Words and Phrases - "supplies"

Employed fishing outfitters and guides provide materials, such as salmon flies or filament to repair fishing lines, to clients, to ensure the success of the fishing trip. The collective agreement is silent on whether the employees must incur these expenses. The employees receive remuneration, regardless of whether the client is fishing, and they are reimbursed for equipment expenses up to specified limits. Is the cost of bait and filament to repair a fishing line deductible in the computation of their employment income? CRA responded:

[S]upplies, which may be deducted by virtue of subparagraph 8(1)(i)(iii), are consumed directly in the performance of the duties of the employment and cannot be reused thereafter for similar functions.

[The materials here] could constitute supplies. However, it is not clear that all of the other conditions of subparagraph 8(1)(i)(iii) have been met with respect to your employees, particularly the requirement that employees not be reimbursed for the cost of supplies they incur. …

In order to determine whether an expense incurred by an employee, which was not expressly provided for in an employment contract, is in fact an implicit requirement of an office or employment, the courts have considered whether the fact of failure to comply could result in termination of employment, poor evaluation of employee performance or other disciplinary action by the employer.