Contents:

Welcome
Upcoming Events
What's New
GrandMaster Updates

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Welcome!

August 2002 - Welcome to the latest edition of The Payroll News. As always, please feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends and associates who are interested in keeping up with the latest changes in the Payroll industry. Or better yet, subscribe them for free using the Tell Someone About Us link.

Upcoming Events

Listed here are recent changes in legislation on Federal and Provincial levels that may impact your payroll calculations. Please view the following list for changes that affect your region.

FEDERAL:

July 22, 2002 - Amendment to the Employment Insurance Regulations - Apprenticeship Training - The HRDC today announced that Employment Insurance Regulations have been modified so that apprentices in approved training programs who apply for EI benefits will be subject to only one waiting period. This amendment to the Employment Insurance Regulations will apply to claims starting July 21, 2002 or later. (Full Story - 265 Words)

July 15, 2002 - Older Workers in the Labour Market - A report released today examines the situation of older workers in Canada and highlights lessons learned from current and past programs. The report demonstrates how federal, provincial and territorial governments are working in partnership to gain a better understanding of the needs of older workers. (Full Story - 375 Words)

July 3, 2002 - Change to the proof of identity requirements for SIN's - Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) announced today that it is strengthening the Social Insurance Number (SIN) proof of identity requirements. HRDC is taking this increased security action to help prevent identity fraud. (Full Story - 260 Words)

Alberta:

July 12, 2002 - New guide helps employers hire 'non-traditional' workers - Alberta employers can find skilled staff in a tight labour market by looking at people who are traditionally under-represented in the workforce, and a new guide provides tips on making the recruitment successful. "Companies can strengthen their human capital by diversifying their workforce," said Alberta Human Resources and Employment Minister Clint Dunford. (Full Story - 281 Words)

July 24, 2002 - MLA review team on long standing contentious WCB claims granted more time - The MLA review team that is consulting with employers on the review of long standing contentious WCB claims will have more time to complete its work. "We are on the brink of finding a workable solution to a very complex problem," commented Calgary-Egmont MLA Denis Herard. "It is worth spending some extra time to develop a process that most employers will agree on.". (Full Story - 246 Words)

British Columbia:

July 2, 2002 - Federal Government provides $1.2 million+ in funding for youth and social development initiatives - Sophia Leung, MP for Vancouver Kingsway today announced funding of $1,262,690 for several projects in British Columbia. The funding supports projects sponsored by S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Small Business Development and Training Centre, Kiwassa Neighbourhood House, and the British Columbia Association for Community Living. "The Government of Canada is proud to support initiatives that help enhance the skills of the people of British Columbia.". (Full Story - 669 Words)

New Brunswick:

July 23, 2002 - Minimum wage to increase August 1 - A 10-cent per hour increase to the provincial minimum wage will take effect August 1, 2002, Training and Employment Development Minister Norman McFarlane reminded employers and employees today. "As we announced in February, the provincial minimum wage will increase Thursday, Aug. 1," McFarlane said. "This completes our government's commitment to raise the minimum wage to $6 per hour." This is the third minimum wage increase for workers in New Brunswick by the government, bringing the rate to the promised level of $6 per hour. (Full Story - 271 Words)

July 5, 2002 - N. B. unemployment rate drop leads the country - New Brunswick experienced the largest drop in the country in its year over year unemployment rate and was second in the nation in employment growth as 11,300 more New Brunswickers were working than at the same time last year, Training and Employment Development Minister Norman McFarlane said today. New Brunswick's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped 1.2 percentage points to stand at 9.6 per cent in June, down from 10.8 per cent at the same time last year. (Full Story - 256 Words)

Newfoundland and Labrador:

July 5, 2002 - Province’s employment numbers remain strong for first half of 2002 - Newfoundland and Labrador continued to make gains in employment in June according to the latest Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada. Employment stood at 229,500, an increase of 1.3 per cent or 3,000 jobs as compared to June last year bringing year-to-date employment growth to 1.9 per cent or approximately 3,900 jobs. (Full Story - 242 Words)

Northwest Territories:

July 19, 2002 - Minister Appoints New Member to WCB Board - NWT Minister Responsible for the Workers' Compensation Board Joe Handley today announced the appointment of Craig Browne to a two-year term as an employer representative on the WCB's seven-member Board of Directors. "As our workforce continues to grow and evolve, Mr. Browne’s background will provide valuable insight to address challenges facing the WCB," said Handley. (Full Story - 204 Words)

Nova Scotia:

July 5, 2002 - Input Sought to Address Skills Shortage - The Department of Education today posted the first Skills Nova Scotia Framework on its Web site for public input. The plan outlines the province's challenges and next steps toward a knowledgeable and skilled workforce. "We believe this is a comprehensive approach for addressing the critical issues of skills and labour shortages,..." said Mary Kenny, executive director of the AHBRS Council and president of the Association of Industry Sector Councils for Nova Scotia. (Full Story - 615 Words)

July 16, 2002 - Government Takes First Steps to Address Workers' Compensation Issues - Environment and Labour Minister David Morse today appointed Louis R. Comeau as the new chair of Nova Scotia's Workers' Compensation Board. Among Mr. Comeau's first challenges is the development of a strategic plan that will address key goals and strategies to reduce workplace accidents and injuries, reward successful prevention results and improve the insurance system. (Full Story - 518 Words)

Ontario:

