Projects should contact Human Resources for further guidance in these situations.

Workplace accident rates for new and young workers (14 to 24 years old) are significantly higher than for mature and experienced workers. Supervisors and others involved in training must be familiar with the unique workplace health and safety risks facing new and young workers.

To comply with occupational health and safety legislation, supervisors must provide new or young workers with the following before the end of their first day on the job:

• A health and safety orientation.
• Training in safe work practices specific to their new workplace.

Tools and templates to facilitate this process are provided with the new hire package and online training. Projects should encourage new and young workers to communicate any questions or concerns they have about specific workplace hazards prior to accepting any work assignments.

The new hire packet sent to the employee with their employment agreement contains:

• Employee information forms for their personnel file.
• Federal and provincial tax forms.
• Authorizations for automatic deposit and EFT.
• Acknowledgement of receipt form (for MakeWay's Employee Handbook and Core Organization Policies).
• Information about required training.
• Benefits information and enrollment forms (if they qualify for benefits).

Scans of the completed forms must be emailed to PEL. The original forms must also be mailed to PEL.

MakeWay recognizes traditional or historic holidays, and some non-statutory holidays, and offers time off with pay for employees on these days:

• Full-time employees are paid for a full day of work.
• Part-time employees are paid on a pro-rated basis. If a holiday falls on a day on which a part-time employee does not normally work, the employee must make arrangements with their supervisor to take another paid day off work in lieu or be paid holiday pay per the requirements of the province in which they work. If the part-time employee has to work on the holiday, the employee will be paid according to employment standards.

Projects may designate and observe other holidays as part of their approved Project-specific policies and practices.

Employment standards do not mandate that an employer must provide time off work with pay for an employee who is sick or who needs time off work for personal, urgent, or family matters.

Projects control whether they offer their employees paid sick leave, and if so, how much.

Most managers and supervisors are not eligible for overtime.

The presumption under employment standards is that an employee is eligible for overtime unless they are considered a manager under the relevant act. Generally, a manager is a person whose principal responsibilities consist of:

• Either supervising or directing, or both supervising and directing.
• Managing human or other resources.
• Acting in an executive capacity.

Management responsibilities: 

• Supervises other employees and has an impact on those employees’ working conditions (e.g. performs performance review, discipline, etc.).
• Exercises judgment in matters such as discipline, hiring, and firing.
• Ensures compliance with company policies.
• Authorizes vacation, overtime, time off, or leaves of absence.
• Schedules and calls employees in to work.
• Alters work processes.
• Establishes or alters work schedules.
• Trains employees.
• Commits or authorizes use of company resources.

Executive capacity: 

• Involved in making critical decisions.
• May be responsible for determining:
  • The number of employees to be employed. 
  • The purchase and production of product.
  • Suppliers and/or service providers.
  • The selling price of products.
  • The location of business.

Employees are not considered managers based on: 

• Their job title or the fact that other employees refer to that person as a ‘manager’.
• How they are paid (e.g. salary, hourly).
• Their responsibility to open and close the business.

MakeWay provides performance management templates to assist Projects with employee performance reviews. 

Project Directors (or designated supervisors) are responsible for monitoring employee performance on a day-to-day basis, and for conducting a formal annual performance review with each employee.

Performance reviews must take place at the end of the employee's probation and orientation period, and at least once a year after that. These formal performance reviews are not a substitute for ongoing day-to-date communication about work assignments and feedback about performance standards. A good rule of thumb is that there should be no surprises at a formal performance review; rather, it should be a summary of previous communications with updated goals and improvement plans for the coming review period. 

Performance reviews must be signed by the Project Director and employee and forwarded to PEL so they can be filed in the employee’s personnel file. A formal performance review must accompany any merit-based request for salary increase.

Projects must not take any disciplinary action with an employee unless they have first discussed it with MakeWay's People Engagement and Learning team. The Project Director must contact PEL at the first sign of a problem that might require disciplinary action.

MakeWay is the legal employer of all Project staff, so it is imperative that Projects consult PEL on all employee issues. MakeWay must authorize all disciplinary actions including probation, suspension, termination, and any related employee grievances. 

PEL supports corrective performance management, also known as a progressive disciplinary process, in order to provide employees a reasonable opportunity to correct any performance issues. Each disciplinary step—from verbal or written warning through suspension or termination—should be documented, and is subject to approval by PEL. Any decision to recommend termination, including incidents of serious work rule violations that may warrant immediate dismissal, must be promptly brought to the attention of PEL. 

