Six Saskatchewan HR Basics That Can Bite You

Recent discussions with a potential immigrant investor made us both realize how overwhelming all of the regulations and requirements can be for starting a new business in Saskatchewan. Ranging from provincial business registration, to city business licenses, from GST and PST to income tax and specific licensing issues for specific industries, there truly is a lot to learn. You want to make sure that you don't miss something that will come back to bite you later, and most of these something's have really sharp teeth.

After talking about general business, we got into specifics of hiring staff, and she commented on how much more regulation there was compared to her home country. She exclaimed, in broken English, "Workers treated very good here!" as we went through a few of the HR basics that can bite you when employing people in Saskatchewan:

1. Provincial Labour Standards outline annual holidays, hours of work, minimum wage and other employment rules.
2. Occupational Health & Safety (OHS) sets rules for safety in the workplace, including requirements for employee-driven Occupational Health Committees or Representatives, and penalties for safety violations.
3. The Worker's Compensation Board provides mandatory coverage and compensation for workers injured on the job.
4. Withholding and remitting Payroll Deductions, including Canada Pension Plan contributions, Employment Insurance premiums and Income Tax.
5. Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) defines rules for safe handling of hazardous products in the workplace, and defines employer responsibilities for safety of employees.
6. The Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission protects people from discrimination based on age, ancestry, marital status, disability, religion, gender and other factors.

There are lots of other HR basics that are good business practice and nice-to-know, but make sure you know and understand how these six apply to your business - they're need-to-know.