More than 10,000 Canadians received a medically-assisted death in 2021: report
Quebec Superior Court suspends Bill 96’s translation requirement until constitutionality determined
The Ontario government has given Maggie an ultimatum: the disabled teen can lose her funding or her independence
FBI took 11 sets of classified material from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home while investigating possible Espionage Act violations (US)
Ontario class action settlement reclassifies volunteers as employees, setting new precedent
Availability of Judicial Review in SABS Disputes
Are masking policies still valid?
Justice Canada releases commission report on impact of lack of legal aid in family law disputes
Harmonized sales tax part of maximum amount of attendant care benefits owed by insurer: court
New rules coming next month to help Canadians with cancelled and delayed flights
Stephen King set to testify for govt in books merger trial (US)
New law program in Quebec to begin next fall, a first in 50 years
The Impact of the Lack of Legal Aid in Family Law Cases
SCC rules that when someone is required by their partner to wear a condom but do not, they could be guilty of sexual assault.
Big Plastic suing feds over single-use ban — again
Tim Hortons offers coffee and doughnut as proposed settlement in class action lawsuit
The SCC has refused to hear the appeal to declare the renewal of the state of health emergency by the Quebec government invalid
Federal privacy commissioner investigating controversial ArriveCAN app
Kraken, a U.S. Crypto Exchange, Is Suspected of Violating Sanctions (US)
Ontario court certifies class action on former patients’ anxiety from notice of risk of infection
The stakes couldn’t be higher as Canada’s top court decides whether to hear climate class action lawsuit
Professor Barnali Choudhury selected by EU as trade and sustainable development expert
The Supreme Court decision on the ‘Ghomeshi’ amendments will help sexual assault victims access justice
AFN Reaches $20 B Final Settlement Agreement to Compensate First Nations Children and Families

Law students: Not a minimum wage unless it’s mandatory

Law Society of Ontario (LSO) benchers are expected to vote on a mandatory minimum wage for April 28, 2022.

 
PHOTO: Stock
 
 
Law Society of Ontario (LSO) benchers are expected to vote on a mandatory minimum wage for April 28, 2022. This, however, is not the first time the issue is brought before Convocation for a vote. In 2018, Convocation approved a set of articling enhancements that included a mandatory minimum wage, following the Law Society of Ontario’s own thorough research and broad consultation within the profession.

On These enhancements were approved and set to be implemented by May 2021. Since 2018, students and employers have been anticipating and planning for the minimum wage to take effect. Now, despite Convocation’s prior approval, the enhancement’s implementation is uncertain.

Community outreach led by the Law Students’ Society of Ontario (LSSO) continues to show overwhelming student support for a mandatory minimum wage. On average, indebted third year law students in Ontario carry $84,000 in loans and as a group are particularly prone to exploitation. With articling students exempt from the Employment Standards Act, 2000, and its associated wage protections, 10-15 per cent of placements are currently projected to be underpaid or unpaid.

An encouraged — but not mandatory — minimum wage tacitly approves of unpaid articling placements. A vote to approve the mandatory minimum wage policy will bring the LSO closer to facilitating basic worker’s rights for licensing candidates.

Financial concerns

At a basic level, a mandatory minimum wage for articling students would ensure that all articling students across the province are earning income while contributing to the legal profession and practising lawyers. Indebted students entering the licensing process are responsible for maintaining significant debt and financial burdens.

On average, the majority of the debt law students carry is in the form of interest-bearing loans that require payment upon graduation. Government loans do not acknowledge articling as a continued form of education. For example, interest starts accruing on Ontario Student Assistance Program loans, and the capital needs to start being repaid during the articling term. Many students’ private bank student lines-of-credit close on graduation while interest on the loan continues to accumulate. On top of these costs, licensing candidates further incur almost $5,000 in licensing fees the LSO itself charges. Licensing candidates also continue to have basic living costs.

The preliminary results of the LSSO’s National Tuition Study indicate that law students in Ontario are shouldering the heaviest debt load compared to law students in other provinces. A mandatory minimum wage for articling placements ensures that articling students in Ontario are able to at least maintain their accumulated debt and basic financial obligations.

 
LSO’s public interest mandate supports minimum wage

The elected benchers of the LSO have a mandate to act in the public interest. Ensuring articling is accessible and protecting the well-being of articling students in Ontario is in the public interest. Walking away from a mandatory minimum wage will most heavily impact low-income, indebted licensing candidates, and especially those with caregiving and familial responsibilities.

Unpaid work lowers articling students’ morale and leaves highly indebted licensing candidates to start their career at a distinct disadvantage, leading to significant tolls on candidates’ mental health and wellness. In the LSSO’s outreach efforts, the team heard from former articling students who struggled working multiple jobs while articling for free. Unpaid placements can hinder candidates’ ability to work in a way that reflects their full potential.

Further, recruitment can be an unpredictable process leaving many high-quality candidates without a placement secured. The Law Practice Program (LPP) offers an alternative pathway to licensure. However, the LPP is equally burdensome as placements are generally unpaid and the program itself carries additional costs (the Law Practice Program fee is currently $2,800, plus applicable taxes). A mandatory minimum wage floor means vulnerable students left without a placement after recruitment will not be subjected to unpaid articling in their pathway to licensure. Ultimately, limiting unpaid placements and mandating a minimum wage is a matter of treating incoming members of the profession with basic decency.

Overwhelmingly, the pandemic has not changed the motivations for the mandatory minimum wage. Students expected to see the 2018 package implemented by May 2021. The reversal on the mandatory minimum wage issue has students questioning the significance of Convocation’s resolutions and the legitimacy of lengthy community consultations whose results are ultimately not implemented.

 
Convocation expected to vote on minimum wages April 28

The principles upon which the 2018 articling enhancements were premised remain sound. It is the LSO’s responsibility to address articling position shortages through means other than by condoning free labour. Unpaid labour is not the answer.

We urge the law society to consider alternatives to addressing the problem of articling position shortages in Ontario, without allowing for unpaid placements. Denying a mandatory minimum wage altogether cannot be the solution. The legitimate concerns around the availability of articling positions should be addressed while still ensuring that articling students are compensated for their labour.

The LSSO urges Convocation and the LSO to fulfil its earlier commitment and implement the approved mandatory minimum salary for articling students.

 
Take action

Help inform the Law Society of Ontario benchers how they should cast their vote on the issue of a minimum wage for articling students. E-mail your views to individual benchers and cc the LSSO at info@lsso.ca.

Ocean Enbar is the president of the Law Students’ Society of Ontario and a 3L English common law student at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law. Jenny Zhou is the vice-president, external, of the Law Students’ Society of Ontario and a 3L business and law dual degree student at Western Law.


 
GOOGLE ADVERTISEMENT

Want direct access to the latest LITN content?

Stay in the loop ➞ Subscribe to LITN instant notifications.
Receive the latest content delivered directly to your device.
Unsubscribe at anytime.

Latest News

Subscribe

Join the LITN Newsletter ➞ the latest news delivered to your inbox. Unsubscribe at any time.


GOOGLE ADVERTISEMENT

Instagram Feed