Addressing rising food costs and navigating immigration changes
As we near the end of the year, the Restaurants Canada team has been fully engaged in Ottawa and across the country to ensure your voice is heard.
Food inflation and internal trade barriers
Food inflation continues to outpace the rate of general inflation. Restaurants Canada has been actively advocating for more action from governments on this issue, including the removal of interprovincial trade barriers on food and alcohol, two items that were left out of the most recent Canadian Mutual Recognition Agreement by Canada’s Trade Ministers. Read our statement for more details.
We are particularly concerned about the cost of beef and overall food inflation. Following the rapid rise in beef prices, we met with Sylvain Charlebois to gather information and explore collaborative policy solutions.
Updated immigration toolkit
As we are all too aware the federal government announced some significant changes to the immigration system in its recent federal budget. To help you navigate the new rules and caps, we have updated our immigration toolkit. You can find the latest version here.
Hiring announcements
I am very pleased to announce three new hires to the Restaurants Canada team joining us in the coming weeks.
Cheryl Muir will be joining Restaurants Canada on Monday, December 15th as our new Vice President, Western Canada. Cheryl brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in public affairs, government relations, and strategic communications, with a proven track record of building high-impact partnerships across industry and government. Our outgoing VP of Western Canada, Mark von Schellwitz, who is retiring January 2026, will work closely with Cheryl over the next month to ensure a smooth transition.
Nicole Cork will also be joining Restaurants Canada on Monday, December 15th as our new Director of Member & Stakeholder Engagement. Nicole has more than a decade of leadership experience in the non-profit and association management sector, where she led initiatives in membership growth and retention, CRM implementation and optimization, stakeholder engagement, marketing, and business development. Nicole will work closely with the membership team to enhance member engagement and retention, expand our membership base, and strengthen partnerships with key stakeholders.
And on Monday, January 5th, 2026, Anthony Polci will join us as Executive Vice President of Government Relations and Public Affairs. Anthony spent nearly 20 years at the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA), serving as Chief Strategy Officer, Head of Government Relations, and Vice President of Government Relations. Earlier in his career, he also served in several senior roles within the Office of the Minister of Transport. We are thrilled to have Anthony join the organization leading our high-level Government Relations team. He will be based out of our Ottawa, Ontario office.
Please join me in welcoming Anthony, Nicole and Cheryl to the team!
Culinary and hospitality program cuts
Over the past year, post-secondary institutions nationwide have announced cuts or closures to tourism, culinary, and hospitality programs; an alarming trend for our industry. In response, Restaurants Canada convened a roundtable with stakeholders from both the industry and education sectors to address these closures and develop policy recommendations to secure the talent our industry needs.
The discussion highlighted the urgency of the situation: programs are closing, enrolments are declining, and our talent pipeline is shrinking just as labour demand rises. This also affects our ability to position culinary and hospitality careers as viable options to students, parents, and educators.
The roundtable aimed to align on the scope of the problem, identify immediate and coordinated actions—whether educational, policy, or public relations—and explore next steps. This includes potential provincial outreach, public messaging on the crisis, and the development of a sustainable, national domestic talent strategy that ensures long-term industry growth. We will continue the discussions and keep the sector informed of developments.
Out and about
I was honoured to attend a dinner hosted by the Century Initiative in recognition of founder Dominic Barton. The evening provided an important opportunity to discuss Canada’s current landscape, including the need for strategic immigration, economic resilience, and the opportunities ahead for our country. I also had the chance to highlight the work Restaurants Canada and the broader foodservice sector do to positively impact communities nationwide. Engaging policymakers and influencers, and building champions for the foodservice industry, remains a key part of our strategy to ensure the sector is recognized and consulted in shaping Canada’s future.
Champions for Change: Allyship in Action for a More Inclusive Workplace – OTEC Webinar
Sign up for the latest webinar in the Ontario Tourism Education Corporation’s Women in Leadership series on December 10, 2025, at 1:00 pm ET. This webinar defines allyship for gender equity, emphasizing the vital role of male allies. Participants will explore challenges faced by female leaders, learn concrete actions male allies can take to support them, and discover how to build a more inclusive workplace through effective communication and genuine partnership. Register here.
