Investigating Employment Standards Act Claims: Provincial and Regional Trends

Abstract

Between January 1, 2022, to January 1, 2025, 1,561 ESA claims were closed in Hamilton, Grimsby, and Burlington, representing ~2.3% of Ontario’s 41,796 claims during this period. These claims contained 4,202 alleged contraventions, averaging 2.69 violations per claim, indicating that most workplace violations are complex and involve multiple ESA breaches. To better understand workplace rights violations in the region, the McMaster Research Shop partnered with Solidarity Place Worker Education Centre (Solidarity Place) to conduct a quantitative study of provincial and regional ESA data obtained through a Freedom of Information (FOI) Request from the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.