Bill 30 Amendment Implications For BC Restaurants

Thomas Campbell

December 9th, 2025

The Government of British Columbia passed Bill 30, officially titled the Employment Standards (Serious Illness or Injury Leave) Amendment Act, 2025. While the amendment may appear targeted and medical in nature, it carries meaningful operational, scheduling, and cost implications for restaurant operators across the province.

With restaurants already facing rising labour costs, persistent staffing shortages, and margin compression, Bill 30 introduces a new layer of workforce complexity that operators must now plan for in 2026 and beyond.

Summary

Bill 30 introduces up to 27 weeks of unpaid, job-protected medical leave for serious personal illness or injury within any 52-week period.
Restaurants must hold the employee’s position or offer a comparable role upon return, creating long-term scheduling and staffing risk.
The leave can be taken in multiple non-consecutive blocks, making labour forecasting and shift planning more unpredictable.
Even though the leave is unpaid, indirect costs add up fast through temporary hiring, overtime, training, and productivity loss.
Automation, cross-training, and stronger labour forecasting are now essential, especially as BC restaurants already face margin pressure and staffing shortages.

What Did Bill 30 Change?

Bill 30 amends the BC Employment Standards Act by adding a new protected, unpaid leave category for employees experiencing serious personal illness or injury.

Key Provisions

Eligible employees may now take:

Up to 27 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave
Within any 52-week period
For serious personal illness or injury
With a medical certificate from:
- A physician
- A nurse practitioner
- Or a regulated health professional under the updated Health Professions and Occupations Act

The leave:

Must be taken in full-week increments
Can be taken in one continuous block or in multiple non-consecutive blocks
May be resumed without a new certificate in certain relapse situations (as long as the 27-week cap and 52-week window are respected)

Critically, while the leave is unpaid, the employee’s job is protected, meaning: Restaurants must hold the position or provide a comparable role upon return.

Why Bill 30 Matters

Restaurants are uniquely vulnerable to extended job-protected absences because:

The industry is hourly, schedule-driven, and shift-dependent
Most locations operate on tight labour-to-sales ratios
Many roles are not easily backfilled without training
Turnover is already structurally high

Unlike corporate environments where workload can be redistributed, restaurants rely on:

Line cooks
Prep staff
Servers
Bar staff
Hosts
Dishwashers

Each position directly affects service speed, food quality, and guest experience.

A 27-week protected absence (over 6 months) creates long-term scheduling instability, not just short-term sick coverage.

How Bill 30 Interacts With Labour Costs

Bill 30 does not exist in a vacuum. BC restaurants are already navigating:

Ongoing minimum wage pressure
Rising WSBC premiums
Persistent front-of-house shortages
Escalating food and supplier costs
Higher commercial lease rates

Industry benchmarks already place average restaurant labour costs at:

30–34% of total revenue for full-service restaurants
25–28% for quick-service and fast-casual

Even small scheduling inefficiencies caused by extended protected absences now carry outsized financial consequences.

How Restaurant Operators Should Adjust

With Bill 30 now in effect, BC restaurant operators should prepare for longer, protected employee absences by focusing on four operational priorities:

1. Strengthen HR & Leave Compliance

Restaurants should now be updating:

Employee handbooks
Medical certificate handling procedures
Week-based leave tracking systems
Relapse and return-to-work protocols

Policy gaps now materially increase exposure to:

Wrongful dismissal claims
Reinstatement disputes
Employment Standards complaints

2. Build Redundancy Into Critical Roles

Operators should reassess:

Kitchen bottleneck positions
High-skill stations
Single-coverage shifts

Cross-training and skill overlap across shifts will become essential to maintain service continuity during extended absences.

3. Shift More Volume to Automation

With long-term job-protected leave now a reality, restaurants must reduce reliance on labour per transaction through:

Self-serve kiosks for front-of-house gaps
Online ordering to reduce phone staffing
Integrated POS and payments to speed service
Automated marketing to cut administrative labour

Automation is no longer just a growth tool, it is now a core risk-management strategy.

4. Rebuild Labour Forecast Models

Operators should now:

Model staffing at 90%, 100%, and 110% coverage
Simulate multi-month FOH and BOH absences
Stress-test labour-to-sales ratios under prolonged leave scenarios

Extended protected absences now introduce structural volatility into weekly labour planning.

Conclusion

Bill 30 marks a meaningful shift in how BC restaurants must manage workforce risk, scheduling, and long-term labour planning. While the new 27-week job-protected leave is designed to support employees during serious illness or injury, it also introduces new operational complexity for already margin-constrained operators. Restaurants that update policies early, strengthen cross-training, and invest in automation will be best positioned to absorb these changes without sacrificing service quality or profitability.

FAQ

Is the 27-week leave under Bill 30 paid or unpaid?

The leave is unpaid, but it is fully job-protected, meaning restaurants must reinstate the employee or provide a comparable position when they return.

Can employees take the leave in multiple periods instead of all at once?

Yes. The leave can be taken in non-consecutive full-week units, as long as the total does not exceed 27 weeks within 52 weeks and proper medical certification is provided.

What does this mean for restaurants with small teams?

Small teams face greater risk, as a single long-term protected absence can lead to:

Overtime costs
Temporary staffing expenses
Service slowdowns
Training inefficiencies

This makes cross-training and automation especially critical for smaller operations.

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