FEDERAL UPDATE
From Matt Triemstra | Vice-President, Federal Affairs
Canadian Chamber of Commerce Hill Day
It was a pleasure to participate in the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Hill Day this past week in Ottawa. We know how important labour challenges are to our members, which is why we joined the “Talent and Immigration” stream of meetings. We heard directly from key government officials like the Deputy Minister of Immigration, MP Leslie Church, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Jobs and Families (Persons with Disabilities), and Nancy Healy, Commissioner for Employers. In every meeting we highlighted the pressures restaurants are feeling, the economic impact of our industry and the need to maintain labour streams for our operators.
Standing up for foodservice ahead of the CUSMA review
The Restaurants Canada team has also been active on Canada’s consultations ahead of the CUSMA review, focusing on maintaining the rules of origin framework and amending the supply management system (while respecting its rationale) to make it fit for purpose.
As part of this work, we met on December 3rd with Canada’s Chief Agriculture Negotiator, along with several other senior officials from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada as well as Global Affairs Canada.
The events of the past few months have reinforced the need for our sector to protect free and fair trade for the foodservice industry. Our members suffered greatly not only during the Trump tariffs, but also as a result of retaliatory tariffs and the decision to exclude foodservice from automatic relief.
We thank members of the Tariff Working Group who joined the call. Follow-up meetings are now being scheduled to continue to press our case.
Please see our CUSMA submission here.
GST Campaign – 1 Year Anniversary
December 14th will mark the 1-year anniversary of the Government of Canada introducing the two-month GST/HST holiday. As we approach the anniversary, Restaurants Canada will continue our advocacy campaign calling on the federal government to permanently exempt all food from GST, including prepared food. This would ease the financial burden on families and provide direct and immediate cost relief, something Canadians haven’t seen this year.
Parliamentary and Government Updates
The Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development has launched a study on the “Impacts of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program on the Labour Market.” Rest assured that Restaurants Canada will participate so we can continue to demonstrate that any changes should not be made without consulting the businesses they will impact and considering the real gaps that exist in Canada’s labour market, such as rural and remote areas. Additionally, the Government of Canada has launched a consultation on Youth Employment, and we will be taking the opportunity to remind Government that the foodservice industry employs over 500,000 youth!
SUSTAINABILITY UPDATE
From Jillian Rodak | Vice-President, Sustainability
Federal cabinet shuffle
Last week, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced changes to the federal cabinet. Julie Dabrusin will take on the additional Ministry of Nature in addition to her existing role as Minister for Environment and Climate Change. While we do not expect this change to have implications on our sector, we are monitoring for any updates.
Federal Plastics Registry
Environment and Climate Change Canada has confirmed with RC that they will be delaying the reporting requirements for Phases 2 and 3 of the Federal Plastics Registry (FPR) to provide more time to refine reporting requirements. Phase 1 reporting will remain in effect and ECCC is planning to engage further with stakeholders in 2026. We are working to get clarity on when this engagement will occur in 2026, and on what aspects of the Registry ECCC plans to consult us on.
British Columbia Clean BC Report
British Columbia released its final report of the CleanBC Independent Review Panel. The Report supports continuing to allow municipalities to impose early adoption of the Zero Carbon Step Code, which would limit renewable natural gas and ban natural gas in construction of new buildings, creating a patchwork of regulations across British Columbia. RC has taken several actions to represent the foodservice industry leading up to this report, including an appearance at a public hearing on the City of Vancouver’s proposed natural gas future construction ban last November and a submission to the Clean BC Review Panel this past summer. We will continue to monitor municipalities’ actions on the Zero Carbon Step Code to ensure our voice is heard.
Edmonton ICI waste roadmap
The City of Edmonton’s phase 2 of its engagement process is underway to garner feedback for the development of its ICI Waste Roadmap, a four-year plan which outlines actions to reduce commercial waste across the city. RC has had two meetings with the City on the roadmap to date, and we are holding a consultation session with the City specifically for RC members, tentatively set for Monday, January 19th from 1:00-3:00pm MT. We will confirm the details for this session in the coming weeks.
Ontario Auditor General report – EPR
Last Week Ontario’s Auditor General released a report on the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA). Its key findings included:
- RPRA is not effectively enforcing registration of smaller producers, allowing some to avoid their obligations to collect and recover waste
- RPRA has delayed requiring the auditing of performance data for most materials, increasing the risk of incorrect data
- RPRA rarely escalates enforcement action against producers that have not complied with data-reporting requirements
- RPRA does not have formal processes to proactively analyze and bring forward systemic compliance challenges to MECP
We anticipate RPRA will be responsive to the auditor’s findings, including going after unregistered producers, to ensure producers are paying fees reflective of their actual outputs.
