I did a post earlier this week noting that many employers in Canada appear to be of the mistaken assumption that they can call an employee an “intern” and thereby avoid employment legislation.
The Ontario employment standards branch has just issued a new document explaining internships under the ESA. Here it is. Perhaps someone there has been noticing the blogosphere discussions about interns.
The MOL document basically just cites the relevant sections of the ESA. My post from last fall has a bit more detail and commentary. At the end, the MOL provides a number to call if you have questions:
If someone performing work as part of an unpaid internship is unsure of whether they should be excluded from the ESA, he or she can call the Employment Standards Information Centre toll-free at 1-800-531-5551 for further information.
If you are a York student who has held an Intern position that did not comply with the ESA, let me know, and maybe we can talk about filing a complaint on your behalf.
Hattip: Andrew Langille, who has been active on the issue.