Employer's duty - s. 11(1)

This section was amended by the Stronger Workplaces for a Stronger Economy Act, 2014, S.O 2014, c. 10, to reflect the Employment Protection for Foreign Nationals Act (EPFNA)'s broader scope, effective November 20, 2015.

Subsection 11(1) provides that an employer who does not use the services of a recruiter in hiring a foreign national pursuant to an immigration or foreign temporary employee program is required to give certain information documents published by the Director of Employment Standards under s. 12 to the foreign national before his or her employment starts.

The documents published by the Director describe the rights and obligations of foreign nationals under EPFNA, the obligations of their employers and recruiters under EPFNA, and certain rights and obligations of foreign nationals and their employers under the Employment Standards Act, 2000.

Recruiter's duty - s. 11(2)

Subsection 11(2) provides that if a recruiter contacts, or is contacted by, a foreign national regarding employment pursuant to an immigration or foreign temporary employee program, the recruiter is required to give certain information documents published by the Director of Employment Standards under s. 12 to the foreign national. The documents must be provided as soon as is practicable after the recruiter first makes contact with the foreign national. What is "as soon as is practicable" will depend upon the circumstances.

The documents published by the Director describe the rights and obligations of foreign nationals under EPFNA, the obligations of their employers and recruiters under EPFNA, and certain rights and obligations of foreign nationals and their employers under the Employment Standards Act, 2000.

Duties re: Languages other than english - s. 11(3)

This provision states that where the language of a foreign national is a language other than English, the employer or recruiter is required to enquire as to whether the Director of Employment Standards has prepared a translation of the documents published under s. 12 into that language. If the documents have been translated into that language, the employer or recruiter is required to provide a copy of the translation together with the English version to the foreign national.

Transition, employer's duty - s. 11(4)

This provision is a transitional provision that requires an employer to provide certain information documents to all foreign nationals who are covered under the "new" EPFNA effective on November 20, 2015 and who are employed by the employer on that date.

This provision requires the employer to give such employees a copy of the documents published under s. 12 as soon as is practicable after that date. What is "as soon as is practicable" will depend upon the circumstances.

In accordance with s. 11(3), if the foreign national's language is a language other than English, the employer would be required to provide the foreign national with a translated copy, if a translation is available, as well as the English version of the documents published under s. 12.

Different categories - s. 11(5)

This amended subsection provides that if the Director has published different information documents for different categories of foreign nationals under s. 12(3), such foreign nationals are entitled to be provided with the appropriate information documents in accordance with s. 11.