Contents:

• Welcome
• Upcoming Events
• What's New
• GrandMaster Update

Welcome!

April 2005 - 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 Others 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:

March 1, 2005 - Governments of Canada and Quebec sign Final Agreement on Quebec's Parental Insurance Plan - A final agreement on Quebec's Parental Insurance Plan was announced today. It reflects both governments' commitment to support parents in their efforts to balance work and family life while giving the best possible start to their children. The maternity and parental benefits available under Quebec's program are different than those available under Employment Insurance (EI). For example, Quebec's program offers claimants the option to receive benefits during different time periods and at different rates. (Full Story)

March 7, 2005 - Canada Revenue Agency interest rates for the second calendar quarter - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) today announced the prescribed annual interest rates that will apply to any amounts owed to the CRA and to any amounts the CRA owes to individuals and corporations. These rates are calculated quarterly in accordance with applicable legislation and will be in effect from April 1, 2005, to June 30, 2005. (Full Story)

March 22, 2005 - Employment Equity and Inclusiveness Make Good Business Sense - The Honourable Joe Fontana, Minister of Labour and Housing today tabled in the House of Commons, the 17th Annual Report on the Employment Equity Act. The Government of Canada is furthering its efforts to support employment equity with the recently announced Action Plan to Combat Racism, "A Canada for All: Canada's Action Plan against Racism". Under the Action Plan, the Labour Program will include a workplace element designed to promote fair workplaces and to ensure the removal of discriminatory barriers in Canadian labour markets. (Full Story)

March 2005 - Gifts and awards given by employers to their employees - The Canada Revenue Agency reminds employers that certain gifts and awards that they give to their employees may not result in a taxable benefit to the employees. Employers can now give their employees, on a tax-free basis, two non-cash awards per year to mark employment achievements and two non-cash gifts per year to mark special occasions such as holidays, birthdays, or marriage. (Full Story)

Alberta:

March 14, 2005 - Publication reports Alberta's labour market remained strong in 2004 - The creation of 40,000 new jobs, a low unemployment rate and a steady increase in hourly wages made Alberta the place to work in 2004. The 2004 Annual Alberta Labour Market Review reports that Alberta's 2004 unemployment rate of 4.6 per cent was the lowest of all provinces. The province's hourly wage increased from $18.14 in 2003 to 18.55 in 2004; the 2.3 per cent increase more than doubled the 0.9 per cent increase in 2003. (Full Story)

March 15, 2005 - More supports help families invest in children's futures - Effective April 1, 2005, changes to Alberta Works will increase the time low-income parents have at home with young children, make it easier for youth to finish high school and help families save for their children's education. "These changes demonstrate our commitment to the well-being of Alberta's children by giving families who are vulnerable a hand up to invest in and plan for the future of their children," said Human Resources and Employment Minister Mike Cardinal. (Full Story)

March 9, 2005 - Amendments proposed to Workers' Compensation Act - Administrative changes are being proposed to the Workers' Compensation Act (WCA) to keep it current. Bill 15, the Workers' Compensation Amendment Act, has been given first reading in the Legislative Assembly. "These legislative changes are part of the regular review of the workers' compensation system by government," said Len Webber, MLA for Calgary-Foothills, who introduced Bill 15. "These are housekeeping changes, but they are necessary to keep the system current." (Full Story)

March 23, 2005 - Legislation provides more protection and transparency for pension plan members - Bill 35, the Employment Pension Plans Amendment Act, introduced in the Legislature March 23rd by Calgary Nose Hill MLA, Neil Brown will give private sector pension plan members better access to information. "These amendments will give members more information about the financial status of their pension plans," says Brown. "With greater access to information, plan members will be in a better position to monitor their own pension long before they need it." (Full Story)

British Columbia:

March 29, 2005 - Vancouver Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership project - In a ceremony held today at the Chief Dan George Centre, the Honourable Claudette Bradshaw, Minister of State (Human Resources Development), took part in the official launch of the VanAsep Training Society project. VanAsep links major employers and major projects to a source of labour supply, including opportunities related to the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre project, the Vancouver Port Expansion project and the Sea to Sky Highway project. The project will enable training for at least 600 Aboriginal individuals, and guarantee a minimum of 200 apprenticeships, with an overall expectation of 300 Aboriginal people employed in long-term sustainable careers in the construction industry. (Full Story)

