What is the Minimum Wage in Canada in 2024?
The federal minimum wage in Canada stands as the bare minimum hourly rate mandated by law for employees engaged in federally regulated industries. Effectively, this provision serves as a cornerstone for equitable remuneration. Effective April 1st, 2024, Canada’s federal minimum wage is slated to rise from $16.65 per hour to $17.30 per hour.
Who Does this Apply to?
The federal minimum wage extends its coverage to employees and interns engaged in the federally regulated private sector, which encompasses various businesses including but not limited to banks, telecommunications companies, and interprovincial air, marine, rail, and road transportation entities.
List of federally regulated private sector industries
Private sector industries and workplaces in Canada federally regulated are:
- Air transportation (airlines, airports, aerodromes, aircraft operations)
- Banks (including authorized foreign banks)
- Grain elevators, feed and seed mills, feed warehouses and grain-seed cleaning plants
- First Nations band councils and Indigenous self-governments
- Most federal Crown corporations
- Port services, marine shipping, ferries, tunnels, canals, bridges and pipelines (oil and gas) that cross international or provincial borders
- Postal and courier services
- Radio and television broadcasting
- Railways that cross provincial or international borders and some short-line railways
- Road transportation services (trucks, buses) that cross provincial or international borders
- Telecommunications (telephone, Internet, telegraph, cable systems)
- Uranium mining and processing, and atomic energy; and
- Any business that is essential to the operation of one of the above industries
List of federally regulated public sector industries
The public sector industries and workplaces federally regulated are:
- The federal public service
- Parliament (the Senate, the House of Commons, the Library of Parliament)
Consequences of Provincial Minimum Wage Exceeding Federal Wage
Meanwhile, if the minimum wage in a province or territory is higher than the federal minimum wage, the federally regulated employer must pay the higher rate wage!
History of Federal Minimum Wage in Canada:
- April 1, 2024: $17.30 per hour
- April 1, 2023: $16.65 per hour
- April 1, 2022: $15.55 per hour
- December 29, 2021: $15.00 per hour
Annual Increase Explained
The Government of Canada has implemented a policy of automatically adjusting the federal minimum wage each year on April 1, 2024.
These adjustments are tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures the average change over time in the prices paid by consumers for goods and services. In conclusion, minimum wage increases for federally regulated businesses or industries are because of the inflation.
Do I get severance if I’m fired from a minimum wage job?
Yes, you are owed a severance package if you lose your job working as a federally regulated employee earning minimum wage! Need help? Contact us for a free consultation.
