A Hamilton-based temporary help agency and its director have been fined a combined $125,000 after a provincial court found they failed to hand over payroll and employment records demanded during an Ontario employment standards inspection.
A Hamilton Provincial Offences Court convicted 1000523220 Ontario Inc. and director Du Duc Do on Aug. 20, 2026, of failing to produce records and obstructing an inspection under the Employment Standards Act, 2000, according to a court bulletin from Ontario’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development. Justice of the Peace Alvaro Manuel Queijo handed down the fines following an ex parte trial, meaning the defendants were not present. Christine Perruzza acted as Crown counsel. The court also applied a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge under the Provincial Offences Act.
How the Inspection Stalled
According to the ministry, an employment standards officer issued formal demands to the corporation and to Do during an inspection, setting a deadline of Nov. 24, 2023. The officer requested financial, payroll and employment records, as well as the company’s articles of incorporation and other business documentation. Nothing was submitted by the deadline, and no extension was sought, which meant the officer was unable to complete the inspection.
Under the Employment Standards Act, subsection 91(8) requires anyone holding a record to produce it when an officer demands it, while subsection 91(11) prohibits hindering, obstructing or interfering with an inspection. Violating either provision is an offence under section 132 of the act. That section sets penalties of up to $100,000, up to 12 months in jail, or both, for an individual. For a corporation, the maximum fine is $100,000 for a first conviction, $250,000 for a second, and $500,000 for any subsequent conviction.
The ministry’s policy and interpretation manual for the act also notes that employers are generally required to retain most employee records for three years and make them readily available for inspection, even in cases where another party holds the documents.
Part of a Pattern of Record-Keeping Prosecutions
This case adds to a series of Ontario prosecutions tied to record demands under the Employment Standards Act. Canadian HR Reporter has previously covered a separate Hamilton staffing firm fined $100,000 for providing false records, as well as three Ottawa companies and their directors who were convicted under the act and fined a combined $720,000.
Carl Cunningham, a management-side employment lawyer formerly with Bennett Jones in Toronto, told Canadian HR Reporter in 2015 that payroll and employment records are often central to resolving wage disputes. He said that many claims under the act involving wages or overtime pay hinge on documentation such as timesheets, timecards and payroll statements, which employers need in order to dispute an employee’s claim to additional pay.
Obligations Extend to Agency Clients
The ministry’s bulletin also points to separate obligations placed on businesses that use temporary help agencies. Agencies and recruiters are required to hold a licence under the Employment Standards Act, and client businesses are expected to verify that an agency holds a valid licence under Ontario’s licensing rules for temporary help agencies and recruiters. Clients are also required to keep records of the work performed by assignment employees placed with them.
The ministry’s bulletin does not indicate whether 1000523220 Ontario Inc. held a licence to operate as a temporary help agency at the time of the inspection.
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