The Auditor’s report, which includes both its recommendations and RPRAs responses, can be found here: Performance Audit: Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority.
Quebec Beverage Deposit program
Since November 1, 2023, all on-site consumption establishments have been obligated to comply with Quebec’s deposit system. This means that all beverage containers served within an establishment must be recovered. As of March 1, 2025, there are two new changes to be aware of:
- The beverage containers subject to deposit will now include all ready-to-drink beverage containers from 100 ml to 2 L made of plastic that are not already part of the deposit system, such as water bottles, sparkling water, juices, and other beverages. Read the complete list of beverage containers subject to deposit.
- If your establishment has a capacity of more than 20 people, or if your service includes providing meals or light meals to more than 20 people at once, you must register on the AQRCB portal.
For more information, please see the Collection Request Form available on the Consignaction website.
New Brunswick‘s proposed organic waste diversion program
RC is currently drafting a submission to the Province of New Brunswick on the proposed Organic Waste Diversion program. We will be sharing the draft with RC’s Sustainability Committee this week for feedback. If you are not on the committee and would like to share your feedback on the document, please reach out to jrodak@restaurantscanada.org – your input is very valuable to provide an authentic voice for our industry.
QUÉBEC UPDATE
From Marie-Pier Richard | Vice-President, Québec
English follows
Ville de Québec
Le 3 décembre la ville de Québec a présenté son budget 2026. Une bonne nouvelle pour les restaurateurs du territoire, l’administration marchand respecte sa promesse d’abolir les frais de terrasse, représentant une économie de 300 000$ pour l’ensemble des restaurateurs. La ville a également maintenu sa taxe commerciale sous l’inflation avec une augmentation de 1,4 %.
Mise à jour économique
La mise à jour économique du gouvernement du Québec a été présentée le 25 novembre. Nous avons salué les mesures mise en place par le gouvernement Legault pour remettre un peu plus d’argent dans le portefeuille des citoyens et des entreprises.
Pour consulter notre réaction : Mise à jour économique du Québec : Restaurants Canada salue les mesures soulageant le portefeuille des Québécois et soutenant les entreprises.
Rappel réglementation sur la consigne
Depuis le 1er novembre 2023, en tant qu’établissement de consommation sur place, vous avez de nouvelles obligations à remplir dans le cadre de la modernisation du système de consigne au Québec. La plus importante, c’est que TOUS les établissements de consommation sur place doivent participer au système de consigne (article 62 du Règlement visant l’élaboration, la mise en œuvre et le soutien financier d’un système de consigne de certains contenants), c’est-à-dire que vous devez récupérer tous les contenants de boisson servis dans votre établissement.
1. Nouvelles matières visées par la consigne
Depuis le 1er mars 2025, les contenants de boisson consignés seront :
- Les nouveaux contenants : tous les contenants de boisson prête-à-boire de 100 ml à 2 l en plastique qui ne sont pas déjà consignés, telles les bouteilles d’eau, d’eau pétillante et de jus ainsi que d’autres boissons.
- Les contenants déjà consignés demeurent :
- La majorité des contenants de boisson, de bière et de boisson gazeuse en plastique et en verre.
- Tous les contenants de boisson prête-à-boire en aluminium de 100 ml à 2 l.
Veuillez noter que le montant de la consigne sur les contenants de boisson en plastique s’élève à 10 cents, comme la plupart des autres contenants.
Vous trouvez ici la liste de tous les contenants de boissons consignés.
2. Obligations pour les ÉCSP ayant une capacité d’accueil de plus de 20 personnes à la fois.
À partir du 1er mars 2025, si la capacité d’accueil de votre établissement est de plus de 20 personnes à la fois ou dont la prestation de services comporte la fourniture de repas ou de repas légers à plus de 20 personnes à la fois, vous devez vous inscrire sur le portail de l’AQRCB. Pour ce faire, rendez-vous dans la section Partenaires, puis sélectionnez l’onglet ÉCSP.
