What Ontario Employers Need To Know About Job Posting Obligations For 2026

Significant new requirements regarding publicly advertised job postings are coming into force on January 1, 2026. These requirements were included in amendments to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 which were introduced in the Working for Workers Four Act, 2024 ¹, the Working for Workers Five Act, 2024², and O. Reg. 476/24: Rules And Exemptions Re Job Postings (the "Regulation").

New Obligations

A "publicly advertised job posting" means an external job posting that an employer, or a person acting on their behalf, advertises to the general public in any manner, subject to certain exceptions discussed further below.

Employers with more than 25 employees in Ontario on the day that a publicly advertised job posting is made must abide by the following requirements starting in 2026:

1. Pay transparency: Postings will be required to disclose the expected compensation or range of compensation for the position.
   • This is not required for job postings for a position with an expected compensation of more than $200,000 annually, or a position with a range of expected compensation that ends in more than $200,000 annually.
   • The range of expected compensation must not exceed $50,000 annually.
   • "Compensation" has the same meaning as "wages" under the Employment Standards Act, 2000, which generally captures most forms of remuneration.
2. Disclosure of an existing vacancy: Postings must include a statement disclosing whether the posting is for an existing vacancy (as opposed to building a bank of candidates for future vacancies).
3. Informing candidates of hiring decisions: Employers must inform applicants who have interviewed for a publicly advertised job posting of whether or not a hiring decision has been made regarding the posting within 45 days after the date of the last interview with that applicant.
   • "Interview" is broadly defined for the purposes of this requirement.
   • The applicant can be informed in person, in writing, or using technology.
4. No "Canadian experience" requirement: Employers will be prohibited from including any requirement for "Canadian experience", or an equivalent, in a posting.
5. Disclosure of the use of artificial intelligence: Employers who use "artificial intelligence" to screen, assess or select applicants for a job that is publicly advertised must include a statement in the posting disclosing the use of artificial intelligence.
   • "Artificial intelligence" is broadly defined in the regulation.
6. Records retention: Employers must retain copies of every publicly advertised job and any associated application form for three years after access to the posting has been removed. Employers must also retain copies of the information provided to an applicant about whether a hiring decision has been made for three years after the day the information was provided to the applicant.

Exceptions

There are some exceptions to these new requirements set out in the Regulation. Employers with less than 25 employees are not captured by these requirements and obligations.

Additionally, a "publicly advertised job posting" does not include:

• a general recruitment campaign that does not advertise a specific position;
• a general help wanted sign that does not advertise a specific position;
• a posting for a position that is restricted to existing employees of the employer;
• a posting for a position for which work is to be:
  • performed outside Ontario, or
  • performed outside Ontario and in Ontario and the work performed outside Ontario is not a continuation of work performed in Ontario.

Takeaways

These new obligations are part of a growing and quickly changing regulatory environment for Ontario employers. Annual or bi-annual amendments to workplace legislation have emphasized the importance of regularly assessing business practices for compliance. Compliance with the requirement to disclose expected compensation has already provided some challenges for employers who have wide-ranging bands of compensation for hiring. We anticipate that the Ontario government will release additional public guidance on these requirements closer to January 1, 2026.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.