WORKING IN BC:

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

6th Edition

https://www.surreyschools.ca/schools/tweeds/Departments/Planning/Documents/W
oring-in-BC-3-2012.pdf

or google working in bc your legal rights

Name: Parker Weick

Block:D/4

1. Glossary: (Pages 2 & 21)

a. Averaging Agreement: A person legally appointed or empowered to
act on behalf of another
b. Collective Agreement: An agreement between employers and
employees which regulates the terms and conditions of employees in
their workplace
c. Gross Pay: Your pay before deductions
d. Double time: Twice the amount of your average pay
e. Net Pay: Your take home pay after deductions
f. Time and a half: One and a half times your regular wage
g. Under the Table: Employment not reported to the state
h. Variance: When employers, with the agreement of their employees,
ask the branch to vary or change how parts of the Act apply to them.

2. What is the Employment Standards Act?

A law that protects your rights as an employee. /1
3. What is the role of the Employment Standards Branch?
The government office that enforces that law /1
4. What is the phone number and website of the ESB?
1-800-663-3316 www.labour.gov.bc.ca/esb /1

5. List the people who are NOT covered by the ESB.

 Babysitters, secondary school students working at their schools or enrolled
in work experience or occupational study, newspaper carriers who attend
school and work 15 hours a week or less and people who are receiving
financial assistance from government who participate in certain government
sponsored employment programs. /1
6. Who are covered by Collective Agreements?
The people who belong to the unions /1
7. What Government issued document must you have in order to be hired in
BC?
Your social insurance number /1

8. How old must you be to work in BC?

You must be at least 12 years old to start working. Kids 12-14 must work
under restricted hours. Once they turn 15, they have no more hour restriction
/2

9. Define minimum wage.

The lowest amount of money employers can pay you. /1
10.What is minimum wage in BC?
It was 10.25 but recently went up to 10.85 /1

11.Define Minimum Daily pay.

If you go home early on your employers request, you must be payed for at
least 2 hours of work. If you were scheduled for more than 8 hours, you
must be payed for at least 4 hours of work. /2
12.Besides shifts worked, what duties must an employer pay you for.
Your employer must pay you for any mandatory orientation or meeings /1
13.What should be included on your pay cheque?
Wage rate, total hours worked, overtime, deductions, gross pay, net pay. /1
14.What can an employer deduct from your wages?
Canada pension plan, Employment insurance plan, income tax and court
ordered garnishees. /1

15.Define Special Clothing (p.21). Who pays for the upkeep of this?
Clothing that is easily identified with a company logo or unique company
colors. The employer pays for the upkeep /2
16.Define Dress Code. Who pays for the upkeep of this?
 A dress code is a restriction of clothes that you must wear while working,
given by the employer. If the employer doesnt specify a specific brand or
piece of clothing, you must pay for it. /2
17.Describe what work breaks are you entitled to.
You are entitled to a 30 minute break for every 5 hours that you work. /1
18.What is a split shift?
A split shift is when you leave your shift for a 30 minute break, then
return back to work in the same day./1

When must you be paid overtime?

19.When must you be paid double time?

For every hour that you work after 12 hours /1
20.How is weekly overtime calculated?
You must be paid for 40 hours of work. If you go over that, you employer
must pay you time and a half for every hour after 40 hours/1

21.Do employers have to pay you if you are sick and cannot work?
No, however they can if they want to. /1
22.What vacation time are you entitled to?
If you have worked at the same job for a year, you must get 2 weeks off
for vacation. That changes to 3 weeks after 5 years of work. /2
23.What is vacation pay?
Your vacation pay is a percentage of your yearly wage. You must be paid at
least 4% of your gross earnings. /2
24.How many statutory holidays are there in BC
New Years Day, Family day, Good Friday, Victoria day, Canada day, BC
day, Labor day, Thanksgiving day, Remembrance day, Christmas day. /1
25.How can you be eligible for stat holiday pay?
You must be employed for at least 30 days before the stat holiday, Worked
for at least 15 days before the stat holiday, worked under an averaging
agreement any time in the 30 days before the stat holiday. /3
26.How does the ESA protect you if you take an unpaid leave?
You must be given back your old job, or a similar job, as far as far as duties
and salary. /1
27.Name 6 unpaid leaves which are covered by the ESA?
Pregnancy leave, Parental leave, Family responsibility leave, bereavement
leave, Compassionate car leave, Jury Duty. /1
 28.What should you do if you feel your working conditions are unsafe?
Identify the unsafe condition and report it immediately to your employer or
supervisor./1
29.What does the Human Rights Code state about discrimination in the
workplace? What are the protected grounds?
Employers are not allowed to discriminate against employees in the hiring
process or in the workplace. The protected grounds are/2
30.What is a layoff and when does it become a termination?
When an employer tells the employee that they must take an unpaid leave
from work. If you are laid off more than 13 weeks of a 20 week period, it is
a termination./2
31.Does an employer need to provide a reason to fire you?
No./1
32.What are you entitled to if you are terminated without notice?
If your job is terminated without notice, you are able to get one week of pay
if you have worked three months in a row, two weeks of pay if youve been
employed for at least a year and three weeks of pay after three years of
working there. Each additional year you have worked there will add a week
of pay until youve reached the maximum of 8 weeks after 8 years./3
33.What is a T4?
A T4 is a form needed to complete any income tax you might have/1
34.What are the disadvantages of working under the table?
You could be ineligible to employee benefits or being covered by the
workers compensation act in case of an accident on the work site, this could
become an issue. /1
35.What steps should you take if you have a problem at work?
Report any accidents to your employer, organization, clients, etc. Keep a
record of the incident, including a description of the accident time of day, date and
place. As well, discussing problems with your employer is necessary. /2
36.What is the purpose of the Employment Standards Self-help Kit?
It is used to help employees resolve between themselves at the workplace.
It must be filled out and handed to the branch before verification to help
solve the issue. /1