Cette inscription sur le portail de l’AQRCB n’est pas seulement une obligation réglementaire, elle vous permettra d’obtenir, si vous le souhaitez, un service de collecte gratuite. Certaines conditions s’appliquent. Pour plus de renseignements, consultez le Formulaire de cueillette sur le site Internet de Consignaction.
Vous trouverez sur leur site internet des ressources pour vous aider : Foire aux questions – Consignaction, Formulaire demande de matériel ainsi que la Boîte à outils – Consignaction. Si vous avez des questions, écrivez à ecsp@consignaction.ca
City of Québec
On December 3, the City of Québec presented its 2026 budget. Good news for operators in the area: the Marchand administration is keeping its promise to abolish patio fees, representing savings of $300,000 for all restaurants. The city has also kept its commercial tax increase below inflation, with a rise of 1.4%.
Economic Update
The Government of Québec presented its economic update on November 25. We welcomed the measures introduced by the Legault government to put a bit more money back into the pockets of citizens and businesses.
Read our reaction here (French only).
Reminder: Deposit System Regulations
Since November 1, 2023, all on-site consumption establishments have been obligated to comply with Quebec’s deposit system. This means that all beverage containers served within an establishment must be recovered. As of March 1, 2025, there are two new changes to be aware of:
- The beverage containers subject to deposit will now include all ready-to-drink beverage containers from 100 ml to 2 L made of plastic that are not already part of the deposit system, such as water bottles, sparkling water, juices, and other beverages. Read the complete list of beverage containers subject to deposit.
- If your establishment has a capacity of more than 20 people, or if your service includes providing meals or light meals to more than 20 people at once, you must register on the AQRCB portal.
For more information, please see the Collection Request Form available on the Consignaction website.
ATLANTIC CANADA UPDATE
From Janick Cormier | Vice-President, Atlantic Canada
Nova Scotia
I had the pleasure of attending the Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia’s (TIANS) tourism summit in Halifax. It was fantastic to connect with those who are working so hard to grow Nova Scotia’s tourism sector. The restaurant industry is the biggest contributor to tourism dollars in the province with 33% of revenues coming from our industry.
I also took the opportunity while in Halifax to meet with some operators along with RANS where we discussed labour, the minimum wage hike, insurance costs and credit card fees. For those of you who I have not had the chance to meet yet, don’t hesitate to reach out to me to discuss any of these things, or whatever else is on your mind.
A reminder that the government of Nova Scotia has announced they will increase minimum wage by $0.50 per hour in 2026. More details were included in my member’s update last week. This increase in labour costs comes at a time where operating costs are already high. We will be (again) asking government to help offset this increase in labour costs.
While in Ottawa, I also had the chance to meet with the new MP from Halifax, Shannon Miedema, where we covered our GST ask as well as the challenges with finding labour due to the federal government’s massive cuts to immigration. As a former server, Ms. Miedema knows our industry quite well.
Newfoundland and Labrador
The recount in Topsail-Paradise has concluded and the results are unchanged. This means that Premier Wakeham held on to his very small majority government. I’m looking forward to meeting with the new government in the new year as I intend to head to St John’s for HNL’s annual conference in February.
New Brunswick
I brought our new VP of Federal Affairs, Matt Triemstra, with me to meet with Richard Bragdon, MP for Tobique-Mactaquac while in Ottawa. The majority of the conversation revolved around inflation and increased operating costs. We also brought up the need for foreign labour, especially in the rural parts of the province. Mr. Bragdon shared that he was proud to represent the French Fry Capital of the world with most potatoes from his riding being harvested for McDonald’s famous fries.
I’ve also had a preliminary conversation with Tourism Minister Isabelle Thériault about the tourism strategy and how we can work together to increase culinary experiences in the province. I look forward to continuing this conversation as food is very much at the centre of the tourism product of New Brunswick.
CENTRAL CANADA UPDATE
From Kris Barnier | Vice-President, Central Canada and the North
Manitoba:
PCs introduce bill on Workers Compensation Board (WCB) Surplus Funds Distribution
Restaurants Canada is pleased to see that the Opposition has introduced a bill that would require the Workers Compensation Board to distribute funds back to employers when its funding ratio exceeds 125%.
We are very supportive of this bill, which calls on the Government of Manitoba to implement changes that closely align with Restaurants Canada’s and MRFA’s recommendations. We’ve welcomed recent rebates of approximately 50% of your annual premiums, but we believe WCB’s current funding ratio of 165.3%, the highest in Canada, allows it to refund a full year’s premium while remaining at a strong sufficiency ratio.