March 7, 2005 - Resources for Entrepreneurs with Disabilities - In an increasingly competitive job market, many people with disabilities have discovered that finding suitable employment can be a difficult task. Market and socio-economic trends have led to more people working from home, acting as independent, self-employed contractors, rather than becoming employees. With the advancement of new technologies and the elimination of various barriers (social and physical), entrepreneurs with disabilities are now able to capitalize on the benefits and the freedom of working at home. (Full Story)

Manitoba:

Manitoba to Raise Minimum Wage - Manitoba businesses will receive a $11.8-million tax break effective Jan. 1, while Manitoba's minimum wage will increase by 25 cents to $7.25 effective April 1, Labour and Immigration Minister Nancy Allan announced today. For businesses, there will be $11.8 million in additional tax relief in 2005. The general Corporation Income Tax rate will decrease to 15 per cent from 15.5 per cent. (Full Story - PDF Format)

March 11, 2005 - Manitoba leads nation in monthly job gains in February - More Manitobans are working than ever before, Industry, Economic Development and Mines Minister Jim Rondeau said today. He was reacting to today’s Statistics Canada report that showed 2,800 additional jobs were created in Manitoba in February. "Our monthly employment increase is the best in the country," said Rondeau. "Our job increase of 0.5 per cent is well above the national average of 0.2 per cent." In February, there were 582,500 Manitobans working in the province. This is the highest level ever. (Full Story)

March 2, 2005 - Province names new minimum wage review board - New business and labour representatives appointed by the province will review the minimum wage schedule and develop a strategy for directing Manitoba’s minimum wage levels in 2006 and beyond, Labour and Immigration Minister Nancy Allan announced today. "This government made a commitment to regular reviews of the minimum wage," said Allan. "The board will provide a comprehensive insight into how we should proceed in the future structuring of Manitoba’s minimum wage." (Full Story)

March 4, 2005 - New interim chair for workers compensation board - Labour and Immigration Minister Nancy Allan today announced that Thomas J. P. Farrell has been appointed the interim chair of the Workers Compensation Board. "Mr. Farrell brings a significant level of experience in labour to this position and we are pleased he has accepted this appointment," said Allan. "As a former deputy minister of labour, he has an excellent understanding of the issues and challenges facing Manitoba’s workforce." (Full Story)

New Brunswick:

March 11, 2005 - New Brunswick's unemployment rate 9.4 per cent as 800 more working - New Brunswick's unemployment rate remained in single digits last month, standing at 9.4 per cent as 800 more people were working in February compared with the same time last year, Training and Employment Development Minister Margaret-Ann Blaney reported today. "The fact we are experiencing unemployment rates below 10 per cent and there are more New Brunswickers working is very encouraging," Blaney said. (Full Story)

March 24, 2005 - Contract signed with education group - The Province and the Association of New Brunswick Professional Educators signed a five-year contract today. "I want to congratulate both bargaining teams who worked extremely hard at the bargaining table to reach an agreement within the financial parameters set by the government," Human Resources Minister Rose-May Poirier said. "The deal is reasonable for employees and fair to the taxpayers of New Brunswick." (Full Story)

Newfoundland and Labrador:

March 3, 2005 - Interest relief for small businesses on workers’ compensation assessment payments - Joan Burke, Minister responsible for the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission and Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment, has announced an initiative that will provide cost relief for small businesses when making their workers’ compensation assessment payments. Effective April 1, businesses paying less than $54,000 in annual assessments will be able to pay their current year’s assessments monthly through electronic funds transfer over seven months (April to October) interest free. (Full Story)

March 2, 2005 - Operational changes imperative to improving services - The outcomes of an operational review at the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission (the Commission) of Newfoundland and Labrador has led to several programming changes within the organization, the most significant being an updated claims management model and web strategy that will see improvements to how injury claims are administrated and managed. (Full Story)

Nova Scotia:

