Workers' Protections and Faster Project Approvals

Summary#

Bill 105 makes changes across several Ontario laws. The main goals are to strengthen worker protections, speed up some approvals, and change how certain public roles and regulators work. It also creates new rules for talent agencies and updates workers’ compensation.

Key changes:

• Employers cannot charge most workers for uniforms or normal cleaning and repairs.
• Environmental assessments are streamlined, with fewer review steps and more decisions made by the Minister.
• Union “raid” and decertification timelines in the construction sector are cut from two months to one month.
• Ontario can set rules to prioritize international medical graduates with ties to Ontario for residency spots.
• A new law regulates talent agencies, caps commissions, bans most fees, and requires fast payment to entertainment workers.
• Workers’ compensation (WSIB) benefits increase, can continue past age 65 in some cases, and now cover private residential care facilities and group homes.

What it means for you#

• Workers

  • You cannot be required to pay for your work uniform or its normal cleaning and repairs. You can be charged only if you lose it, damage it beyond normal wear, or do not return it as agreed.
  • If you were wrongly charged, you can claim it as unpaid wages.
  • When the government collects money after enforcement, workers are paid first.
  • A new exposure registry may track your contact with harmful agents over time to improve safety.

• Entertainment workers (actors, models, musicians, etc.)

  • Talent agencies cannot charge you upfront fees, except allowed commissions and any other fees set by regulation.
  • Commission rates are capped. Agencies must give you clear written statements.
  • Money agencies collect for you must go into a dedicated account and be paid to you quickly.
  • There are clear complaint and enforcement tools to get your money back if overcharged.

• Injured workers and survivors

  • WSIB loss-of-earnings benefits rise from 85% to 90% of your net wage loss (prospective).
  • If you were likely to work past 65, benefits can continue past 65, based on a WSIB determination.
  • Survivors’ benefits also increase.
  • WSIB can review payments under new rules; reviews can happen over time or if your situation changes.
  • More workplaces (private residential care and group homes) are covered by WSIB.

• Employers and small businesses

  • You generally cannot deduct uniform or cleaning costs from employees’ pay.
  • WSIB benefit increases and extended payments may raise your premiums.
  • If you run a talent agency, you must follow new fee, recordkeeping, trust account, and payout rules, with penalties for breaking them.
  • Safety training and protective equipment that meet other Canadian standards may be recognized, reducing duplicative requirements.
  • Some employers or constructors may be reimbursed for the cost of specific protective headwear (details to be set by regulation).

• Construction industry (workers, unions, employers)

  • Windows to apply for union certification by a different union, or to decertify, shrink from two months to one month. This changes organizing and challenge timelines.

• International medical graduates (IMGs)

  • The province can set rules to prioritize IMGs with an Ontario connection for residency positions. This could help those with local ties enter training sooner.

• Patients and families

  • If the IMG priority rules are used, more doctors with Ontario ties may enter practice over time.
  • More categories of people may be required to report suspected harm to retirement home residents (to be set by regulation).

• Environmental approvals and communities

  • Some assessment steps are removed, and the Minister’s decision no longer needs Cabinet sign-off (though the Minister can still send it to Cabinet).
  • Any one partner can file on multi-proponent projects. There is no longer a ministry review step or a way for anyone to request a tribunal referral of an application.
  • Developers may see faster timelines; communities may have fewer formal chances to seek a higher-level review.

• Provincial oversight roles

  • The Ombudsman must be fluent in English and French and be chosen by a unanimous, multi‑party panel (unless the Assembly unanimously agrees to a different process).
  • The Minister, not Cabinet, now appoints the board of the Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority, and appointees serve at the Minister’s pleasure.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

• Helps workers keep more of their pay by ending most uniform charges and paying workers first in enforcement recoveries.
• Raises support for injured workers and survivors, and recognizes people working past 65.
• Protects entertainment workers from predatory fees and ensures fast, traceable payments.
• Speeds up important projects by reducing duplicate environmental review steps and clarifying who decides.
• Eases entry for international medical graduates with Ontario ties, helping address doctor shortages.
• Improves safety through an exposure registry and harmonized training/equipment standards; may offset some costs with headwear reimbursements.

Opponents' View#

• Cuts to environmental review and the loss of public referral to a tribunal reduce oversight and community voice, while centralizing power in the Minister.
• Higher WSIB benefits could increase employer premiums; ongoing reviews may add uncertainty for injured workers.
• Letting officials refuse certain employment complaints may leave some workers without an investigation.
• Shorter, one‑month timelines in construction may limit workers’ ability to change unions or decertify.
• Giving the Minister direct control over the retirement homes regulator’s board could weaken its independence.
• Collecting personal exposure data raises privacy concerns; new rules add compliance costs for some businesses, including talent agencies.