MLT Alert! Saskatchewan Employer Obligations on Election Day
The Saskatchewan provincial election is fast approaching. Voting day is November 7, 2011. This bulletin summarizes employer obligations and employee rights with respect to voting time during the election.
Three Consecutive Hours to Vote
All employees who are Canadian citizens, 18 years of age or older, and have ordinarily resided in Saskatchewan for at least six months prior to election day are entitled to have three (3) consecutive hours during which the polls are open in order to vote.
Polls are open from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Time off with pay must be provided if and to the extent necessary to allow three (3) consecutive hours for voting. The Election Act, 1996 prohibits an employer from deducting or reducing pay or imposing any penalty for time off to vote as required by the Act.
Paid Time Off May Not Be Required
An employer is not required to provide paid time off if an employee has three (3) consecutive hours free from work within voting hours. For example, an employee who completes work at 5:00 p.m. will have three (3) consecutive hours for voting and therefore is not entitled to time off. If, however, an employee works from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., that employee would be entitled to request paid time off to vote (at the employer's convenience). In this example, to ensure minimal disruption to the employee’s regular work day while at the same time complying with the law, the employer could allow the employee to leave work a half hour early, at 5:00 p.m.
This Alert! is intended for general information only. Please feel free to contact us for additional information on this or any other issue:
- Brian Kenny, Q.C. | Regina | (306) 347-8421 | bkenny@mlt.com
- Kevin Wilson, Q.C. | Saskatoon | (306) 975-7103 | kwilson@mlt.com