The provincial government has made multiple announcements regarding COVID-19 in recent days. One of which, can be considered a holiday gift to businesses. The changes to the Employment Standards Act regarding layoffs related to the pandemic have been extended. Previously due to expire on January 2, 2021, these provisions have now been extended to July 3, 2021.
This extension means that those dealerships that still have staff on layoff, who were struggling to return employees, and possibly facing the tough decision to terminate, now have until July 3rd to ensure that their staff remain employed while rebuilding operations.
Additionally, although much of Ontario is under "lockdown", dealerships remain part of essential services and can continue to operate with restrictions in place, including by appointment only sales processes. The implementation of more Grey Level regions will begin December 26th and is scheduled to be in effect for 28 or 14 days, depending on your region. For a detailed listing of all regions and their restriction level, please visit here.
Ontario has also permitted non-essential services to operate by curb-side pick up.
The Ontario Business Support Programs are being reviewed and enhanced to further assist small businesses with financial relief.
As part of the province-wide lockdown, there will be an extended school break. This may have an impact on your dealership's holiday scheduling activities and will continue into mid- January.