CHAPTER 5

Managing Your Work Time

Attendance

All employees are expected to be punctual and to maintain a good attendance record. Regular attendance is an important part of a positive employment record and is essential for the effective and profitable operations of Stone Tile.

Wherever possible, medical, dental and other personal appointments are to be scheduled outside of normal working hours. If you need to be absent for any reason, other than sickness or emergency, we encourage you to give your Manager as much advance notice as possible in order to ensure coverage for essential business requirements.

For unplanned occurrences, you are required to personally call your direct Manager to report an absence or lateness. It is expected that where possible, employees will report an absence/lateness at least one (1) hour before shift start, along with the expected return to work date. Where it is not possible to provide advance notice, employees are required to contact their direct Manager as soon as they are able to do so. If you are unable to reach your Manager in person, you may leave a voice-message for him/her stating:

  • your name and phone number

  • the date and time of your call

  • the reason for the absence

  • anticipated return to work date

Alternatively, you may contact Human Resources at 416-515-9000 Ext 3237.

If you are unable to return to work on the date previously stated, please call your Manager and advise them of same.

Absence within an employee’s control, such as lateness, failure to notify, abuse of excessive absenteeism or absences outside of job protected leaves will be handled in accordance with Stone Tile’s Progressive Discipline Policy. This policy will be interpreted in accordance with applicable Human Rights legislation.

Note:

Employees may use sick, float, or vacation day entitlements to replace lost wages due to sickness by completing the relevant paperwork and submitting it to their Manager for approval and submission to Payroll.

An absence of three (3) or more consecutive days due to illness or injury requires that you provide an original physician’s statement, signed by the physician, verifying your inability to attend work due to illness or injury and the expected duration of absence. Medical documentation must be submitted to your Manager and/or Human Resources within 3 days of returning to work.

If you fail to report for work for (3) consecutive workdays without providing any notice of absence, except in exceptional cases where you are unable to contact Stone Tile due to an illness or disability, you will be presumed to have voluntarily terminated your employment with Stone Tile. In such instances, Stone Tile will send your last pay cheque and your Record of Employment to your last known address. It is your responsibility to keep Stone Tile informed of any change in your contact information.

Sick Leave & Pay

Full-time employees of Stone Tile are entitled to three (3) paid sick days per calendar year, with exception to employees in British Columbia who are entitled to five (5) paid sick days per calendar year. Any additional absences related to personal illness/injury will not be paid. Sick leave is to be taken for instances related to personal illness, injury, or medical emergency and employees will be compensated at their normal rate of pay, not to exceed eight (8) hours per day.

Please note that sick leave is non-cumulative and is not paid out for non-use. For clarity, unused paid sick days do not have a “cash value” and employees will not receive pay in lieu of any paid sick day that has not been taken in a given calendar year. Unused sick days will not be paid out upon separation of employment. Paid sick days are not eligible to be booked in advance.

Paid sick days are not considered time worked for the purpose of determining overtime.

Paid sick days count toward an employee’s entitlement to personal emergency leave under the Employment Standard Act, 2000 In Ontario, and are not to be considered as additional days for the purpose of calculating personal emergency leave entitlements.

For absences three (3) days, or longer, a doctor’s note must be submitted to Human Resources to substantiate the absence and payment to the employee.

Personal Floating Holidays

Currently, Stone Tile annually provides up to three (3) personal floating holidays (PFH’s) as paid time off from work each calendar year to all full-time employees. Part-time employees will be eligible for PFH’s on a pro-rata basis of the percentage of their time worked.

Personal Floating Holidays must be used in the year they are earned, and those that are unused at the end of the calendar year are forfeited. No payment is made to an employee in lieu of PFH time, and PFH’s are not cashable.

Employees must request PFH time off in advance and receive approval from their Manager. PFH’s are available to employees for personal business, family sickness, and religious observance, and may also be used as an extension of bereavement time or vacation time.

Scheduling PFH’s on short notice for emergency purposes is at the discretion of the supervisor, who may request documentation of the reason for the emergency.

Meal Breaks

Employees are required to take one unpaid 30-minute lunch break, within every 5 hours of work, or as otherwise required by applicable employment standards legislation. Please refer to your provincial legislation for full details or contact Human Resources.

