2023 Alberta Provincial Election: Managing an Employee's Entitlement to Time Off for Voting

Alberta’s Election Day is set for May 29, 2023, with the Advanced Voting Period taking place from May 23, 2023 to May 27, 2023.

During these days of voting, an employer may have an obligation to provide their employees paid time off to vote.

The Election Act (the “Act”) in Alberta provides all eligible voters an entitlement to three consecutive hours to cast their vote on any of the days of voting.

The Act defines an “eligible voter” an individual who is, on Election Day:

1. A Canadian citizen;
2. 18 years of age or older; and
3. Ordinarily resident of Alberta.

Because work schedules can often conflict with voting times, circumstances can arise where employers must provide paid time off to employees to ensure eligible employees have three consecutive hours to cast their ballot. Where an employee’s work schedule does not allow them three consecutive hours within which they can vote, the employer must provide the employee paid leave time for voting as required.

It is important for employers to know, however, that they may dictate the date and time in which the three consecutive hours are granted. Notwithstanding, an employer’s obligations under the Act, any time off to vote granted by an employer may be done at the employer’s convenience. This means that employers may choose to give an employee their time off any time during either the Advanced Voting Period or on Election Day, whichever impacts their business less.

Voting Hours for the 2023 Election

The hours of operation for voting stations during the 2023 election are as follows:

1. Advanced Voting Period – 9 am to 8 pm, Mountain Standard Time.
   • While the days and hours of operation for advanced polling locations may vary, every electoral division will have at least one location open from 9 am to 8 pm for the full Advance Voting Period.
     
2. Election Day – 9 am to 8 pm, Mountain Standard Time.
   
   • These times are applicable to all voting locations.

Examples re: an Employee’s Entitlement to Time Off to Vote

No Entitlement to time off

The employee is scheduled from 9 am to 5 pm on the Election Day and/or during one of the days within the Advanced Voting Period. In this scenario, the employer is not required to provide the employee with any time off work. This is because the employee has three consecutive hours to vote between 5 pm and 8 pm.

Entitlement to time off

The employee is scheduled from 10 am to 6 pm on the Election Day, and during each day of the Advanced Voting Period. This employee will not have three consecutive hours within which they may vote. If the employee requests time off to vote, the employer may choose at their convenience one of the following three options during either the Advanced Voting Period or on the Election Day:

1. Allow the employee to leave at 5 pm or earlier on one of the days;
2. Allow the employee to arrive at 12 pm or later, on one of the days; or
3. Give the employee three consecutive hours off to vote any time during one of the shifts that they are scheduled to work during this period.

Pay Deductions and Prohibitions

The Act prohibits employers from deducting pay or imposing any other penalties on an employee who is exercising their right to take three consecutive hours off to vote.

Employers who make pay deductions or who impose penalties in response to an employee taking time off to vote commit a general offence under the Act.

Similarly, an employer may be found to have committed a “corrupt practice” under the Act if they directly or indirectly:

1. Refuse to allow an employee to take time off to vote; or
2. Interfere with the allowance of an employee to take time off to vote through intimidation, undue influence, or any other act that interferes in such a manner.

Penalties

An employer who does not comply with the obligations set out in the Act, may be fined or face imprisonment as follows:

1. Corrupt Practices: Parties found guilty of a corrupt practice may be fined up to $50,000 or may be subject to imprisonment for not more than 2 years, or both.
2. General Offences: Parties who contravene the Act are guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of not more than $5,000 or imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or both.

Benefits of the 2021 Amendments to the Act for Employers

The 2021 Amendments to the Act opened up the “three consecutive hours” obligation to include the Advanced Voting Period. Employers now have greater latitude to determine which days they will allow their employees to take time off to vote, if they are even required to grant their employees this time off. So long as an employee’s schedule allows for them to have three consecutive hours during either the Advanced Voting Period or on Election Day, employers have no obligations to provide three hours of paid time off to vote.