Ontario NDP MPP introduces internship bill

On Tuesday Ontario NDP MPP Peggy Sattler introduced a private member’s bill that calls for better protections for students and new Canadians who are performing unpaid labour. “We are creating a new generation of workers who are going to start out their careers having ... to go from unpaid internship to unpaid internship,” she said at a press conference. “My bill highlights this issue as a public policy priority ... unpaid interns must have the right to refuse unpaid work.” The bill recommends amendments to Ontario’s Employment Standards Act so that it would apply to persons receiving training, co-op students, and students in work study programs. The bill would also require all employers to explain to interns their rights under the act, and recommends the prominent display of a worker’s bill of rights in the workplace. 2 federal MPs also recently introduced legislation intended to protect interns from exploitative working conditions. Toronto Star