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Policy Interpretation
Subsection (a)
For purposes of this section, a “manager” includes
employees whose principal responsibility is the supervision and/or
direction of “human resources” (i.e., employees
or contractors), or “other resources” (financial
and material resources).
Principal employment responsibilities”
Employment responsibilities of a manager include where the person
exercises authority and discretion while performing certain actions
or roles on behalf of the employer, and is personally accountable
for the results. Accountability in this context is linked to the
employer’s business objectives as opposed to the routine completion
of a task. It is essential for the definition of “manager”
that the responsibility that the employee has is principal to his/her
employment.
A conclusion about whether the principal employment
responsibilities consist of supervising and/or directing employees,
or other resources, depends on a total characterization of that
person’s responsibilities, and may include, but is not limited
to:
- the amount of time spent supervising and directing;
- the person's employment duties and the reasons for them;
- the degree to which the person exercises management power and
authority and its impact on the business;
- the priority placed on the responsibilities by the employer;
and
- the nature and size of the business.
"Supervising and/or Directing"
If a person is performing either supervising or directing functions
as his or her principal employment duties he or she will be considered
a manager. Supervising and/or directing describes the function of
overseeing and controlling activities of staff and business resources
and accountable for the outcome of such activities including, but
not limited to, responsibility for:
- hiring, supervising, evaluating, disciplining and terminating
staff;
- directing what work is to be done, how it is to be completed,
when it is to be completed and being accountable for the outcome
of such work (i.e. monitoring and evaluation);
- developing, delivering, and evaluating programs and services
- leading projects including strategic planning, budgeting, project
monitoring and evaluation;
- committing and/or authorizing the use of company resources;
- preparing, delivering and evaluating business and marketing
plans; and
- developing, monitoring, and evaluating financial plans including
budgets, cost estimates and tenders.
“Other resources” of the employer include:
- financial resources including budget planning, implementation,
monitoring, and evaluation; and
- material resources including product or services, research
and development, and marketing.
Example
Ally works for a large retail chain as a Pharmacy Manager. The
retail chain hires the employees she supervises. Ally is not a
pharmacist but is responsible and accountable for supervising
and directing the day-to-day activities of the department including
staff. She is in charge of merchandising, advertising, budget
and policy development and other administrative functions related
to the operation of the pharmacy.
Ally is a manager as defined in this section.
Example
Pat, a project leader for a corporation, is responsible and accountable
for overseeing a contract to implement a new computer system including
the purchase and installation of computer equipment. Pat has no
employees reporting to her but is responsible for a large budget
including the monitoring and evaluation of financial status reports
while reporting to the executive vice president in charge of project
management.
Pat is a manager as defined in this section.
Lead Hand or Shift Supervisor
An employee working as a lead hand or shift supervisor is usually
not considered to be a “manager” because, while they may
supervise the work of other employees on their particular shift, it
generally is not their principal responsibility. In such instances
they are generally not given the authority to determine staffing levels,
discipline staff or commit company resources.
Example
Erwin is hired as a shift supervisor in a fast food outlet. While
he spends most of his time serving customers and taking cash, he
is also in charge of three or four other employees. As shift supervisor,
Erwin assigns duties from a list of routine tasks, deals with customer
complaints, calls in staff to fill in for staff absences, balances
the cash at the end of the shift and locks the restaurant. Erwin
sometimes assists in interviewing job applicants but is not responsible
for choosing who will be hired.
While Erwin spends some time supervising staff, his principal duty
is serving customers. He does not have sole responsibility for disciplining
nor does the employee had a large degree of discretion to change
work routines, decide on staffing levels or alter shift schedules.
Erwin is not a manager as defined in this section.
Subsection (2)
“Executive capacity” includes:
The exercise of substantial authority in making key decisions
critical to the business such as:
- how many employees are to be employed.
- what product should be purchased or produced.
- what services should be provided.
- from whom should supplies be purchased.
- at what price should products be sold.
Duties that involve active participation in the control, supervision,
and administration of business affairs.
A person employed in an executive capacity is considered to be
a “controlling mind” of the business. They need not
be the owner. They may have titled such as General Manager, Manager
of Operations, comptroller, or Director.
Job title or payment method does not define “manager”:
The fact that a person is classified as a manager, or is identified
by other employees as one, does not of itself mean that the person
is a manager. The form of payment (salary, hourly wage, commission)
is not necessarily indicative of a “manager”.
Manager may be entitled to extra pay for extra work:
Although a manager is excluded from the hours of work and overtime
provisions of the Act, they are entitled to be paid for all hours
worked, according to their terms of employment. In some cases
this could result in a manager being entitled to additional compensation.
Where there is evidence to support findings that the employer and
the employee agreed that a specific number of hours of work would
be compensated by a specific amount of wages, the employee would
be entitled to extra wages for the extra time worked based on their
regular rate of pay.
Example
Bill, a "manager", accepts an offer to work for $50,000
a year. Part of the agreement is that the annual salary is to
cover all hours worked. Generally speaking, Bill works 45 hours
a week. During the spring, he works 55 hours a week.
Bill is not entitled to extra pay for the additional hours worked
as he agreed to be paid the $50,000 a year regardless of the number
of hours worked. If he had agreed to work for $50,000 a year based
on a 45 hour work week, Bill may have been entitled to further
compensation.
Exclusions from the Employment Standards Act
Under s.36 of the Employment Standards Regulation, a “manager”
is excluded from Statutory Holidays.
Under s.34(f) of the Employment Standards Regulation, a “manager”
is excluded from the hours of work and overtime requirements of
the Act.
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