Remote Work Policies in Ontario: What Employers Should Put in Writing

Remote and hybrid work have become permanent features of many Ontario workplaces, but the policies governing them often have not caught up. A verbal understanding that "you can work from home on Fridays" is not the same as a remote work policy that actually protects the business if a dispute arises over hours, expenses, equipment, or performance expectations.

Whether your business is formalizing an existing informal arrangement or setting remote work terms for the first time, putting the policy in writing is one of the simpler, lower-cost steps an employer can take to reduce future friction.

Why Put a Remote Work Policy in Writing?

An unwritten arrangement tends to mean different things to different people. One manager may assume "remote" means always reachable during business hours; an employee may assume it means flexible hours as long as the work gets done. A written policy sets shared, enforceable expectations and gives the business something concrete to point to if a dispute about hours, availability, or performance ever arises.

A written policy is also useful evidence of consistent treatment across employees, which matters if the business is ever asked to justify why remote work was granted, denied, or revoked for a particular person.

Core Terms Every Policy Should Address

• [ ] Eligibility — which roles or employees can work remotely, and any approval process required.
• [ ] Expected hours of work and availability, including how the employee should be reachable during the workday.
• [ ] Where the employee is permitted to work from, particularly if remote work outside Ontario or Canada raises tax, insurance, or employment-standards questions the business needs to consider.
• [ ] Performance expectations and how they will be measured, separate from simple time-at-desk monitoring.
• [ ] Confidentiality and data security expectations for handling company information outside the office.
• [ ] The process for the employer to modify or end the remote work arrangement, and on what notice.

Health and Safety at Home

Ontario's general workplace safety framework is built around the traditional workplace, and how it applies to an employee's home office is a genuinely nuanced area rather than a settled bright line. A cautious, practical approach is still worthwhile: a policy can require the employee to confirm their workspace is reasonably safe and ergonomically set up, and can set out how a workplace injury while working remotely should be reported.

Employers should not assume that "it's their house, not our workplace" eliminates every consideration here — get specific advice if a remote employee reports an injury connected to their home workspace.

Equipment, Expenses, and Reimbursement

Ontario law does not generally impose a blanket statutory requirement that employers reimburse home-office expenses absent a contract or policy saying so — but leaving the question unaddressed tends to create friction and inconsistent practice across the team. A policy should specify:

• What equipment (laptop, monitor, chair) the business provides versus what the employee is expected to supply.
• Whether internet, phone, or other recurring costs are reimbursed, in whole or in part, and how to submit for reimbursement.
• What happens to company equipment if the employee leaves or the remote arrangement ends.

Reviewing and Updating the Policy

A remote work policy should not be a "set it and forget it" document. Revisit it when the business's needs change — a shift from fully remote to hybrid, a new office location, or new tools for monitoring or communication are all good triggers to review the policy and confirm it still reflects reality and still complies with any applicable legal requirements, including any written policy obligations that apply to electronic monitoring of employees.

Frequently asked questions