Each province and territory in Canada—and the federal government, in federally regulated industries—has its own statutory regime to regulate employment matters. These acts, codes, statutes, and associated regulations apply to all employment situations or have employment implications for a specific profession or sector.
With few exceptions most industries, sectors, and workplaces in Canada fall within the jurisdiction of the province where they are located.
Jurisdiction is determined to be federal when the federal government has specific power over a particular agency (for example, the post office); employees do work that does not fall within the legislative jurisdiction of any province, do work that connects provinces or extends beyond the limits of a province, or do work that the federal government declares to be of “general advantage of Canada” (for example, railways, canals, grain elevators, and atomic energy).
All interprovincial or international air, rail, shipping, and trucking operations fall within federal jurisdiction, as do broadcasting enterprises, banks, uranium mines, and grain elevators. In the event of a national emergency, all Canadian employees who would provide and maintain “peace, order, and good government” fall within federal jurisdiction.
-from Finlayson, H.J. (2022). When Things Happen at Work: People, Circumstances, and What to Do Now—A Practitioner’s Best Practices Compendium (Friesen Press).
