Canadian Government Launches World's First Start-Up Visa

Posted by Andrew Carricato on April 02, 2013

On April 1, 2013 the Government of Canada officially launched the world’s first Start-Up Visa Program aimed at recruiting innovative immigrant entrepreneurs.  Announced on January 24, 2013, Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s (« CIC ») new Start-Up Visa Program will link immigrant entrepreneurs with private sector organizations in Canada that have experience working with start-ups and who can provide essential resources.

What it is?

The new visa is a bold new approach to attracting the world’s best and brightest start-up entrepreneurs to make Canada their destination of choice. The Program is unique because it will provide foreign entrepreneurs valuable assistance in navigating the Canadian business environment. For example, it will provide highly sought after entrepreneurs permanent residency and immediate access to Canadian business partners. This is expected to provide Canadian private sector organizations a powerful new tool which will allow them to attract global entrepreneurs who, it is hoped, will result in significant job creation.

How it works?

In order for an immigrant entrepreneur to qualify for the new Start-Up Visa Program, they will need to secure a minimum investment of $75,000 from a Canadian angel investor group or $200,000 from a Canadian venture capital fund. In addition to certain other program requirements, they will also have to possess certain educational qualifications and meet language proficiency standards.

At the outset, CIC will collaborate with Canada’s Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) and the National Angel Capital Organization (NACO).  These groups will identify which members of their associations will be eligible to participate in the Program. CIC is also finalizing details of cooperation with the Canadian Association of Business Incubation (CABI) to include business incubators in the list of eligible organizations. A full list of designated venture capital funds and angel investor groups is now available on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website.

The pilot program will run for five (5) years. Initially, the emphasis will be on the quality of the applicants and on achieving successful outcomes. The number of applicants accepted will therefore initially be highly limited. Assuming the Program is successful, CIC hopes to expand it to formally introduce a new economic class in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.

The Start-Up Visa Program represents CIC’s latest effort at meeting the new and evolving needs of the Canadian economy by building a faster and more flexible economic immigration system.

If you would like to know more about this new Program or are interested in other employment related immigration matters, please contact us.

 

For more information see:

News Release — Historic New Immigration Program to Attract Job Creators to Canada

Backgrounder — The new Start-Up Visa Program: An Innovative Approach to Economic Immigration

Federal Bill requiring financial reporting by Unions takes another step forward

Posted by Greg McGinnis on November 08, 2012

The Standing Committee on Finance of the House of Commons has heard submissions on private member’s Bill C-377, which would amend the Income Tax Act of Canada to require labour organizations (including unions) to file 29 schedules of financial information with the Federal Minister of National Revenue, who would then be required to post them online for all Canadians to access.  Video of the oral submissions is available online.

Bill C-377 was adopted at second reading on March 14, 2012 by the House of Commons.  The Standing Committee on Finance has up to 60 “sitting” days to send the Bill back to the House.

The information to be provided under the Bill would include:

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Federal Government Introduces Amendments to Canada Labour Code

Posted by Shane Todd on November 07, 2012

Federally-regulated employers should be watching the progress of the Jobs and Growth Act, 2012 through Parliament. If passed, the Act will amend the Canada Labour Code to:

  • Change the timeline for the payment of vacation pay after termination. Under the proposed amendments, employers will be required to pay unpaid vacation pay within 30 days of the date on which an employee ceases to be employed.
  • Change the method of calculating holiday pay. Under the proposed amendments, most employees will be entitled to be paid holiday pay equal to one-twentieth of their wages (excluding overtime) in the four week period before the general holiday. Employees paid, in whole or in part, on the basis of commission, will generally be entitled to be paid holiday pay equal to at least one-sixtieth of their wages (excluding overtime) in the 12 week period before the general holiday.
  • Formalize the process for unpaid wages and other minimum standards complaints, excluding unjust dismissal claims. Under the proposed amendments, employees will generally have six months from the date of an alleged violation to file a written complaint with an inspector. Inspectors will be authorized to mediate complaints. Inspectors will also be able to reject a complaint if, among other things, he or she is satisfied that the complaint is outside his or her jurisdiction, the complaint is frivolous, vexatious, or made in bad faith, or the complaints relates to a matter covered by a collective agreement. If a complaint is rejected, the employee may, within 15 days, request a review of that decision. The rejection may be confirmed or rescinded by the Minister.
  • Limit payment orders. Under the proposed amendments, an inspector’s power to make payment orders in any employee complaint will be limited to the amounts allegedly owing in the 12 month period before a complaint was made, or the date the employee was terminated. If an employee has not complained, an inspector’s power to make a payment order is limited to the amounts allegedly owing in the 12 month period before the date the inspector began his or her investigation. The 12 month limit is extended to 24 months in cases of unpaid vacation pay.
  • Create a new level of review for payment orders or notice of unfounded complaints. Under the proposed amendments, a person who is affected by a payment order, or who was issued a notice of unfounded complaint may file a written request for review within 15 days. The decision may be confirmed, rescinded or varied on review. The review decision may be appealed to a referee appointed by the Minister, but only on a question of law or jurisdiction. 

The Act passed second reading on October 30, 2012 and was referred to the Standing Committee on Finance for further consideration. We will keep readers updated as these proposed amendments progress towards becoming law.

The Upside for Employers in Recent Overtime Class Action Decisions

Posted by Jeffrey Goodman on July 03, 2012

The Ontario Court of Appeal has finally spoken in the three overtime class action lawsuits that we have been following over the last few years: Fresco v. Canadian  Imperial Bank of Commerce (“CIBC”), Fulawka v. Bank of Nova Scotia (“BNS”), and McCracken v. Canadian National Railway Company (“CNR”). In somewhat of an unexpected move, the Court of Appeal allowed certification in CIBC and BNS (overturning the CIBC decision in the lower court), but denied certification in CNR.  

The press has generally heralded the rulings as a victory for the plaintiffs. This is somewhat ironic, as many pundits suggested that CNR would be the easiest to certify. BNS and CIBC were both “off the clock” cases, in which the claimants are all obviously eligible for overtime and so the main issue is whether they worked overtime for which they were not paid. To certify “off the clock” cases, the plaintiffs must overcome the argument that whether or not someone has been paid properly is an individual issue, and therefore not suited to a class action that must have issues and questions that are common to all the potential claimants in the class. 

CNR, in contrast, was a “misclassification” case. In such cases, the question is whether a group of employees have been improperly classified as being within a job category that is overtime exempt.  In most misclassification cases, all of the plaintiffs usually do the same job and as such, typically will all either fall within or outside the exempt category at issue. This being the case, there is usually a clear common issue that assists in obtaining certification as a class action. In fact, the lower court judge who originally refused to certify the CIBC case had specifically commented that misclassification claims were more amenable to certification than off the clock cases.

While the certification of CIBC and BNS are not good news for employers, CNR gives rise to some hope. More importantly, one critical part of the CIBC and BNS decisions has the potential to turn both into Pyrrhic victories for the plaintiffs in those cases.

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CIRB Clarifies Employer Free Speech and Cracks Down On Union Intimidation

Posted by Tim Lawson on January 11, 2012

In a unanimous decision, the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (the “CIRB” or “Board”) dismissed unfair labour practice complaints filed by the Canada Council of Teamsters (the “Teamsters”) against FedEx Ground. The only unfair labour practice complaint the Board upheld was filed by FedEx Ground against the Teamsters for using unlawful tactics during the campaign to suppress employee opposition to the union.

The Board's decision is important because it squarely addresses employer free speech and union campaign misconduct, both top-of-mind issues for employers facing union organizing drives.

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Mandatory Retirement Ends for Federally Regulated Employers in December 2012

Posted by Greg McGinnis on January 05, 2012

The Government of Canada’s has repealed (see Part 12) sections of the Canadian Human Rights Act and Canada Labour Code that permit employers to implement "mandatory retirement" policies.  These changes will take effect in December 2012.

The repeal of the mandatory retirement provisions in Canadian law was contained in the Budget Implementation Act, which received Royal Assent on December 16, 2011.

All Canadian jurisdictions, with the exception of New Brunswick, have now abolished mandatory retirement.