Employment Standards Act (ESA) leave reporting
The Fair Work Places, Better Jobs Act, 2017 (Bill 148) made changes to leaves that fall under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) extending some and introducing a number of new leaves.
Effective February 6, 2018 e-access will be updated with the new time limits for ESA leaves.Here’s what you need to know about the changes for OMERS reporting purposes:
1. Report the leave using the Leave period reporting/election (e-Form 165a).
2. Select the type of leave as follows:
For pregnancy and parental leaves, select Pregnancy and parental leave.
For family medical leaves, select Family medical.
For ALL other ESA leaves, select Emergency leave.
For example, report a 15-week critical illness leave as a 15-week emergency leave on the e-Form 165.
3. When submitting the e-Form 165a, you may encounter an exception. Select “ESA leave” as the override reason so you can submit the e-form without interruption.
Using the emergency leave category is a temporary measure to handle these leaves. e-access will be updated in the future so that you can select the appropriate leave. However, until the change is implemented, report all ESA leaves except pregnancy and parental, and family medical leaves as emergency leaves.
As an employer, you must continue to track leaves to ensure pension adjustment (PA) limits are not exceeded. For detailed information on leaves, see section 11 of the OMERS Employer Administration Manual.
Reminder: Report back-to-back leaves separately
If a member doesn’t return to work between two leaves, report and offer each leave separately. For example, a member’s pregnancy and parental leave followed by an authorized leave should be reported as two separate leaves. Submit the e-Form 165a for the pregnancy and parental leave and send the member the offer to purchase as soon as the pregnancy and parental leave has ended. Don’t wait until the authorized leave ends.
Questions?
Contact OMERS Client Services. You can also request an e-tutoring session, which is live, interactive learning with an OMERS Education and Training Specialist. With real-time screen sharing, we can see what you’re working on and answer your questions on the spot. Request your very own e-tutoring session.