For example, if an employee works an eight (8) hour shift, the employee will be entitled to one (1) unpaid meal break of thirty (30) minutes. If the employee works an eleven (11) hour shift, the employee will be entitled to two (2) thirty (30) minute unpaid meal breaks over the course of the shift. It is your own responsibility to monitor your lunch break and to properly record your hours of work in keeping with this policy.

Return to Work after Illness or Injury

Upon your return to work following a medical leave of absence, or following an occupational injury or illness, you are required to supply a certificate from the primary care physician stating that you have recovered from the accident or illness and that you are ready to return to work.

Should an employee be unable to return to normal work duties, a medical note must be provided to Human Resources before returning to work, specifying functional abilities, area of injury and duration of the medical restrictions.

Non-Statutory Leave of Absence

A leave of absence is considered to be an authorized, unpaid, absence from work above normal vacation allowances that is not covered under applicable employment standards legislation. A formal leave of absence without pay may be granted at the sole discretion of the Company, provided that the leave does not disturb the efficiency of the operation, and that the request is approved prior to its commencement.

Requests for a leave of absence must be in writing, to both your Manager and Human Resources, as far in advance as possible, providing sufficient notice to allow the Company to reasonably respond to your request. A leave of absence will be granted only after all vacation time has been taken and vacation pay paid.

If you are on an approved leave of absence your benefits will be maintained for 30 days and you will be required to pay the employee portion of the shared-premium plan during this period.

It is a serious offence for an employee to use a personal leave of absence or sick leave, for any purpose other than that for which it was granted. Failure to comply with this provision will lead to disciplinary actions, up to and including termination. No leave of absence will be granted to permit an employee to work for another employer, nor is it permitted to engage in any form of alternate employment whilst on a leave of absence from the Company.

Statutory Leave of Absence

Under each provincial legislation, there are a variety of statutory leave that employees may be entitled to receive, without pay, including but not limited to:

Pregnancy Leave Parental Leave Family Medical Leave

Personal Emergency Leave Reservist Leave Jury Duty/Leave

Compassionate Care Leave Organ Donor Leave

Employees should consult with their applicable employment legislation within their province in order to determine available leave types and their right to a leave of absence.

Personal Emergency Leave

In Ontario, some employees are eligible for Personal Emergency Leave which is a job-protected time off work for up to 10 days per calendar year with a guarantee of only 2 days paid. To qualify, your employer must regularly employ at least 50 workers.

This leave may be taken for personal illness, injury or medical emergency or for the death, illness, injury, medical emergency or urgent matter relating to:

  • your spouse

  • a parent, step-parent, foster parent, child, step-child, foster child, grandparent, step-grandparent, grandchild or step-grandchild of you or your spouse

  • the spouse of your child

  • your brother or sister

  • a relative who is dependent on you for care or assistance.

Notifying Stone Tile

You must report your absence to your Manager and Human Resources stating that you will be taking a personal emergency leave before it begins, or as soon as you can.

Evidence that is reasonable in the circumstances is also required, and may take many forms including doctors/ notes, death certificates, or notes from a school or a day care facility or receipts.

Company Recording

The 10 days of personal emergency leave do not have to be taken all at once. However, Stone Tile will count any part of a day taken off as a full day of personal emergency leave. Days taken as sick leave, with pay, as previously outlined will also be deducted from the 10 days personal emergency leave entitlement as part of our overall Attendance Management tracking.

For employees outside of Ontario, please refer to your applicable provincial legislation regarding entitlement to unpaid personal emergency leave.

Bereavement Leave

A leave of absence without loss of pay of up to five (5) days will be granted to an active full-time employee who loses time from their regular work to make funeral arrangements, attend the funeral or pay a condolence visit due in the event of a death of an immediate family member.

Immediate family is defined as:

  • Spouse, Common-Law Spouse or Common-Law Partner

  • Mother, Father, including in-laws

  • Sister or Brother

  • Child, Step-child, or Grandchild

Step relationships are also recognized.

One (1) day off with pay will be granted in the event of the death of an employee’s:

  • Grandparents, spouse’s grandparents,

  • Sister-in-law, brother-in-law

  • Son-in-law, daughter-in-law

In the event that the death occurs outside Canada, and the employee does not attend the funeral, the employee is entitled to one (1) day paid leave of absence for bereavement.

A death certificate or obituary notice must be submitted to Management in order to receive applicable paid time. Pay will be granted based on the employee’s normal shift, not to exceed eight (8) hours per day.

