COVID-19: Fall school plans for working parents in B.C.

Back to school for B.C.

B.C. Education Minister Rob Fleming announced yesterday, on July 29, that most students in the province from kindergarten to Grade 12 will be returning to class full time in September.

While many students may or may not relish the thought of seeing their friends again and venture outside their homes more freely, the effects of this move may have other implications for their parents.

In March 2020, the B.C. government passed some amendments to British Columbia’s Employment Standards Act, allowing for COVID related job-protected leaves to employees in a variety of circumstances such as a lack of childcare.

As schools and daycares shuttered temporarily or limited the number of children they were able to provide care for, many parents had no choice but to take advantage of the job-protected leave and stay at home with their children.

These employees also would have qualified to receive the Canada Emergency Relief Benefit (CERB), assuming they met all of the other criteria.

Should you be an employee in this situation, Mr. Fleming’s announcement yesterday may have some important repercussions as school resumes in September.

What This Means for Parents

First and foremost, your entitlement to a COVID-19 related job-protected leave under the Employment Standards Act may be over, and you may have to return to work.

Failing to do so can have some dire consequences, including being terminated or being considered to have abandoned your job (the latter of which may deny you of any severance).

Second, your entitlement to receiving CERB may also come to an end. The criteria for eligibility for CERB includes the requirement that the employee did not quit their job voluntarily.

Learn More:
Can an employer fire you for bringing your child to work?
Employees Rights When Returning to Work

If the eligibility for a COVID-19 related leave comes to an end and the employee fails to return to work, the employer can claim that the employee abandoned their job.

In this case, although CERB payments may continue for the length of the CERB program, employees should be acutely aware that they may be forced to pay these monies back at some point, due to having received them when they were not eligible.

It’s important to keep in mind that most situations are not black and white, and there may be other avenues under the COVID-19 related leave section that may be suitable for and available to you.

Reaching out to a B.C. employment lawyer would be the best way to assess your options.