The Government of Alberta has been responding to COVID-19 on a daily basis. This bulletin will provide you regular updates on orders issued by the government by way of Orders in Council of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, ministerial orders, and orders of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, each under the authority of the Public Health Act.

The following is a look at the Government of Alberta’s actions to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 and lessen the impact of the public health emergency so far, from the latest action to the earliest action:

On March 27, the Minister of Service Alberta made a number of orders, where he:

  • issued the Late Payment Fees and Penalties Regulation under the Residential Tenancies Act, which states that a landlord shall not charge a fee or penalty for late payments of rent or non-payment of rent by tenants during the period of April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020;
  • amended the Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Act to provide for the same relief to mobile home site tenants;
  • ordered that no residential rent increases may take effect during the pandemic;
  • amended the Residential Tenancies Act and the Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Act to require landlords to attempt a payment plan with tenants prior to applying to terminate a lease and requiring landlords to have a payment plan in place in order to apply to the courts to remedy non-payment, failure to surrender or terminate a tenancy.

Also on March 27, the Chief Medical Officer of Health ordered closure of non-essential businesses.

The closure comes by way of prohibiting Albertans from accessing non-essential places of business, which are those defined as retail, clothing, and gaming stores, and close contact personal services, including personal services facilities, cosmetic enhancement services, wellness studios and clinics, non-emergency and non-critical health services. All dine-in services have also been prohibited however, take-out, delivery and drive-through service is allowed and restaurants in a food court may remain open for take-out service. Previously, the government had only restricted access to public recreation facilities and private entertainment facilities.

For the purpose of the order, personal services facilities and cosmetic enhancement services include businesses providing esthetics, manicure/pedicures, waxing, make-up and cosmetic services, piercing and tattoo services, and haircare and barber services. Non-emergency and non-critical health services include those provided by regulated health professionals or registered professionals such as non-emergency or non-urgent medical, dental, acupuncture, naturopathy and chiropractic services. Potentially-impacted businesses are encouraged to review the full list of non-essential places of businesses to ensure compliance.

Beyond the business closures, the mass gathering restrictions from March 17 were also amended to limit gatherings to no more than 15 people (indoor or outdoor). The exemptions from the earlier order dated March 17 still stand and thus the restrictions do not apply to certain services or facilities, including:

  • grocery stores
  • shopping centres (access to retail stores listed above is prohibited)
  • health care facilities
  • airports
  • the legislature
  • other essential services

Workplaces that are not otherwise restricted or ordered to close can have more than 15 workers on a work site as long as they follow all public health guidelines, including social distancing measures. Employers should:

  • self-assess and find alternate ways to organize large group meetings
  • cancel workplace gatherings of 15 or more people in a single space (e.g. training events)
  • employ mitigation strategies to limit risk
  • continue business continuity planning to prepare critical operations for any potential interruption

On March 26, the government increased the maximum fines of not abiding by the Public Health Act to $100,000 for a first offence and $500,000 for a subsequent offence.

On March 25, the government:

  • expanded the application of the Public Health Act so that a “person infected with a communicable disease” and “person who is suffering from a communicable disease” includes people returning from international travel, people in close contact with an infected person and people with the symptoms of COVID-19;
  • ordered self-isolation for people with a confirmed case of COVID-19 or with symptoms, and quarantine for people returning from international travel or in close contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19. The quarantine requirements do not apply to essential services workers whom are designated as essential by their employer, given that a medical officer is satisfied that the presence of the employee in a public space would involve reasonably low risk to the public health; and
  • implemented operational protocols for all health care facilities, nursing homes, supportive living accommodations, lodge accommodations and residential addiction treatment facilities.

On March 23 and 24, many municipalities in Alberta closed public playgrounds and Parks Canada closed the national parks.

On March 20, the government:

  • prohibited visitors to health care facilities, with the exception of essential visitors, who are permitted to visit one person at a time; and
  • amended their previous order to allow certain day care and out of school care programs to re-open to provide services to children of essential services workers.

On March 17, the government:

  • declared a state of public health emergency, pursuant to the Public Health Act, that will last at least 90 days unless terminated earlier (note that this is distinct from a state of emergency pursuant to the Emergency Management Act);
  • enacted the Employment Standards (COVID-19 Leave) Regulation entitling an employee under quarantine to 14 consecutive days of unpaid leave without a medical note and regardless of their length of employment, effective as of March 5, 2020; and
  • prohibited all persons from attending mass gatherings of 50 or more people, attending public recreational facilities and private entertainment facilities, and limited food-serving facilities to 50% of their stated capacity, up to a maximum of 50 persons. The prohibitions do not apply to normal operations at grocery stores, shopping centres, health care facilities, airports, the legislature, typical office environments or other spaces people may be moving in or walking about as part of normal daily activities, and essential services. No definition of essential services was provided.

On March 16, the government ordered the cancellation of classes at the province’s public and private schools, vocational schools, and post-secondary institutions and the closure of all daycares.

As the government makes further orders, we will update this bulletin to provide you with the information you need. McMillan’s COVID-19 Response Team and Essential Services Team are available to assist our clients to assess how the orders issued by the Alberta government affect their business and can assist with stabilizing your business during any temporary shutdown period. If you have any questions on the impacts of such orders, please reach out to the authors of this bulletin.

The foregoing provides only an overview and does not constitute legal advice. Readers are cautioned against making any decisions based on this material alone. Rather, specific legal advice should be obtained.

© McMillan LLP 2019