July 15, 2002 - Federal Government funds projects to help young people enter the labour market - Sudbury MP Diane Marleau today announced HRDC funding of $199,102 for three Youth Internship Canada projects. The Strategy offers a three-pronged approach to addressing youth unemployment issues: it provides work experience opportunities for unemployed or underemployed youth and students; provides access to relevant information on Canada's labour market; and facilitates access to learning. (Full Story - 326 Words)

July, 2002 - New WSIB Payment System - Starting August 6, 2002, chiropractors and physiotherapists can submit invoices online. In the future, all health care professionals registered with WSIB will be able to submit invoices online. Online billing for chiropractors and physiotherapists is the latest step in the rollout of the new WSIB payment system. (Full Story - 206 Words)

Saskatchewan:

July 5, 2002 - Job Numbers Continue Dramatic Rise - Saskatchewan's job numbers continued their dramatic rise in June, posting their second double-digit increase in as many months. Statistics Canada figures released today show a 12,800 gain in employment numbers over the previous June. That follows an 11,100 jump in May over May of 2001. (Full Story - 425 Words)

July 15, 2002 - More Employment Help for People with Disabilities - The provincial government will allocate over $508,000 in grants this year as part of its continuing commitment to help people with disabilities make and pursue their career plans. "Through the Employability Assistance for People with Disabilities program, five community organizations will continue to provide career counselling and help individuals obtain the disability-related supports they need to increase their employability skills," Learning Minister Jim Melenchuk said. (Full Story - 281 Words)

The mid-year release of GrandMaster Suite (3.60.05) incorporates a number of changes to make it even easier to use the program and perform your payroll tasks. Recent program changes since our last Payroll News issue include:

• The employee pay statement has been enhanced so that you can now print the company address on the employee stub portion of a statement. This new feature can be setup under the Company tab in the Payroll Statements dialog box.
• We have reduced the size of the GrandMaster Suite installation program by removing certain files that are no longer used. This enhancement will speed up installation/update times and required take up less disk space on your hard drive.
• The EFT process has been modified so that when you choose the Cancel or Exit buttons in the middle of the process, the program will return to the GrandMaster System Manager instead of continuing with the EFT process loop.
• When printing cheques you now have the option of displaying the employee's earning rates to 2 or 3 decimal places. Previously, the program offered support for 4 decimal places only. The new option (a drop down list) can be found in the Payroll Statements dialog box under the Earning tab.
• The Transaction Report has been modified to return to the Report Definition dialog box upon the completion of the report. This allows you to define and print several reports during the same session. Prior to this adjustment, the Transaction Report Definition dialog box would be removed when you finished printing the report. This would force you to choose the option again from the Reports menu.
• If you printed a customized payroll report and asked for an accumulator balance, the report would not display employees unless they were paid in the selected run (even if they had a balance and were active). This has been corrected.
• Cheque alpha amounts were not appearing correctly when printing. For example, if you generated a cheque for $16,000.00 dollars the amount would be calculated correctly but the alpha amount that appeared on the cheque would show as Six Thousand dollars. This has been corrected.
• The History Register report was only printing employees that had a net pay in current pay period only. This report should print data for all employees who had a transaction of any type in the given pay period. The program has been adjusted to include all employees with all transaction types (e.g. adjustments, YTD adjustments, etc.). This has been corrected.

Stay tuned to CanPay's Product News page to receive the latest changes and release information for all GrandMaster products!

Each summer, certain sectors of the workplace experience a slow-down in business and subsequently encounter a reduced need for full-time employees. This can result in employee layoffs and even terminations. The Canadian government offers an alternative that may be of interest to organizations who experience such a drop in business -- Work Sharing.

Work Sharing is a voluntary, Employment Insurance (EI) Part I funded program designed to avert temporary layoffs by providing Employment Insurance Income Benefits to eligible clients who willingly agree to work a temporarily reduced work week.

Work Sharing benefits employers by allowing them to retain workers and avoid layoffs during temporary work slowdowns. Employees benefit by continuing to earn wages and maintain their skills.

How Does it Work?
The employees are eligible to receive Employment Insurance (EI) benefits for the days they are not working to a maximum of $413.00 per week. This is based on the employees receiving 55% of their insurable earnings. There is no EI waiting period to be served under work sharing benefits.

The shortage of work must be expected to last for a minimum of 6 weeks to a maximum of 26 weeks. Extensions beyond the maximum of 26 weeks may be considered in extenuating circumstances for up to a maximum of 38 weeks (12 week extension), and must be thoroughly substantiated.

The employer is responsible for setting up a schedule of work hours and notifying HRDC officials of any changes in the amount of time worked and the number of employees on Work Sharing. Work Sharing Agreements do not affect workers’ rights to regular EI Benefits if they happen to be laid off after the agreement ends.

How Does One Apply?
Work Sharing is a voluntary program which requires management and workers to agree in participating in Work Sharing. They must apply together.

Employees must be deemed qualified EI claimants and must mutually agree with the employer's strategy to share available work over a reduced work week in order to avert layoffs. Part-time employees may participate in Work Sharing but seasonal employees are not eligible.

How Does my Company Qualify for this Program?
To qualify for a Work Sharing Agreement an employer must demonstrate through the development of a recovery plan, that a return to normal hours of employment within a maximum of 26 weeks is a reasonable expectation. They also have to be in business, year round, for at least two years; show that the need for reduced output is temporary, unavoidable and not seasonal in nature; have voluntary agreement from the employees; and that the reduced work week is not more than three days and not less than one day.

The minimum number of employees in a Work Sharing unit is two. No Work Sharing Agreements can be approved or continued as a result of or during a labour dispute.

For more information on Work Sharing contact your local Human Resource Centre of Canada (HRCC).