A comprehensive overview of the legislated minimum wage in each province
|
Province |
Effective dates |
Minimum wage |
|
Canada Labour Code |
July 1, 1996 |
Aligned with general adult minimum wage rate in each province or territory |
|
Alberta1 |
Sept. 1, 2013 |
|
|
|
General |
$9.95 |
|
|
Liquor servers |
$9.05 |
|
|
Specified salespersons2 |
$389 per week |
|
|
Domestic employees who live in |
$1,854 per month |
|
British Columbia3 |
May 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10.25 |
|
|
Liquor servers |
$9 |
|
Manitoba |
Oct. 1, 2013 |
|
|
|
General |
$10.45 |
|
New Brunswick4 |
April 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10 |
|
Newfoundland and Labrador |
July 1, 2010 |
|
|
|
General |
$10 |
|
Northwest Territories |
April 1, 2011 |
|
|
|
General |
$10 |
|
Nova Scotia5 |
April 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
Experienced |
$10.30 |
|
|
No experience (employed
|
$9.80 |
|
Nunavut |
Jan. 1, 2011 |
|
|
|
General |
$11 |
|
Ontario |
||
|
|
General |
$10.25 |
|
|
Rate for homeworkers |
$11.28 |
|
|
Student under 18 working less than |
$9.60 |
|
|
Serving liquor on licensed premises |
$8.90 |
|
|
When housing accommodation, room or meals are included in calculating the minimum wage, the following maximum rates apply: |
|
|
|
Private room |
$31.70 per week |
|
|
Non-private room |
$15.85 per week |
|
|
Meals |
$2.55 each $53.55 per week |
|
|
Private room and meals |
$85.25 per week |
|
|
Non-private room and meals |
$69.40 per week |
|
|
Housing (weekly) for harvest workers only (light, heat, fuel, water, gas, electricity are employer provided) |
$99.35 per week |
|
|
Housing accommodation |
$73.30 per week |
|
PEI |
April 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10 |
|
Quebec6 |
May 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10.15 |
|
|
Employees in hotels or restaurants |
$8.75 |
|
Saskatchewan |
Dec. 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10 |
|
Yukon Territory7 |
May 1, 2012 |
|
|
|
General |
$10.54 |
1. Effective Sept. 1, 2011, the government introduced a formula for future minimum wage increases. The formula uses an average of changes to Alberta’s annual average weekly earnings and changes to the province’s consumer price index. Changes will take place Sept. 1 of each year and will be announced with three months’ notice. The government says the rate for liquor servers will remain at $9.05 until the general minimum wage reaches $10.05 per hour. After that time, both rates will rise, but the general minimum wage will remain $1 higher. If an employer provides board and/or lodging to an employee, the employer may reduce the employee’s wages (by a deduction from wages or payment out of wages) below the minimum wage by the following maximum amounts, effective Sept. 1, 2012: for single meals, $3.20; for lodging, $4.22 a day.
2. Specified salespersons include employees employed as salespersons of automobiles, trucks, buses; farm machinery; heavy duty construction equipment or road construction equipment; mobile homes; and residential homes (if the salesperson works for the home builder). Specified salespersons also include salespersons working for a commercial agent licensed under the Licensing of Trades and Businesses Act, as well as commission-based salespersons (excluding route salespersons) who generally work outside of their employer’s place of business to sell orders that will be delivered later.
3. The first-job rate was eliminated May 1, 2011. The general minimum wage rate applies to employees regardless of how long they have been working. Effective May 1, 2012, the minimum rate for live-in home support workers is $102.50 per day. The minimum rate for live-in camp leaders is $82 per day. For resident caretakers with nine to 60 suites, the minimum rate is $615 a month, plus $24.65 per suite. For resident caretakers with more than 60 suites, the minimum rate is $2,094.84 per month. Individuals who are engaged in selling automobiles, trucks, recreation vehicles and campers are entitled to receive at least minimum wage for the first 160 hours that the employer requires them to work each month.
4. Effective April 1, 2012, the minimum wage rate for employees whose hours of work per week are unverifiable and who are not strictly employed on a commission basis is $440 per week.
5. Minimum wage increases occur in April and are indexed to the low-income cutoff. Effective April 1, 2012, the minimum wage rate for employees in construction and property maintenance is $10.15 per hour. For workers employed in logging and forestry operations, the minimum wage is $10.15 per hour for employees paid on an hourly basis and $1,986 per month for other employees.
6. Effective May 1, 2012, the minimum wage rate for employees in specified sectors of the clothing industry is $9.90 per hour. This does not include retail workers.
7. The territory adjusts its minimum wage every April 1 based on the Whitehorse consumer price index in the previous calendar year.
