Canadian Payroll Reporter

4 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2016 News in Brief A look at news, facts and figures shaping the world of payroll professionals B.C. cancelling 4 per cent MSP rate hike › VICTORIA — The British Columbia government has cancelled a previously announced four per cent increase to Medical Services Plan (MSP) premiums for 2017. In this year's budget, released in February, Finance Minister Michael de Jong announced that the monthly premium rate for a single adult not receiving premium assistance would rise from $75 to $78 as of Jan. 1, 2017. However, in mid-September, de Jong said better-than-expected provincial revenues now allow the government to cancel the increase. De Jong also announced that 2017 premium rates for those who receive premium assistance will go down by at least four per cent beyond the rates he announced in the budget. Other MSP changes de Jong announced in the budget will go ahead next year, including eliminating premiums for children under 19 years of age and setting the premium rate that an adult couple pays at twice the rate for single adults. Beginning Jan.1, the full monthly premium rate for an adult couple will be $150. The change in the way rates are structured will mean that family size will no longer affect the maximum premium rates that B.C. residents pay. Currently, premium rates are based on family size, with different rates applying for single individuals, two-person families and families of three or more. With the changes, a household with one parent and two children, for example, will pay the single adult premium rate, rather than the three-person rate they currently do. ESDC releases report on flex work › OTTAWA — A recently released report on federal consultations into flexible work arrange- ments shows that while business and labour groups generally agree that flex work offers ben- efits, there is no consensus on whether employ- ees should have a legal right to request flexible work arrangements. The report, from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), provides a summary of key findings from consultations that took place across Canada during May and June. The consultations included an online survey, a discussion paper and roundtable meetings. In total, 1,262 individuals responded to the online survey, 20 individuals and organizations made written submissions in response to the discussion paper and 62 stakeholders took part in the roundtable meetings, including employer organizations, unions, advocacy groups, think tanks and academics. The consultations are part of the government's plan to add more options for flexible work to the Canada Labour Code, including giving employees the right to request such arrangements without fear of reprisal from employers. The Code covers federally regulated workers. ESDC defines flexible work arrangements as "alternative arrangements to the traditional working week," including temporary or permanent changes to an employee's work schedule, the number of hours an employee works, the location where the employee works or time off to meet specific responsibilities. "Survey respondents and stakeholders recognized that flex work is—and should be—part of today's workplace reality," says the report, called Flexible Work Arrangements: What Was Heard. Common benefits cited included lower rates of absenteeism, better productivity and more innovative ways of working, more effective recruitment and retention and increased labour market participation by workers with chronic illnesses, disabilities and mental health issues. CRA consulting on service improvements › OTTAWA — The federal government is asking for feedback on how the Canada Revenue Agen- cy (CRA) can better serve small and medium- size businesses. During the fall, the CRA is hosting face-to- face consultation sessions across Canada for business owners and professional accountants to give their feedback on how the agency can make its programs and services more streamlined and client-focused. "The Serving You Better consultations, organized in collaboration with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, will allow senior managers of the CRA to hear directly from the people we serve. As a result, we will better understand what changes would be meaningful for Canadian businesses," said Diane Lebouthillier, minister of National Revenue. The consultations, which began in October, will run until mid-November. More information on them is available at canada.ca/cra-serving- you-better. Employers becoming more flexible when it comes to employee time off: Survey › OTTAWA — Many employers are offering a va- riety of paid and unpaid leaves in an effort to retain employees and recruit new workers, says a new Conference Board of Canada report. The report, titled Out of Office: Paid and Unpaid Leaves in Canadian Organizations, says measures employers are taking include providing extra vacation and flex time and topping-up parental leaves with additional time off. Based on a survey of 370 organizations, the report found that 62 per cent say they provide employees with floater or flex days. The report says the percentage is almost double what it was in 2009. In addition, the report says many organizations offer family days, eldercare leave, scheduled holiday office closures, and volunteer or community service days. The survey also found that some employers give employees additional time off or pay beyond what the government provide for Employment Insurance benefits for maternity, parental and adoption leaves. For instance, 26 per cent of organizations say they offer paid top-ups for the duration of a mother's maternity leave. While this represents an added cost for employers, the report says employees with these types of added benefits tend to return to work for the same employer in a higher proportion than their counterparts who do not have such benefits. When it comes to vacations, the survey found that organizations provide employees with an average of 2.7 weeks to four weeks off every year. In addition, it found that more than two- thirds of organizations say they recognize past service, either formally or on a case-by-case basis, when determining vacation entitlements for new employees. When determining vacation allotments for mid-career hires, the report says organizations use a variety of different practices and policies to acknowledge past service. The most common practice involves providing the same vacation entitlement that a current employee at the same level of experience or service would receive. Average weekly earnings down slightly in July: StatsCan › OTTAWA — Average weekly earnings of non- farm payroll employees were $955 in July, down slightly from $956.66 in June, Statistics Cana- da reports. Statistics Canada revised the June numbers from the previously reported $958. On a year-over-year basis, weekly earnings increased 0.1 per cent in July. The change in weekly earnings during the 12 months to July reflected a number of factors, including wage growth, changes in the composition of employment by industry, occupation and level of job experience, as well as average hours worked per week. Non-farm payroll employees worked an average of 32.7 hours a week in July, down from 33 hours reported for June. Year-over-year earnings of non-farm payroll employees increased in July in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. They declined in Alberta and Quebec and were little changed in other jurisdictions.

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