By Cheryl Jahn

Temporary Layoffs

Chamber seeks extension to temporary layoff period

Jun 23, 2020 | 1:42 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – “If you want to find an example of where policy trumps good thinking, this is it.”

That’s Todd Corrigall, CEO of the Prince George Chamber of Commerce. He’s referring to the provincial government’s decision not to extend the grace period for the temporary layoff period for businesses hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under the Employment Stands Act, an employee can be laid off for a period of 13 weeks, before the employer must formally relieve that employee and issue severance.

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Back in May, that 13-week period was extended to 16 weeks.

But that, too, is coming to an end.

Employers must determine the fate of an employee in the first week of July. For many small businesses, the timing couldn’t be worse. Many businesses have just re-opened their doors, many at half staff. And the Province is expected to announce a move into what is called Phase Three of its Restart Plan, which involves the resumption of several services such as spas, hotels and resorts, movie theatres and parks.

“It’s completely wrong-headed,” says Corrigall. “I mean, we all know that part of an economic recovery is people who are employed, who have money they can spend in the economy. For that to happen, there needs to be businesses for them to work at, too.” He says the word comes a day after the Premier asked small and medium businesses to fill out a survey to get input from British Columbians on rebuilding our province together.

Adding salt to the wound, the federal government announced extensions to the time period for the temporary lay-off of federally-regulated employers to the end of the year.

The BC Chamber of Commerce seeks a provincial extension to the end of August.

“There are options on the table,” says Corrigall. “They don’t have to say they’re extending this to the end of the year. They can put time limits on it so that, as they’re collecting response surveys for the recovery, they can continue to monitor what industries are facing greater impacts. What sections of the economy or what parts of the province are facing greater impacts so that you can align your legislation to best work with the drivers of the economy, which are small and medium businesses.”