On January 1, 2026, a number of important legislative changes came into effect in several provinces across Canada. These changes affect employee rights and employer obligations, and may require updates to an employer’s policies and procedures.

Quick Hits

• Leave: Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan have all increased the maximum limit of long-term illness leave to twenty-seven weeks. Saskatchewan has also increased access to other types of job-protected leave.
• Tip Collection: In Saskatchewan, employers are no longer permitted to deduct or withhold tips from employees who collect them.
• Transparency: Ontario enacted several amendments to pay transparency, AI disclosure, and employer “ghosting.”

Leave

Eligible employees in Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan may now take up to twenty-seven weeks of job-protected long-term illness or injury leave, bringing these provinces in line with standards for federally regulated employers.

In Saskatchewan, employees who have been working for the same employer for thirteen weeks can also access:

• nineteen weeks of maternity leave for those who have experienced a pregnancy loss, and
• sixteen weeks of leave for people who have experienced interpersonal violence.

Additionally, employers in Saskatchewan may substitute another day for any public holiday (other than Remembrance Day) if an employee agrees to the substitution. The substituted day must take place within four weeks of the public holiday.

Tips

Employers in Saskatchewan are now...

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