Department of Community Services

Labour Services General Information

The following questions and answers are for information purposes only. For actual interpretation and application purposes refer to the Employment Standards Act and regulations, or contact an Employment Standards Officer in the Labour Services Office on the 3rd Floor of the Law Centre, 2130-2nd Avenue, Whitehorse, Yukon or call (867) 667-5944 (toll free within the Yukon 1-800-661-0408 extension 5944).

  1. Labour Services
  2. Definitions
  3. Record Keeping
  4. Minimum Standards
  5. Deductions from Wages
  6. Termination of Employment
  7. Why is it necessary to include contract workers in the Employment Standards Act?
  8. What constitutes an employment relationship?
  9. Is adding contract workers to the definition of employee going to change truly independent contractors into employees?
  10. If I get a business license, does that make me an independent contractor?
  1. Labour Services

    The Labour Services section employs Employment Standards Officers skilled in dealing with problems arising from the employer-employee relationship. Employers and employees are urged to contact an Employment Standards Officer for information on all matters arising from the Employment Standards Act and its regulations.

  2. Definitions

    The following definitions are taken verbatim from the Act and will assist you in understanding the terms affecting the employer-employee relationship:

    "conditions of employment" means all matters and circumstances in any way affecting employers and employees in respect of the employment relationship;

    "day" means any period of 24 consecutive hours after the commencement of work;

    "contract worker" means a worker, whether or not employed under a contract of employment, and whether or not furnishing tools, vehicles, equipment, machinery, material, or any other thing owned by the worker, who performs work or services for another person for compensation or reward on such terms and conditions that (a) the worker is in a position of economic dependence upon and under an obligation to perform duties for, that person, and (b) the relationship between the worker and that person more closely resembles the relationship of employee to employer than the relationship of an independent contractor to a principal or of one independent contractor to another independent contractor.

    "employee" includes:

    a) a person including a deceased person, in receipt of or entitled to wages for employment or services performed for another,
    b) a person being trained by an employer for the purpose of the employer's business,
    b.1) a contract worker, and
    c) a person who was an employee.

    "employer" means a person having control or direction of, or responsibility for the employment of, or payment of wages to, an employee and includes a former employer;

    "overtime" means hours of work in excess of the standard hours of work;

    "standard hours of work" means the hours of work described in Section 6 (eight hours in a day and 40 hours in a week);

    "wages" means any monetary remuneration payable by an employer to an employee under the terms of a contract of employment, any payment to be made by an employer to an employee under this Act, and any allowance for travel as prescribed in the regulations, but does not include gratuities, money that is paid at the discretion of the employer and that is not related to hours of work, production or efficiency, damages awarded in a wrongful dismissal action, travelling expenses, or other expenses;

    "week" means a period of seven consecutive days established by the employer's payroll records or determined by an Employment Standards Officer;

  3. Record Keeping

    Employers must keep a record of the wages paid, daily and weekly hours worked, any overtime accumulated or time off with pay in lieu of overtime pay accumulated and taken by an employee in each week, annual vacations, leaves of absence and the conditions of employment for each employee whether or not the person is paid an hourly wage or a salary. The records must be kept in the employer's principle place of business in the Yukon for a period of twelve (12) months after work is performed or services are supplied by an employee.

  4. Minimum Standards
    The minimum standards provided in the Act cannot be waived by any agreement between an employer and employee, but an agreement allowing for more favourable conditions is valid. For example, the parties can agree that any work after 8 hours per day will be paid at double time but they cannot agree that any work after 8 hours per day will be paid at straight time.

  5. Deductions from Wages
    An employer is not allowed to make any deductions, other than statutory deductions, from an employee's wages. However, an employer can honour an employee's written authorization to pay wages to a charitable or other organization, a pension or superannuation plan, an insurer licensed under the Insurance Act, to meet credit obligations and for a purpose that the Director of Employment Standards considers is for the benefit of the employee. Amounts deducted without proper authorization are recoverable as unpaid wages.

  6. Termination of Employment

    Termination provisions are designed to ensure an orderly termination procedure. Failure by either the employer or the employee to give proper notice when required may result in either the employer being required to pay wages or in the employee forfeiting wages in lieu of notice. There are special provisions governing termination or layoff of groups. For additional information refer to Bulletin #8, Termination of Employment.

  7. Why is it necessary to include contract workers in the Employment Standards Act?

    Contract workers are included in the Employment Standards Act because employers often misclassify them as "independent contractors". Indeed, contract workers themselves make the same error. Employers may realize significant liabilities because of this mistake and employees may lose the protection of the Act. It is very important to both parties that the true legal relationship in existence between them is properly classified. Contract workers are employees, not independent contractors.

  8. What constitutes an employment relationship?

    The two most important elements in defining an employment relationship are economic dependency and the worker is under an obligation to perform duties (subordination) for another. If those two elements exist, and the relationship more closely resembles an employment relationship (rather than one independent contractor to another independent contractor, or principle to independent contractor relationship), it is an employment relationship.

  9. Is adding contract workers to the definition of employee going to change truly independent contractors into employees?

    Absolutely not! The question of whether a person is an employee or an independent contractor is always a question of fact. The traditional Common Law tests of employment analyses the facts using the following tests: the master's right to control the methods used to perform the work; the master's obligation to pay wages or other remuneration; the master's right of selection of the servant; the master's right to discipline or discharge the servant; control; ownership of tools; chance of profit; risk of loss; economic dependency; and the organization or integration test.

    By concentrating on economic dependency and subordination as well as the relationship more closely resembling that of employment rather some other type of relationship, employers and employees will be less likely to misclassify the worker as an independent contractor. If you are still uncertain about the type of relationship you are entering into, contact Labour Services or your legal advisor for clarification.

  10. If I get a business license, does that make me an independent contractor?

    Many workers, either on their own or at the request of an employer, go to great lengths to re-classify themselves from an employee to an independent contractor. They may purchase a business license, arrange for WCB coverage, register a trade name and get a GST account, and even create a contract which states that they are not an employee. If the worker is economically dependent on a person and in a position of subordination to that person, the worker is an employee notwithstanding the attempts to change the nature of the relationship by various registrations and documents. As stated above, whether or not one is an employee is always a question of fact. To express this in its most basic terms: if the facts point to an employment relationship, it is what it is, and a document stating the relationship is something else will not change that finding.