Ontario's New Job Posting Rules: What You Need to Know About Salary Transparency and AI Disclosure

Ontario's New Job Posting Rules Take Effect January 1, 2026

Ontario is introducing significant changes to how publicly advertised jobs must be posted starting January 1, 2026. These new rules under the Employment Standards Act aim to increase transparency and equity in the hiring process, but questions remain about their effectiveness.

Key Changes for Employers

The new regulations will apply to employers with more than 25 workers and include several important requirements:

• Compensation disclosure: Employers must post information about compensation for any advertised position. If a salary range is posted, it must be within $50,000 per year or less.
• AI disclosure: Employers must disclose whether artificial intelligence is used during the hiring process.
• Canadian experience prohibition: Employers are prohibited from asking for Canadian work experience in any job posting.
• Decision notification: Employers must inform applicants whether a hiring decision has been made within 45 days of the last interview.

Industry Reaction and Concerns

Kathryn Tremblay, owner of Altis Recruitment, applauded the Ontario government's efforts but expressed concerns about the practical impact of these changes.

"I really am happy that the government is seeking to cause more pay transparency. I just don't know if it's going to have the desired effect," she said.

Tremblay specifically questioned the $50,000 salary range allowance, noting that such a broad range could diminish the information value of posted salaries. "It worries me that it's such a broad range," she explained.

Comparison with British Columbia

British Columbia introduced similar pay transparency requirements in 2023 with the goal of improving pay equity. Since implementation, B.C. has reported modest success in closing the gender wage gap, with a two-percent decrease in pay inequality between men and women.

"So there's a little bit of a gain, but we haven't seen it really close the pay gap there," said Tremblay, who predicted similar marginal gains from Ontario's new compensation posting rules.

AI Disclosure Concerns

Regarding the AI disclosure requirement, Tremblay doubted whether it would effectively address concerns about potential bias in automated hiring systems.

"The problem is that all the employers are all going to say the same thing: 'We are using AI in some format to screen select candidates and a human will call you to do an interview,'" she explained.

Timing Concerns

With unemployment rising in Ontario, Tremblay worries the new regulations could be onerous for employers during a challenging economic period.

"I'm seeing all employers scrambling to get this in place," she said. "I think it would have been great if this would have been implemented a few years ago, but right now, at a time when we all need to be focused on increasing revenue and maximizing our high performance...the timing isn't great."

Additional Resources

More information about these changes is available through the Ontario government's employment standards documentation.

Ontario is introducing new rules governing how jobs are publicly advertised starting from Jan. 1, 2026. (Jeff Zelevansky/Bloomberg)