Disconnecting from Work Policy 

Intent

Stone Tile understands that due to work-related pressures, the current landscape of work, or the working environment, employees may feel obligated to perform their job duties outside their normal working hours. Work-related pressure and feeling an inability to disconnect from the job can lead to stress and deterioration of mental and physical health. This policy has been established to support employee wellness, minimize excessive sources of stress, and ensure that employees know they can disconnect from their work outside their regular working hours.

 

Definitions

  • Disconnecting from work: Not engaging in work-related communications, including e-mails, telephone calls, video calls, or the sending or reviewing of other messages, so as to be free from the performance of work.

  • Regular working hours: The time agreed to by an employee, as stated in their employment contract, when they are meant to complete work for Stone Tile.

 

Guidelines

An employee’s time outside regular working hours is meant for the employee to recharge and spend as they wish and should not be used to complete work-related tasks. There may be a lack of separation between home and work on days that employees work from home that makes it difficult for employees to truly disconnect. Working remotely can make employees feel as though they are “always on” or obligated to continue working or respond to communication, regardless of the time of day.

Stone Tile values the health and well-being of our employees. We are committed to increasing overall employee health and wellness and providing employees with a positive work–life balance. This policy is intended to promote that ideal by specifically detailing the company’s expectations related to disconnecting from work.

  • Employees are entitled to disconnect from work outside regular working hours without fear of reprisal. All scheduled breaks should be taken and time off entitlements for non-work-related activities should be used each year. Employees are encouraged to set clear boundaries between work and their personal lives.

    Executives and Managers may be required to work outside of their regular working hours to meet time-sensitive deadlines or to satisfy other business requirements as needed.

    Outside regular working hours and when disconnecting from work, employees:

    • Are not required to continue performing their job duties and work-related tasks.

    • Are not required to respond to work-related communication outside their regular working hours, while on break, or during any paid or unpaid time off;

    • Will not face repercussion or punishment for not communicating or for ceasing work; and

    • Should respect co-workers’ time and should not expect them to respond, communicate, or complete work.

  • Stone Tile understands that employees may want or need to work outside their regular working hours to meet a time-sensitive deadline or to attend to an urgent matter or emergency; however, employees should not regularly or frequently work outside their scheduled hours to complete or catch up on work.

    Employees who cannot manage their workload during their regular working hours should meet with their direct manager to evaluate their workload, priorities, and due dates.

    Managers will work with employees to come up with a solution to ensure:

    • The current workload does not result in the employee working excess hours and does not contribute to additional stress or burnout;

    • Normal job duties can be completed during regular working hours; and

    • Employees can remain productive and meet company goals and objectives.

  • Employees should not feel obligated to send or respond to work-related communication outside regular working hours. Human Resources may occasionally send general communication to employees when they are not working, such as on an employee’s day off or scheduled vacation. Employees are not expected to respond to any company communication when not at work, apart from unforeseen circumstances, such as an emergency.

    Employees who do not reply to work-related communications outside regular working hours will not face negative effects on their employment.

  • Breaks are provided in accordance with employment standards and are intended to provide employees with time to recharge and enable them to work productively during regular working hours. Employees should take any scheduled breaks during their shift and use that time to disconnect from work.

    Stone Tile understands the importance for our employees to have personal time off. Employees are encouraged to use their accrued paid vacation time in full every year and should take the time for rest, relaxation, and personal pursuits. Employees are not obligated to complete work-related activities during scheduled time off. Knowing that, time management is the responsibility of employees and scheduled time off should not interfere with deadlines. Managers will work with employees to delegate job-specific duties that must be completed while the employee is on vacation to maintain workflow and productivity. All employees are required to set an automatic out of office response when taking time off. The response should indicate that you are out of the office, the start and end date of your time away, a note indicating that you will respond on your return, and alternative contact details should an immediate response be required.

    Employees should not be reluctant to take vacation due to workload, unless there are limitations or restrictions because of a due date, project priority, scheduling conflict, or unforeseen circumstance that prevent an employee from taking a vacation at a specific time, in which case managers will assist in determining appropriate actions to take to meet deadlines and accommodate time off requests whenever possible.

  • On occasion, Stone Tile may have a business need that requires employees to work overtime. In such instances, Managers will provide the approval for a selection of employees who may be required to work overtime, and this will be communicated and scheduled in advance. Employees should not work overtime unless directed by their manager. Please see the overtime policy for guidelines on overtime.