Please find the PC release here.
Pre-Budget Submission
Restaurants Canada, working with MRFA, has finished building out its pre-budget submission. The document includes asks on alcohol pricing relief, WCB relief (similar to what the PCs have proposed above), tax relief for consumers on restaurant purchases, funding for technology to help restaurants grow and increase productivity, funding to help restaurants recruit and train new staff, and for the establishment of a working group on workforce sustainability.
Ontario:
Alcohol
Restaurants Canada is continuing its aggressive advocacy on alcohol pricing relief for Ontario’s restaurants and bars, including direct outreach to Premier Ford and Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy. Minister Bethlenfalvy, who is responsible for the LCBO, has agreed to meet with us in the coming days. Our position is that given LCBO’s tremendous purchasing power and leverage, Ontario should offer its licensees the best pricing in Canada. We are calling on the Government of Ontario to ensure that restaurants and bars get fair pricing on beer, with our position being that it is unacceptable that they should have to pay more for the same beer products than consumers, let alone grocers and convenience stores.
Pre-Budget Submission
Our work on crafting our Ontario pre-budget submission is near complete. We will be putting forward recommendations targeting public safety, PST relief on restaurant meals, funding to help restaurants implement technology to improve productivity, and calls for the government to work with the hospitality sector on a workforce sustainability plan.
Auditor General Performance Audit Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA)
Last Week Ontario’s Auditor General released a report on the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA). Its key findings included:
- RPRA is not effectively enforcing registration of smaller producers, allowing some to avoid their obligations to collect and recover waste
- RPRA has delayed requiring the auditing of performance data for most materials, increasing the risk of incorrect data
- RPRA rarely escalates enforcement action against producers that have not complied with data-reporting requirements
- RPRA does not have formal processes to proactively analyze and bring forward systemic compliance challenges to MECP
We anticipate RPRA will be responsive to the auditor’s findings, including going after unregistered producers, to ensure producers are paying fees reflective of their actual outputs.
The Auditor’s report, which includes both its recommendations and RPRAs responses, can be found here: Performance Audit: Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority.
Server Appreciation
On behalf of Restaurants Canada, it’s my pleasure to thank and acknowledge Ernie Hardeman, MPP for Oxford, for introducing Bill 67, the Hospitality Workers Appreciation Act, 2025. It aims to proclaim February 23rd as Hospitality Workers Appreciation Day across Ontario. I was honoured to be among Mr. Hardeman’s guests last week when the bill was debated. I thank Mr. Hardeman for his hard work to help bring recognition to the many Ontarians who work in Ontario’s hospitality sector.
WESTERN CANADA UPDATE
From Mark von Schellwitz | Vice-President, Western Canada
New BC Bill 30 Employment Standards Legislation Passed
Last month, BC’s Minister of Labour announced that, effective immediately, under new employment standards, employers can no longer ask for sick notes for a worker’s first two health-related, short-term absences of five consecutive days or fewer in a calendar year. On November 28th, Bill 30 – Employment Standards (Serious Illness or Injury Leave) Amendment Act received Royal Assent. Employees covered by the Employment Standards Act are now entitled to up to 27 weeks of unpaid leave within any 52-week period, for serious illness or injury.
Restaurants Canada received the following Bill 30 Information bulletin summarizing the legislation. Interpretation and guidance materials for employees and employers are available from the Employment Standards Branch website at: Leaves of absence – Province of British Columbia.
Clean BC Review Report Released
British Columbia released its final report of the CleanBC Independent Review Panel. The Report supports continuing to allow municipalities to impose early adoption of the Zero Carbon Step Code, which would limit renewable natural gas and ban natural gas in the construction of new buildings, creating a patchwork of regulations across British Columbia. RC has taken several actions to represent the foodservice industry leading up to this report, including an appearance at a public hearing on the City of Vancouver’s proposed natural gas future construction ban last November and a submission to the Clean BC Review Panel this past summer. We will continue to monitor municipalities’ actions on the Zero Carbon Step Code to ensure our voice is heard.
Post BCGEU Strike BC Liquor Distribution Update – Single Bottle Pick Resumes
Restaurants Canada continues to receive regular Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) restart plan updates. LDB has now returned to regular service levels and customer deliveries. On November 24th, it issued the following Single Bottle Pick Service Memo informing wholesale customers that LDB Wholesale Operations will be resuming single bottle pick service that includes spirits, champagnes, wines, and liqueurs in 750 ml and 1.4 litre volume format.