March 18, 2005 - New Rules Eliminate Police Strikes, Lockouts - New rules come into effect today, March 18, that will help resolve police labour disputes in Nova Scotia quickly and with no threat of strike or lockout. The new legislation, which was passed by the province last fall, replaces the right to strike or lockout with interest arbitration. In that process, a neutral third party or board conducts a hearing and writes a decision that is binding upon both parties. (Full Story)

March 3, 2005 - Pausing on the Journey to Economic Equality - The achievement of economic equality remains a prime concern for today's women, with good reason. In Nova Scotia, women who work full time earn just 72 cents for every dollar earned by men. About 60 per cent of women work in the retail and service sector. This often entails precarious employment with few or no benefits. Occupations in science, trade and technology offer higher wages, greater security and better benefits. Getting more women into those occupations is a key to improving their economic security. (Full Story)

Ontario:

March 22, 2005 - Businesses offered help to strengthen health and safety - The McGuinty government is giving 5,000 workplaces a "last chance" to voluntarily improve their health and safety records, Labour Minister Christopher Bentley announced today. "We believe most businesses want to do the right thing and create a culture where health and safety are priorities," Bentley told a graduating class of 100 new health and safety inspectors. "To achieve this, the ministry will work with our prevention partners to help 5,000 workplaces improve their health and safety performance. The result will not only be safer workplaces but also substantial savings to these businesses from increased productivity." (Full Story)

March, 2005 - Revised Employer's Report of Injury/Illness (Form 7) coming Fall 2005 - The Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has announced that the March premium remittance mailing for employers will include a flyer about the new Form 7. Choose the following link to view the flyer in PDF format. (Full Story)

March 1, 2005 - 60-Hour Work Week Ends Today - The McGuinty government ended the 60-hour work week today, giving employees genuine choice about working excess hours while preserving flexibility for businesses, Labour Minister Chris Bentley announced. (Full Story)

Prince Edward Island:

March 11, 2005 - Employment standards board to conduct annual review of minimum wage in PEI - The Prince Edward Island Employment Standards Board is set to begin its annual review of the minimum wage in accordance with the Prince Edward Island Employment Standards Act. The Prince Edward Island workforce is made up of approximately 77,000 Island workers of which 62,000 are covered by the Employment Standard Act. (Full Story)

Saskatchewan:

March 11, 2005 - Record-setting job growth continues - Saskatchewan's record-setting pace in job creation shows no signs of letting up. Figures released today by Statistics Canada show 476,700 people working in Saskatchewan in February, which is 11,400 higher than February 2004. This is the highest figure ever recorded for Saskatchewan in February. (Full Story)

March 7, 2005 - Policy Manual Subscription Service - Starting March 31, The Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) is offering a new Policy Manual subscription service to stakeholders. The new method will be more time-sensitive and reduce WCB's printing costs. When policies are posted to the website, interested stakeholders will receive an email with a direct link to the on-line Policy Manual. Stakeholders who wish to maintain paper manuals may print the documents from the website. (Full Story)

February 18, 2005 - Publication Summary: Experience Rating Program - The Saskatchewan Workers Compensation Board (WCB) has created a brochure outlines the WCB's experience rating program that applies discounts or surcharges to employer annual premiums based on claims history. Choose the following link to download the brochure in PDF format. (Full Story)

Yukon:

March 7, 2005 - Board Releases Independent Evaluation of Employer Consultant Program - The Yukon Workers’ Compensation Health and Safety Board is releasing the independent evaluation of the employer consultant program to Yukon employers, workers and the public. The employer consultant program was established as a two-year pilot project in June 2002. It expired on August 31, 2004. Under a contribution agreement, the YWCHSB provided the Chamber up to $450,000 over two years to hire an employer consultant to educate and provide advice to employers on workers’ compensation, injury prevention, return-to-work programs and related subjects. The agreement stipulated the program would be evaluated. (Full Story - PDF Format)

The current release of GrandMaster Suite (4.01.06) 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.

