More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
From tougher bail rules to a new dental care plan, a range of new measures are taking effect across Canada in 2024, aiming to address human rights, public safety, health and other concerns.
The changes also include stricter financial requirements for international students, reporting obligations for companies and government agencies under a new Modern Slavery Act, and improvements in work and pay equity policies.
Here are some of the new laws and rules you need to know about:
Dental-care plan rollout
Ottawa is rolling out what it calls its largest federal dental program in phases, as it aims to reduce financial barriers to access dental care such as cleaning, exams and root canals. The country’s eldest low-income residents who are uninsured can start accessing the new Canadian Dental Care Plan’s benefits as early as May 2024. The government said eligible residents should await a letter that will provide instructions on how to apply by phone.
Carbon price rural rebate boost
Ottawa is doubling the rural top-up rate for the pollution price rebate from 10 to 20 per cent, beginning in April 2024. The government said the move recognizes that rural residents face higher energy costs, increased energy needs and limited access to clean transportation.
CPP hike
Employers and employees will each have to pay $3,867 in 2024 because of the higher maximum pensionable earnings covered by the Canada Pension Plan, according to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. This represents an increase of $113 in 2024 for both employers and workers earning at least $68,500. In addition, a second CPP contribution level will be applied on any income between $68,500 and $73,200, the federation said. For that second tier, the maximum tax amount will be $188 in 2024.
Changes to MAID
If Ottawa decides not to further pause the change to its Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) law, people who are suffering specifically from mental illness will become eligible for it on March 17, 2024. The federal government said it is considering whether to pause its plan to widen the rules for the second time because of public and political concerns.
Stricter bail law
The federal bail-reform bill, formerly C-48, makes bail tougher to access for serious repeat violent offenders, placing the onus on the accused to prove why they should be released. The legislative amendments to the Criminal Code, which take effect Jan. 4, 2024, will make bail tougher to access for people accused of certain firearms and weapons offences as well as more cases involving alleged intimate partner violence.
Modern slavery law requirements
Canadian private companies and government entities will be required to comply with the country’s new law fighting the use of child or forced labour, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2024. Under the Modern Slavery Act, companies must report measures they took to prevent and decrease the risk of child labour or forced labour in their operations including their supply chains. Those that fit the criteria must file reports by May 31, 2024, and publish them prominently on their websites. Penalties include fines of up to $250,000 and a potential ban on importing goods.
Reforms affecting international students
The government is seeking to address concerns about international students with rules that launch in the new year. To ensure they can afford life in Canada, study permit applicants must meet a higher cost-of-living financial requirement starting Jan. 1, 2024. The requirement will more than double from the current $10,000 they have to show in savings. For applications received on or after Jan. 1, students must show they have $20,635, along with the costs of their first year of tuition and travel.
Accessibility plan for employers
By the time summer rolls around, federally regulated employers should have an accessibility plan ready, created in consultation with people with disabilities. Employers with 10 to 99 employees must publish their plan by June 1, 2024, complying with the Accessible Canada Act and Accessible Canada Regulations, according to Canadian business law firm McMillan LP. Employers with at least 100 employees are required to prepare and publish an annual progress report about how they have implemented their accessibility plan by June 1, 2024. These larger employers were required to submit and post their plans by June 1, 2023.
Pay equity reforms
Federally regulated employers with 10 or more employees must publish their pay equity plan by Sept. 3, 2024, based on the Pay Equity Act and Pay Equity Regulations, according to McMillan LLP. Employers with 100 or more employees and unionized employers must create a pay equity committee to help management develop the plan comparing “predominately male” to “predominately female” job classes. Employers who have identified pay equity gaps must raise the compensation for jobs that should get equal pay for work of equal value.
Nova Scotia is expanding workers’ compensation coverage starting Sept. 1, 2024, for people who experience significant stress over time as a result of work. The Workers' Compensation Board of Nova Scotia will adjudicate the claims for gradual onset stress. The workplace injury insurer said gradual onset stress results from “a psychologically unhealthy workplace,” which it defines as one that fails to respect and listen to workers and doesn’t allow them to have some control over their work.
The Northwest Territories has enhanced its health benefits policy for low-income residents in a bid to make health care more equitable, especially for vital drug therapies and preventative services. The changes will take effect on April 1, 2024. The revised policy also uses income assessment to determine eligibility for all benefits, except for seniors. As well, it removes the requirement to have a specified disease condition to access benefits.
Nunavut is increasing minimum wage from $16 to $19 per hour effective Jan. 1, 2024, the highest rate in Canada. The territory’s justice department recommended the hike following a survey and consultations with businesses and employees during the past summer.
To prevent the exploitation of temporary and vulnerable workers, temporary work agencies and recruiters will need a licence to assign staff to work in Ontario, effective July 1, 2024. Under a revised Employment Standards Act, the changes ban clients from using unlicensed services. Those businesses also need to pay $750 application fees and provide a $25,000 letter of credit to potentially cover wages owed to employees.
An immigration program for temporary foreign workers or foreign students who have graduated in Quebec faces stricter language criteria, effective Nov. 23, 2024. The Québec Experience Program (PEQ) now requires a language proficiency level of at least seven in spoken French and five or higher in written French, according to the Quebec scale.
With files from The Canadian Press, Reuters, Senior Digital Parliamentary Reporter Rachel Aiello and CTVNews.ca Writer Megan DeLaire
This article has been updated to correct details about the Canada Pension Plan.
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”