Always ensure to be aware of your employment Rights as a local or foreign worker.

Employment Rights in Canada

Employment Standards in Canada

Below are the minimum employment standards implemented by Canadian law to protect employees against exploitation at the workplace. However, there may be a slight difference in the legislation of different provinces.

1. Employment standards legislation protects rights in areas such as:

    • Minimum wage
    • Pay
    • Hours of work and overtime pay
    • Vacation time and vacation pay
    • Public holidays
    • Coffee and meal breaks
    • Pregnancy and parental leaves
    • Personal emergency leaves
    • Family medical leaves
    • Termination notice and termination pay

2. The minimum wage varies across different provinces and territories in employment Rights as per their law; however, the minimum wage is the lowest wage an employer can pay.

3. Hours of work and overtime pay standard varies across different provinces of Canada and applies to most workers. One and a half times the employee’s regular pay rate is the most common overtime rate established by most jurisdictions. Also, employers cannot force employees to work overtime and cannot refuse to pay overtime. Furthermore, employers cannot terminate or deport employees if they deny working overtime.

4. At regular intervals, employees must be paid. Moreover, the employer must provide them with a statement showing the wages and deductions for that period.

5. Most employees have the day off with pay on a public holiday, and they get overtime if they work on the day. Every territory and province shows a number of public holidays.

6. A majority of employees are entitled to paid annual vacation. In the below provinces, all employees have a right to two weeks of paid vacation after completing one year with an employer:

    • Alberta,      
    • British Columbia,
    • Manitoba,
    • Ontario, and
    • Quebec.

Also, there are differences across Canada in terms of eligibility.

7. In most jurisdictions, it is established that employees must have at least half an hour for a meal break after every five continuous hours of work.

Do all employees are subject to the same legislation?

 The answer to this question is NO. Not all categories of workers have the same worker Employment Rights in Canada. For instance, farm workers do not have public holidays or overtime pay. Other groups of workers that could have different employment rights include:

  • Oil field workers
  • Commercial fishers
  • Loggers
  • Home caregivers
  • Professionals
  • Managers
  • Some categories of salespersons