• Pay Statement now supports alpha dates - The Pay Statement report has been modified to allow the choice of printing dates as Numeric Dates (default) or Alpha Dates. When you choose the Alpha Dates option any date fields you have chosen to print on your pay statement will print the date in alpha form. If you have chosen to print your statements in French with Alpha Dates, the months will print the French translations for the months.
• Option to print Taxable Income added to Pay Statement - The option to print the employee's Taxable Income amounts, current and year-to-date, has been added to the Pay Statement report. Note: If the Taxable Income amount is floating, no row specified, it will print on the last line of the stub as defined by the Number of Lines per Stub.
• Pay Statement now supports print of accumulator hours or dollars - We have modified the Accumulator Update to include Pay Statement Print Options to print the Hours Only, Dollars Only, Dollars and Hours or Do Not Print (default) on your pay statements. With this change you will be able to define your accumulator pay statement print options to print the accumulator information based on the chosen setting.
• Increased support added to Earning Rate Tables - Increased support added that allows greater flexibility when using Earning Rates Tables for your positional pay rates. An "Allow Lower Position Pay Rates to Earning table maximum" option has been added to your payroll Settings. When you select this option the employee pay rate will resolve the pay rate up to the earning rate table maximum rate when the pay rate is lower than the employee normal pay rate. This allows you to pay an employee at a positional rate that is lower than their normal rate of pay, yet have that lower rate utilize an earning rate table.
• Bold print option added to Pay Statements - With this release we have added an optional setting to allow you to print your Pay Statements with a bold font. When you choose this option the report will use the default bold font when you print your pay statements. Note: If your print settings allow you to select your font when printing you would not require this setting as long as you are using a monospaced font type.
• Enhanced support for Saskatchewan MEPP Report - We have modified the Saskatchewan MEPP Report to summarize employee Actual and Potential Hours. Further, we have added the Contribution Type and Service Type to the report.
• Payroll Register report now supports sort by tax province - The Payroll Register report has been modified so that you may now sort the output by tax province. This option is useful when you have employees who have varied tax provinces within your payroll.
• Import Employees may now display warning on new employee - The Import Employees dialog has been modified to include an option to display a warning message when importing new employees to the database. When you select this option a warning message box will appear when an employee is encountered in the import that does not exist in the employee Registry. If you select "Yes" the employee will be added to the employee Registry while a "No" selection will result in the employee record bypassed by the import.
• T4 Box 22 deduction assignment support added - With this release we have included the option to assign T4 Box 22 or RL-1 Box E to a specific employee deduction. This modification allows you to add the deduction amount for any deduction with a Box 22/Box E allocation to the Income Tax amount when creating your year-end file.
• T4(04) form added to Print T4 options - We have added the option to print your T4 Statements to the revised CRA T4(FLAT) Statement of Remuneration Paid for 2004. When selecting this option you may adjust your print in the same manner as before by selecting the appropriate Adjustment option.
• RL-1.L (2004-10) form added to Print RL-1 options - Revenu Québec has modified the RL-1.L-V (2004-10) (French only) Relevé 1 laser - Revenus d'emploi et revenus divers form. With this release we have added support for this revised form. When selecting this option you may adjust your print in the same manner as before by selecting the appropriate Adjustment option.
• Browse support added to file selection - We have added Browse support to many of the Import, Export and Report - export file options to select an existing file for the operation. This change will allow you to select the file you wish to Import, Export or write your Report data to by selecting the Browse button located in the dialog box. This option has also been added to the Employee Information dialog box, allowing you to browse for a photo (.bmp) file to assign to the employee.
• STSC and STRP Reports now prorate selected earnings over 10 months - The Saskatchewan Teacher's STSC and STRP Reports have been modified to prorate selected earnings over a 10-month period instead of the prior pay frequency method. This became necessary since most teachers receive pay over 10 months while some opt for a 12- month pay frequency. In order to accurately report, all earning information should be prorated over 10 months regardless of the pay frequency.
  

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Jobs ought to be the best weapons in any war on poverty. The ability to provide for oneself and one's family builds confidence and self-respect, and working to provide decent, living-wage jobs is not a charity model, but rather an approach rooted in social justice.

In Manitoba unemployment is quite low relative to other provinces. However, for low-income workers, wages have failed to keep pace with the cost of living. One of the chief causes of this problem is the decline in value of the minimum wage. The minimum wage, once adjusted for inflation, has fallen steadily since the 1970s. If the minimum wage of 25 years ago were adjusted for inflation it would now be more than $9.25 per hour.

