This list was last updated on March 23, 2020
For more information on OFL’s advocacy for workers during the COVID-19 crisis click here.
Below is a policy timeline on COVID-19 for reference and sharing. The OFL will continue to monitor policy changes as further information becomes available. Our advocacy work continues, and we will stay vigilant in pressing the government on our demands.
You can also download the OFL’s info sheet on short-term and long-term actions to avoid the harm that the virus can bring to your health and to the people in your communities, and access more information from the OFL and its affiliates here.
COVID-19 policy updates:
Last Updated: 3/24/2020 (am)
Please note that this is a working document and will be updated frequently.
March 24, 2020
March 23, 2020
- Announced $148 million in social services funding for municipalities and organizations such as shelters, food banks, emergency services, charities and non-profits.
- Announced the creation of a $52 million Emergency Assistance program through Ontario Works (OW) for those who do not qualify for emergency financial supports under federal programs.
- Announced the mandatory closure of all non-essential workplaces in Ontario as of March 25th.
- Overrode provisions in collective agreements for long-term care workers (e.g., assigning non-bargaining unit workers to perform bargaining unit work). Note: This was not done in consultation with affected unions.
March 22, 2020
- Announced plans to allow child care centres to open for free for health care and other frontline workers, including doctors, nurses, paramedics, firefighters, police, and correctional officers (Note: This was not done in consultation with affected unions).
March 21, 2020
- Overrode provisions in collective agreements for hospital workers (e.g., assigning non-bargaining unit workers to perform bargaining unit work). (Note: This was not done in consultation with affected unions.)
March 20, 2020
- Announced the availability of independent learning courses as well as online resources and greater educational TV programming from public broadcasters TVO and TFO — during the school shutdown. (Note: This was done without consultation from education unions and does not address the needs of students without a home computer or access to the internet.)
- Announced that the three-month waiting period for OHIP coverage has been waived and that the Province will cover the cost of COVID-19 services for those that are uninsured (i.e., who do not meet the criteria for OHIP coverage).
March 19, 2020
- Passed the Municipal Emergency Act.
- Bill 187 lays out the ability for members of local councils, boards and committees, during local and province-wide emergencies, to participate electronically in both open and closed meetings, and to be counted for the purposes of quorum.
- The Lieutenant Governor in Council can also, under the new legislation, impose limits and conditions on the powers wielded by municipalities.
- Passed the Employment Standards Amendment Act (Infectious Disease Emergencies).
- Bill 186 entitles employees to job-protected leaves of absence from their employment without pay and if they are unable to work due to reasons related to designated infectious disease emergencies. Those reasons include being under medical investigation, supervision or treatment, in quarantine or isolation, caring or supporting another person, or being affected by travel restrictions.
- The Bill also removes employers’ ability to provide a sick note, though employees may still be required to provide other “evidence reasonable in the circumstances” if they utilize such leave.
- Note: Bill 186 fails to deliver on several measures, including covering all workers and providing paid leave for workers to make it financially feasible [see OFL’s press release for more details]. Also, essential workers, who may not be traditionally considered “essential” may be exempt from the legislation, and those regulations are yet to be determined.
- Announced additional measures including extended validity for health cards and drivers’ licenses, and a court order to suspend the enforcement of evictions.
- Altered regulations to allow businesses (and workers) to deliver goods at all hours of the day, without restriction from local noise bylaws, to keep stores restocked.
- Promised to not follow Quebec’s example in trampling collective bargaining rights for education workers during the crisis.
- Talking with auto manufacturers to see if they can retool their equipment to produce ventilators, and liaising with companies like Canada Goose who might be able to use their sewing equipment to produce medical gowns.
- Considering waving the three-month waiting period that normally exists for individuals returning to Canada to access OHIP. (Note: The government has not yet committed to extending OHIP coverage for newcomers.)
March 18, 2020
- Suspended a major portion of their healthcare overhaul due to COVID-19, weeks before the changes were set to take place. (Note: Bill 74 privatizes health care services; dismantles government agencies such as LHINs, Cancer Care Ontario, and the Trillium Gift of Life Network; and folds patient care into a “super agency” [see OFL’s submission on Bill 74].)
- Closed provincial parks.
- Recommended that licensed retirement homes only allow essential visitors – people visiting residents who are very ill or require end-of-life care – until further notice.
- Announced a 6-month moratorium on interest for student loans will be implemented. (Note: This fails to address financial viability around the principal amount.)
March 17, 2020
- Declared a state of emergency in Ontario. (Note: Limited funds will be distributed to hospitals; testing and screening; personal protective equipment and other supports for frontline workers; long-term care homes; residential facilities in developmental services, gender-based services, and protective care for children and youth; and Indigenous communities.)
March 16, 2020
- Announced substituting the full 2020 budget with a fiscal outlook for the current year, including measures to address the pandemic, to be delivered on March 25th at 4pm [see OFL’s provincial demands].
- Announced the shut down of Ontario courts, including the Superior Court of Justice and the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.
March 15, 2020
March 13, 2020
March 12, 2020
March 11, 2020
- Declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization.
- Announced a $100-million contingency fund with monies allocated towards equipment (e.g., testing kits and personal protective gear) and hiring more health-care staff. (Note: This amount of money can be considered a rounding error when looking at the entirety of the Province’s finances.)
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