I received a Notification of Interest from OINP in February 14h 2018. My work permit was received in March 3rd 2017, however my profile on Express Entry already counts 12 months of Canadian Work Experience.
The date on your work permit is not the relevant date for eligibility. When did you actually start working?
The problems with the profile have been discussed many times on this board. Because the profile only uses mm/yyyy instead of mm/dd/yyyy format, it can "see" one year before you have actually completed it. Many people have been refused because of this. IRCC tells you that it is YOUR responsibility to make sure you are eligible before you submit. You MUST have completed one year at the time you receive an ITA to be eligible.
OINP is even more strict -- http://www.ontarioimmigration.ca/prodconsum/groups/csc/@oipp/documents/document/oi_en_hcps.pdf
"Note: Any work experience obtained after you received your Notification of Interest (NOI) from Ontario through your IRCC online account will not count towards the minimum one year of work experience required. You must have accumulated at least one year of work experience by the date that you received your NOI to qualify under the Human Capital Priorities Stream."
So my suggestion - if you need the OINP points to be eligible, then you should probably withdraw your profile until you are actually eligible; when you submit again, you will get a new NOI (assuming the program is open - it closes and re-opens a few times each year).
Within this 12 months of full time work in Canada I traveled abroad for a month. Will this month away be discounted from the 12 months?
If your time off was unpaid leave of absence, then you cannot count it. If it was paid vacation, then make sure your letter of employment specifies your vacation time as a benefit. (Unless you are senior staff, it would be unusual to have that much paid vacation time).
I have been working 45 hours or more a week, including Saturdays.
Are the hours also counted to calculate the 12 months full time work?
Well, yes, but probably not in the way you are hoping. You have to work full-time for a year (52 weeks) to be eligible. Full-time is defined as "30 or more hours" worked per week. Doesn't matter if you work 30, 40, or 80 hours per week, you are simply "full-time," and need to work 52 weeks.
The only people who "add up" hours are those who work part-time; by definition, they will need to work longer than one year to be eligible.