At the beginning of this April 2005, the minimum wage in Manitoba will rise by .25 cents to $7.25.

This is a classic good news/bad news story. The good news is that the wage was increased, and the many Manitobans who work at or near the minimum wage ­ commonly known as the working poor ­ will benefit. The bad news is that the minimum wage is still far too low to allow people earning it to live in dignity. The recent increase, along with other increases over the past several years, has allowed the minimum wage to keep up with inflation ­ but nothing more than that.

Why increase the minimum wage? There are many compelling arguments in favor of doing so, from both a social justice and economic standpoint.

First, let's consider who benefits. There is a popular stereotype that the typical minimum wage earner is a teenager who lives with her parents and spends her money at the mall. This is far from true.

In Canada, nearly two-thirds of minimum wage workers are adults, approximately the same percentage are women, and about half have some post-secondary education. Fewer than one in five are young adults still living at home.

This is not to say that teenage minimum wage workers do not also deserve a raise. The numbers show that the vast majority of them are also full-time students at some point during the year. A strong minimum wage helps more students finance their education.

Whenever the minimum wage is debated, we hear these (and many more) arguments in favor of a strong minimum. Yet people who make the minimum wage are among the most vulnerable workers in Manitoba. They have no unions to represent them, nor do they have the financial resources needed to organize and lobby government on their behalf.

Meanwhile, some high-profile business groups vocally oppose a strong minimum wage. It is, they say, is a "job killer" that hurts the very people it is supposed to help by pricing their labour out of the market.

Is this true? In a word, no. While that argument may sound compelling at first, it withers in the light of real evidence.

If we imagine the full output of the economy as a pie, the minimum wage can do two things. It can change the size of the overall pie, and it can change the size of the individual slice that different groups receive.

Opponents of a strong minimum wage argue that it reduces both the overall size of the pie and the slice low-wage workers receive. This theory holds that each worker is "worth" a certain amount to her employer. If the minimum wage exceeds that figure, employing that worker will no longer be affordable, and low-wage workers will end up as the big losers out of the deal.

Sounds simple enough, even elegant.

But elegance is for tailors, and this argument is not so much simple as simplistic. In reality, the labour market is much more complex than that. Employers avoid some of the costs of a wage increase through higher productivity, lower recruiting and training costs, decreased absenteeism, and improved worker morale. And besides, wages are far from employers' only costs.

The Manitoba government has argued that if Manitoba's minimum wage climbs too high, our province will fail to be competitive. That is a red herring.

There is little danger of minimum wage businesses moving to other provinces. Nineteen out of twenty minimum-wage jobs are in the service sector, and these businesses are inherently local. Unlike, say, a factory, a convenience store serves a very local market, and its competition is another store down the block ­ certainly not a store in another province.

One of the main reasons that a strong minimum wage will not hurt small or large businesses is that the law applies to everyone ­ no individual business is placed at a disadvantage relative to its competitors. In fact, a strong minimum wage helps to counteract the destructive race to the bottom in which jurisdictions try to attract businesses by offering lower wages and working conditions than their neighbours. It supports "high road" businesses already paying a living wage and prevents "low road" businesses from undercutting them by paying below-poverty-level wages.

In recent scholarship the debate over the purported job-loss effect is a debate over whether this effect is very small, or nothing at all (some studies have even found a small increase in employment). While this debate may be an interesting one for economists, from the perspective of a government looking to help the working poor, it is a distinction without a difference. Even if you were to accept the most negative findings from the research, you simply could not avoid the conclusion that the benefits of the increase far outweigh the costs.

It is also useful to take a step back and consider the historical reason behind the introduction of the minimum wage: the protection of the most vulnerable workers. It has been, since its inception, a tool for promoting greater equality and social justice.

In other words, while the minimum wage is in some ways a complex public policy issue, it is also an issue of what we as a community deem to be the right thing to do. Just as we legislate against slavery and child labour because we consider them to be morally unacceptable, we use the minimum wage to establish a social benchmark.

If a person does work that is of value to her employer and to society, she should be adequately paid for it. At the very least, everyone who works full-time should earn enough to live with dignity and participate in their community.

Article courtesy of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Web: www.policyalternatives.ca