• Voluntary resignations (quit): The employee submits a letter or email notification of resignation, with an effective date. Legally, the effective date is the last day that the employee works.  Employees who voluntarily resign are not eligible for EI. 
• Layoffs for economic reasons such as lack of funds or lack of work:  The employee(s) must be terminated with proper notice, or pay in lieu of notice, per the terms of their employment agreement. Employees who meet Service Canada requirements may be eligible for EI. 
• End of fixed-term employment: The employee’s employment comes to an end per the end date stated in their employment agreement. Employees who meet Service Canada requirements may be eligible for EI. 
• Termination during the first 3 months: Within the first 3 months (the usual probation period) the Project Director concludes, after a good faith effort, that the "fit” between the employee and the Project is unsatisfactory. The Project Director must consult with PEL prior to communicating the decision to the employee. No notice is required if the employee is terminated before end of the first three months. Employees who meet Service Canada requirements may be eligible for EI.
• Termination without cause after the first 3 months: After the first 3 months (the usual probation period), the Project Director concludes that, through no fault of the employee, it is best that the employee leave the Project. The Project Director must consult with PEL prior to communicating the decision to the employee. Employees must be terminated with proper notice, or pay in lieu of notice, per the terms of their employment agreement. Employees who meet Service Canada requirements may be eligible for EI. 
•  Termination with just cause: Any allegations must be fully documented by the Project Director, who must consult with PEL before communicating the decision to the employee. No notice is required and the employee is not eligible for EI.

Projects can request termination without cause if the employee is not a good fit for the role, or if there are unresolved performance issues that begin to detrimentally impact the Project's ability to carry out its mission.

Termination should always be a last resort. Projects should make good faith efforts to provide ongoing feedback to employees, and to give them a reasonable opportunity to correct any performance issues (barring serious misconduct). 

Projects can only terminate an employee with the authorization of PEL.

Projects might request termination with just cause for the following reasons:

• Serious theft or fraud.
• Breach of trust, i.e. misconduct that promotes employee’s interests instead of the employer’s interests.
• Significant, ongoing insubordination.
• Persistent and ongoing lateness and absenteeism when the employee is given adequate warnings but fails to correct the behavior and has no valid reason for the conduct.
• Blatant incompetence, i.e. after several documented warnings the employee does not improve.
• Employee misrepresentation at time of hiring.
• Sexual harassment documented with substantiated allegations and where a warning system was in place.

To successfully terminate an employee with just cause, all actions, communications, meetings, and responses leading up to the termination must be thoroughly and effectively documented, and must be considered as sufficient proof by a court of law should the employee challenge the decision to terminate their employment.

For serious allegations including theft, fraud, and sexual harassment, the employee must be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations before termination is warranted. 

Projects can only terminate an employee with the authorization of PEL.

For all terminations the Project Director must provide supporting documentation to PEL, including but not limited to: 

• If the employee has initiated the termination: The employee’s resignation letter or email, or documentation of a verbal request.
• If the termination is not voluntary: Documentation of all previous corrective actions, such as written performance reviews and warnings, progressive disciplinary steps, etc.  
• The employee's final timesheet: The employee's regularly scheduled hours projected through to the prospective termination date, or confirmation that no outstanding timesheet is due since no work was scheduled or performed since last pay period.
• Notice of any previously unreported vacation days used: This is necessary to ensure accurate and timely adjustment of the employee’s unused vacation balance. Vacation accrual will be projected through the termination date by PEL when an employee leaves.

Project Directors are responsible for overseeing the exit process for departing employees. There are a number of administrative tasks to address in the exit process, such as:

• Obtaining keys and cards.
• Terminating phone, computer and email accounts.
• Notifying key contacts.
• Ensuring final payment of expenses.

Project Directors (or appointed supervisors) should go through the Offboarding Checklist with departing employees to ensure both the Project and the Support Team obtain everything that is required prior to the employee’s last day.

Project Directors should also hold an exit interview with departing employees to collect feedback about their work experience while with the Project. An exit interview template is available to help with this task. Ask simple, direct questions about the quality of supervision and direction, satisfaction with work conditions, their primary reason for leaving, and suggestions to make the Project a better place to work.

Employees can also request confidential exit interviews with PEL.

MakeWay maintains a confidential personnel file for each employee. This file includes their job application, resume, signed employment agreement, CRA and benefits related forms, job description, performance reviews, as well as documented changes in duties, hours, and job title. 

The law requires MakeWay to keep personnel files for seven years after an employee has separated from the organization. If personnel files are kept at the Project’s location, they must be maintained in a confidential manner. 

Employees can obtain copies of any documentation in their personnel file, to the extent required by law, by contacting PEL. Personnel files are the property of MakeWay.

Current and former employees often need verification of employment to obtain credit, financing, and other services. Requests for verification of employment must be submitted to Human Resources by the current or former employee.

• Oral requests: PEL can only verify dates of employment, job status, and job title.
• Written requests: PEL can verify additional information with the specific written authorization of the current or former employee.