The list of all single-bottle pick products is posted on the LDB Wholesale Operations website here. The 10 per cent bottle pick rule applicable to specific customer types, and outlined in the WCC Order Handbook, will continue to apply.
Also included was an update informing wholesale customers that U.S.-made liquor products will continue to be available through LDB wholesale distribution channels until existing warehoused inventory in B.C. sells out.
Tourism Industry Roundtable with Minister Kang
On November 28th, Restaurants Canada was invited to participate in a TIABC tourism and hospitality industry roundtable with BC Tourism Minister Kang. At the meeting Restaurants Canada informed the Minister of our industry’s continuing post-COVID challenges, including operating cost increases, weak per capita sales, and labour shortages. Restaurants Canada asked the Minister for her support for a dedicated BC PNP tourism and hospitality stream to address critical staff shortages for key industry occupations. We also expressed our optimism for the opportunities the upcoming FIFA World Cup and other major events will present to boost hospitality sales across the province.
Alberta Food Safety and Licensed/Facility-Based Child Care Review Proposals
Thank you to those who provided feedback on the Government of Alberta seeking Restaurants Canada’s input to inform decisions related to the implementation of the Food Safety and Licensed Facility-Based Child Care Review Panel’s recommendations.
The two proposals for feedback were to implement a grading inspection system like Toronto’s red, yellow, green grading signage system and implement a food safety excellence program for restaurants. Restaurants Canada and our Alberta Hospitality and Hotel Association colleagues voiced our strong opposition to both proposals. All three associations highlighted the numerous challenges restaurants have with an oversimplified grading system and questioned the need for the proposed food safety excellence program, as all restaurants should already have excellent food safety programs and training in place. Here are Restaurants Canada’s questionnaire responses on the two proposals.
Restaurants Canada has also been invited to participate in a small group follow-up meeting with a couple of members, intended to build on the feedback, tentatively scheduled for late January or early February. Please let us know if you are interested in participating.
Alberta Ad Valorem Wine Markup Update
Restaurants Canada continues to advocate for changes to the ad valorem liquor markups announced in Alberta’s 2025 budget which add an additional 5% markup on wines from $15/litre to $20/litre, 10% on wines between $20/litre and $25/litre, and 15% to wines costing over $25/litre.
Restaurants Canada met with the Small Business Parliamentary Secretary, MLA Tany Yao, on November 21st, reiterating our arguments and the negative impact the policy is having on small licensed restaurants’ wine costs and sales. We followed up with examples of the cost impact of the markup on popular restaurant wines, pointing out that almost all wines on member wine lists have been impacted, as very few restaurants serve unimpacted wines below $11.25/bottle. Members are encouraged to continue to provide examples of before and after wine cost differentials on various priced wines on their wine lists.
On November 26th, Restaurants Canada had the opportunity to once again raise the issue with Minister Nally at an AGLC Whiskey Act consultation, where we informed him that the wine markup issue was not going away and that his messaging needs to change. Our members are frustrated with the Minister saying the markup will only increase costs by $.20-$.40/bottle, which does not reflect the reality licensed restaurants are experiencing with costs rising by several dollars a bottle in some cases.
Restaurants Canada and our Ad Valorem liquor stakeholder partners will continue to advocate for the Ad Valorem Wine Markup to be eliminated or amended.
Saskatchewan OHS Regulatory Review Submission
After receiving member input, on November 28th, Restaurants Canada provided the Labour Ministry with the following submission in response to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulatory Review, which could impact restaurant operations. The submission largely advocates for no changes to OHS regulations that could increase red tape and costs for Saskatchewan restaurateurs.
Saskatchewan Labour Relations Employment Standards Review Submission
Further to the passage of the Saskatchewan Employment Standards Amendment Act last May, Restaurants Canada was also invited to participate in a review of the Labour Relations provisions (Parts VI, VII, VIII) of the Employment Standards Act. After receiving member input, Restaurants Canada provided the following Saskatchewan Labour Relations Review Submission focusing on three priority areas for employers: certification vote thresholds, scope of the employee definition, and decertification and employer interference provisions.
With gratitude,
Kelly Higginson
