Canada, British Columbia

Contract Types 

Contracts can be Fixed-term or Indefinite.

Probation          

Probation cannot be extended in British Columbia and can be for a maximum of 6 months. Generally probation is set at 3 months.

Working Hours 

The normal working week is 40 hours, for 8 hours per day.

Overtime            

Overtime has to be paid for hours above 44 hours per week and is paid at 150% for the 8th to the 12th hour of work and at 200% for the 12th hour onwards. Alternatively, time off in lieu can be given. There are exemptions for managerial staff.

Other Financial

Employees are paid twice a month, mid-month and at the end of the month.  Managerial staff can be paid monthly. There are no requirements regarding 13th month salaries.

Tax rates valid for 2024

Corporation Tax:

15% Federal

2% or 12% Provincial depending on turnover       

Consumption Tax:          

12% for federal GST and 7% provincial GST and PST.        

Payroll Taxes:   

1.95%-4.3%       

Employers’ Social Security:

9.78%   

Employees’ Contributions:

7.58%   

Income Tax Rates

Federal

Up to 55,867 CAD – 15%

55,867 to  111,733 CAD – 20.5%

111,733 to 173,205 CAD – 26%

173,205 to  246,752 CAD – 29%

Over 246,752 CAD – 33%

Provincial           

0 to 47,937 CAD – 5.06%

47,937 to 95,875 CAD – 7.7%

95,875 to 110,076 CAD – 10.5%

110,076 to 133,664 CAD – 12.29%

133,604 to 181,232 CAD – 14.7%

181,232 to 252,752 CAD – 16.8%

Over 252,752 CAD – 20.5%

The employer can terminate the contract through providing written notice to the employee in accordance with their length of service, or by termination due to just cause.

The final payment to the employee must be made within 48 hours after the last day when the employer ends the employment agreement, or within 6 days after the last day when the employee ends the employment agreement.

Employees can resign without notice, though it is usual to give one month’s notice. If they choose to give notice, the employer can choose to terminate the employee sooner.

Payment in lieu of notice is allowed or a combination of notice and payment.

Severance Pay  

This is called compensation for length of service and varies based on the amount of time the employee has served. At least 3 months of employment requires 1 week’s pay. 3 months to 1 year of employment requires 2 weeks’ pay, which increases by one week for each year of service up to a maximum of eight years. The employer can choose to pay these amounts or give the equivalent amount of paid notice. This is not payable if the employee resigns or if the employer terminates for just cause.

Should the contract state the notice period then this should be adhered to when calculating the compensation unless it is below the statutory amount of notice required.

 Annual Leave 2025

 Public Holidays: 10

New Year’s Day – 1st January            

Day Given in Lieu:       Yes

Family Day – 19th February   

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Good Friday – 18th April        

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Victoria Day – 19th May        

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Canada Day – 1st July

Day Given in Lieu:       Yes

British Columbia Day – 4th August   

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Labour Day – 1st September 

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Truth and Reconciliation Day – 30th September      

Day Given in Lieu:       Yes

Thanksgiving Day – 13th October     

Day Given in Lieu:       NA

Remembrance Day – 11th November           

Day Given in Lieu:       Yes

Christmas Day – 25th December       

Day Given in Lieu:       Yes

All leave entitlement based on 5 day working week. Public holidays falling on Sunday not included. Number of days quoted are working days unless stated otherwise.

Paid legal entitlement  

In the first year of service, employees accrue paid leave and can use it in the following year. If the employee wants to use the holiday in the first year, he must request this in writing and it will be deducted from future entitlement. However, it is common for employers to allow employees to take leave during the first year.  After the first year employees are entitled to 2 consecutive weeks of paid leave which rises to 3 weeks after 5 years’ service.

Many employers will give additional annual leave up to 25 days.

Carry over permitted     

Annual leave cannot be carried over. The exception is when an employee receives more than the statutory entitlement. In this case, with employer agreement, the days over the statutory entitlement can be carried over.

Timings

Annual leave must begin no later than 10 months after the completion of the year of employment in which the employee accrued the vacation. Employees should give 2 weeks’ notice of their intention to take leave.

Payment in lieu allowed              

Holidays can only be paid out on termination.

Holiday Allowance         

Vacation pay of at least 4% of wages paid in the previous year for the first 5 years of employment, and 6% of wages from the 5th year onwards should be paid at least 7 days before the employee is set to take leave, or, if agreed in writing, it can be paid out monthly with salary.

Sick Leave          

Employees must notify the employer if they are unable to work due to sickness. They can take up to 5 days of paid, job protected sick leave. For new joiners, the entitlement is after 90 days’ service. Sick pay is based on the pay in the previous month including all items, such as commissions and holiday pay. Employees can also avail of a further 3 days’ unpaid sick leave. These entitlements are based on a calendar year and do not rollover. Canada national social insurance provides long-term sick leave of up to 26 weeks if required.

Maternity Leave

New mothers with a minimum of 15 weeks’ service can take 17 weeks of unpaid leave which must start before the birth of the child and can be taken up to 13 weeks before the due date. After birth, employees must take at least 6 weeks of leave. With a medical certificate, the new mother can return to work earlier. Leave can be extended for 6 weeks for medical conditions. For both maternity and parental leave, the employee must notify the employer at least 4 weeks in advance. Benefits are available during this leave.

If an employee does not return to work after maternity leave for a minimum of 6 months, and there were employer paid benefits in place during the leave, then the employer can demand repayment of costs. Similarly holiday accrues during maternity leave but is only credited after the employee has been back at work for 6 months.

Paternity

See parental leave.

Parental

Employees can take up to 61 weeks of unpaid parental leave. This leave must begin before the child reaches the age of 78 weeks. Female employees can extend their maternity leave with parental leave for a total of 78 weeks (17 weeks maternity plus 61 weeks of parental leave). If a child needs extra care, the leave can be extended for an additional 5 weeks. For both maternity and parental leave, employees must notify the employer at least 4 weeks in advance. Benefits are available for parental leave, paid at different rates depending on whether the parents elect to take standard parental leave of up to 52 weeks or extended leave of up to 78 weeks. The date is taken from the beginning of the week after the birth.

Bereavement    

Employees are able to take 3 days of unpaid leave for the death of an immediate family member. Leave can be spread out and taken in non-consecutive days.

Other   

27 weeks’ compassionate care leave; 37 weeks for critical illness and up to 104 weeks’ leave in the event of the death or disappearance of a child. 5 days of unpaid family responsibility leave is available to help with the care, health or education of children under 19, or with the care of a family member.

Employees can also avail of unpaid jury and witness leave and up to 20 days’ unpaid leave for reservists who are deployed (after 26 weeks’ service).

Medical

State health provision in Canada is extremely good, though patients do have to pay the full cost of prescriptions. Private medical insurance is commonly offered to cover this and other items such as dental, therapies and optical but would not normally cover in patient treatment.

Life       

Most employers would offer a Group Life plan to cover 12 months’ salary. Additional clauses would typically include Long and Short Term Disability, accidental death, and some form of income protection.

Pension

A Registered Retirement Savings Plan is often provided by employers. Typical employer contribution is 4%.