Queen's Park Happenings
2009 Budget
The province announced their Budget on March 25th. During these economic hard times, Ontarians were a little afraid of what the Budget might bring. For small businesses such as Ontario veterinary clinics, the Budget may just have provided what we need to help get the economy and Ontario back on its feet.
The Bad
With the announcement of a harmonized sales tax coming into effect in July 2010 came the reality that as consumers, Ontarians will be paying more taxes. The majority of services which were previously exempt from the Provincial Retail Sales Tax (RST- also known as the PST) will no longer be exempt. Therefore, Ontarians will pay 8% more in taxes to get a haircut, to heat their homes, and to take a taxi – to name a few of a long list, including taking your pet to see the veterinarians. From July 2010 and on, veterinarians will need to charge their clients a full 13% in taxes.
It is difficult to charge clients more taxes- no doubt. And the ones that will feel the impact the most is the lower income Ontarians despite the PST exemptions on a few items such as children’s clothes, books, and diapers. Veterinarians may see some of the lower income clients struggle with the increase in their veterinary bills. OVMA issued an Open Letter to the Finance Ministers outlining its concerns for pet owners - on behalf of the profession.
The Good
To help with the transition, the government will be issuing three sets of cheques totalling $1000 to households earning under $160,000 and $300 to single people earning under $80,000.
The Budget featured significant benefits for businesses. To start, dealing with one tax structure will be less of an administrative nightmare than with two that tend have two separate sets of filing rules.
The tax reform is a value-added tax structure. Therefore, businesses such as veterinary clinics, that previously were reimbursed for the GST they pay on most of their inputs can now be reimbursed for the entire HST (both GST and PST) on most of their inputs. This would result in a significant cost saving for each veterinary clinic.
For producers, they can now rebate the entire HST that veterinarians will have to charge so the single tax will benefit them as well
The Budget also included a reduction in income taxes for businesses. The current 14% tax will go down to 10 percent by 2013. And 2010 marks the year that taxes on capital assets will be eliminated.
The Not-so-Ugly
All of these benefits to businesses gives Ontario a chance to climb out of these economic hard times where all Ontarians would benefit, including lower income families. When Quebec and the Atlantic provinces harmonized their taxes in the 1990’s, business investments jumped over 10%. More business investments drive wages and job creation. The harmonized provinces also saw retail prices decline as business owners saw their costs go down.
New Laws
In addition to new OSPCA taking affect this past March, we are pleased to see the Apology Act become law. OVMA was a supporter of the Bill that allows professionals, such as veterinarians, to be able to express sorrow through an apology without it being used as an admission of any medical wrong-doing. As medical professionals, veterinarians are too-often tasked with telling clients unpreventable, unfavourable information about their pet’s health. With pets becoming more and more part of the family, it is undoubtedly a very painful process for both the pet owner and the veterinarian. Expressing sorrow through an apology is not only comforting to clients but often expected. Therefore, expressing such sorrow should never be used as an admission of fault for any medical wrong-doing. For this reason and others, OVMA whole-heartedly supported the Bill and is pleased that it is now law.
Minimizing Fraud
Since governments implement rules and regulations, they are sensitive when fraudulent companies try to prey on individuals, organization and companies by using the government name and policies to make their scams successful. We are already starting to see that with companies who are offering training on disability standards and telling veterinarians that external training and certification is required. This is not true. OVMA will provide members with all the information they need on ne disability standards.
OVMA has been working with governments on two main scams to help minimize veterinarians (and others) from becoming victims:
1. Misleading Workplace Notices and Safety Training
Veterinary clinics have been receiving calls/visits by private companies using high-pressure/aggressive sales tactics to sell workplace training services and/or posters that may not be appropriate or required. Some even imply that their companies are affiliated with the government. Your responsibilities:
Employment Standards Act
Under the Act, employees are required to post the “What you should know about the Ontario Employment Standards Act” poster in the workplace. A simple print-out on legal-size paper is sufficient.
Health and Safety
As may be aware from previous OVMA communiqués, employees are required to post a copy of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The Act is available in booklet form and can be ordered for $8 per booklet via www.publications.serviceontario.ca. The search code is 111834 or 108078 for “A Guide to the Occupational Health & Safety Act”. Or you can print off a copy (there are many pages however) from the Ontario government’s e-law web site at www.e-laws.gov.on.ca. Don’t forget, along with a copy of the Act, each clinic should have a written occupational health and safety policy and maintain a program to implement the policy.
WHMIS
Veterinarians are responsible for ensuring their clinics are current on their WHMIS obligations which include: identifying hazardous materials, ensuring that proper data sheets on the materials are readily available and containers are properly labelled, and making sure that employees are trained in handling the use of such materials. The training can be completed by the veterinary clinic’s Health and Safety representative/committee and the information should be reviewed annually. No formal training by an external company is required, although you always have the option to use one.
Only clinics with employees of 20 or more are required to be certified in Health & Safety. Smaller clinics do have health and safety obligations as well but no official certification is required. To help veterinary clinics to comply with Ministry of Labour Health & Safety requirements, OVMA has developed a Health & Safety binder for Ontario Veterinary clinics as well as a WHMIS guideline. Please visit our web site for an order form or contact Kathi Blinch, OVMA Member Services Associate at kblinch@ovma.org or 1.800.670.1702, ext. 10.
2. Unsolicited Paper Scam
Companies have been contacting veterinary offices asking for the clinic address and the name of the person they are speaking to. A few weeks later, a package of paper rolls for credit card/debit machines arrives with an invoice of several hundreds of dollars. The invoice claims the order was made by the person who took the call when the company was asking for the clinic address. The invoice also explains that the products can be returned but at the veterinarian’s expense and a 25% restocking fee.
The products arrive via registered mail where a signature is required. Communicate to all staff that they should carefully read the package slip before signing it. If you do not recognize the company name then do NOT sign for it. Without the signature, the delivery person must send it back.
If someone does sign the slip and you are in possession of the material, write a letter to the company sending it both via fax and registered mail. The letter should include the following information:
- Neither you nor anyone in your clinic ordered the merchandise and will therefore not be held responsible for it in any manner. You are providing the company up to three weeks to come and collect the merchandise or make arrangements to have it shipped back at the company’s own expense. After the three weeks, you will legally dispose of it. No restocking fee will be paid at any point.
- Through the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association, you have retained legal advice and the company has been reported to both the Ontario and Quebec (since most of these companies are set-up in Quebec) governments. Any threats to contact a collections agency will be considered unviable.
- The Ontario veterinary community has been warned and is aware of the company’s unethical business practice.
- At no point in the future will you or anyone in your clinic ever order from this company so any further deliveries will be legally disposed of without any notification to the company.
The good news is, if you follow the above the steps, you have done everything legally that you are required to do. The possibility of these companies taking legal action on a veterinary clinic is extremely minimal since they are well-known scam companies.
The bad news is, since they are a well-known scam company, the only option they have is to harass the clinic with threatening letters and phone calls. Your responsibilities are straight forward:
- Take each threatening letter, file it.
- At any point if an employee from one of these companies call, the message is simple; “You cannot call this business. We will contact the police”. Hang up.
The companies encourage you to debate with them so you either feel like you may be responsible for the order or that it is simply not worth the hassle and you will pay them this time around… and then a few weeks later a new package arrives. Do not play their game. Simply do not engage in any conversation with these fraudulent companies.
We encourage you to contact the company that legitimately supplies you with your credit card/debit machine paper rolls to inform them about this company. Ask them to clearly indicate their company name on their delivery boxes so your clinic staff does not refuse to sign for it by accident.