Minimum Wage

General

The standard minimum wage in Alberta is 15.00 CAD per hour, and 13.00 CAD for students and employees under 18.  The minimum wage rate set for employees of federally regulated organizations will be the current minimum wage rate specified in the jurisdiction in which the employee performs the work.

Payroll

Payroll Cycle

Pay cycles occur monthly, semi-monthly, bi-weekly, and hourly. For monthly paid employees they must receive their pay within ten consecutive days from the end of the pay period.

13th Salary

There is no legislation for 13th-month payments in Alberta, Canada.

Working Hours

General

The maximum number of working hours shall not exceed 8 hours a day, 44 hours a week, with a maximum (inclusive of overtime) of 12-hours in a day. 

Overtime

An employer must pay an employee overtime pay for overtime hours at an overtime rate that is at least 150.00% of the employee’s regular rate of pay or one hour of time off in lieu.

In exceptional circumstances, when an employee is called into work (during rest/ non-working time), overtime should be paid for at least 3 hours of pay at the minimum wage, even if they work less than 3 hours.

Working Week

Monday-Friday

Leave

Paid Time Off

In general, employees are entitled to paid annual leave if they have worked for the same employer for at least 30 working days in the previous year; the number of days and payment is determined by provincial law.

In Alberta, employees are entitled to two consecutive weeks of vacation leave after the first year of employment and three consecutive weeks of leave after five years of employment.  Eligible Pay Rate and/or Entitlement is calculated at the daily wage plus 1.5 times regular rate or the regular rate plus one day paid leave (whichever is the higher). This is paid 14 days before the commencement of a vacation.

Public Holidays

There are 9 public holidays.

Sick Days

Employees are entitled to up to 16 weeks of leave without pay or the risk of losing their job due to illness or injury.  For an employee to be eligible, the employee must have been employed for at least 90 days and must provide a medical certificate.

Employers do not have to pay wages or benefits during long-term illness and injury leave (although the length of service does continue) unless stated in an employment contract / collective agreement.

Employees may be eligible for long-term illness and injury benefits under the federal Employment Insurance program.  The Employment Standards Code sets out the rules for long-term critical illness and injury leave, which entitles eligible employees to a period of leave without pay, at the end of which they must be reinstated in their same, or an equivalent, job. (Part 2, Division 7.5)

Maternity Leave

Employers are required to provide eligible employees (those that have been employed for at least 90 days and provided pregnancy medical certificate) with 16 weeks of unpaid leave, which must start any time within the 13 weeks preceding the due date. The employee must also take a minimum of six weeks’ leave following the birth unless the employer agrees to an early return to duties. The employee provides a professional medical certificate stating the return will not endanger her health.

Employment Insurance funds provide maternity and parental benefits up to 55.00% of the regular salary (to a maximum of 595 CAD per week) to people who are away from work because they’re pregnant or have recently given birth and to parents who are away from work to care for their new-born or newly adopted child.    

An employee who has adopted a child is entitled to a leave of absence without pay of up to 62 consecutive weeks within 78 weeks of the child being placed with the employee.

Paternity Leave

In Alberta, Paternity leave and Parental leave are the same.

Parental Leave

Parents are entitled to 62 consecutive weeks of unpaid leave are granted to birth and adoptive parents. Parental leave can begin any time after the birth or adoption of the child and must end within 78 weeks of delivery.

Other Leave

In Alberta, employees are entitled to 3 days of mandatory leave for the bereavement of a family member, approximately eight weeks of leave for Compassionate care leave, up to 10 days per year for personal emergency leave, and up to 5 days for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Leave.

Employees are also entitled to up to 37 weeks of leave in the case of a critical illness, up to 104 weeks in the event of the death of an employee’s child, or in the case that the child has disappeared.  

Employees are entitled to Family Medical Leave of up to 28 weeks.

In Alberta, all employers must provide their full-time, regularly employed employees, job-protected, unpaid leave for their duty as jurors or as a witness in a case, responding to a subpoena: or acting as a plaintiff or defendant in the courts. Employees must provide a copy of the jury summons to the employer as evidence of the requirement.

Reservist Leave regulations require employers to provide up to 20 days of unpaid leave each calendar year for annual training for Reservists once they have completed at least 26 consecutive weeks of service with the same employer. An employee may take reservist leave for the following reasons:

• deployment to a Canadian forces’ operation outside Canada
• deployment to a Canadian forces operation inside Canada that is assisting with an emergency or the aftermath of an emergency
• annual training, included related travel time, for up to 20 days in a calendar year
• other operations set out as such in the Employment Standards Regulation by the Minister

Termination

Termination Process

Alberta’s termination process follows the General Labour Law unless an employer provides sufficient cause for dismissal without notice (e.g. misconduct).

A termination notice must be in writing and final payment must be made within three days after the last day of employment if proper notice is provided, or ten days if no notice is provided.

Notice Period

In general, notice periods in Alberta are stipulated within the employment contract/collective agreement and is linked to the reason for termination and the employee’s length of service, as below:

• One week notice is required if the employee is within the first two years of service
• Two weeks’ notice is required if the employee is within the second year of service up to the fourth year of service.
• Four weeks’ notice is required if the employee is within the fourth year of service up to the sixth year of service.
• Five weeks’ notice is required if the employee is within the sixth year of service up to the eighth year of service.
• Six weeks’ notice is required if the employee is within the eighth year of service up to the tenth year of service.
• Eight weeks’ notice is required if the employee has been employed for ten years or more.

Severance Pay

In Alberta, the severance pay is mandated and determined by common law and Alberta’s Employment Standards Code (ESC).  The ESC guarantees the minimum amount of severance pay to be paid depending on the length of service.

Probation Period

The probation period in Alberta for permanent employees is generally a minimum of 3 months.

Common Benefits

General

Cell Phone, internet allowance, and car allowance.

Supplementary health care/dental plan – typically covers costs of items or care that is not covered by Canada’s universal healthcare system such as prescription drugs or vision ware.

Private pension contribution of the employer (2-6 % of base salary).

VISA

VISA

The Government of Canada operates the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to enable foreign citizens to apply to work in Canada for a set period.  The program covers all job roles and knowledge levels, and it can be used when a qualified Canadian citizen or permanent resident is not available or suitable for the role.  

There are federal (Government of Canada) immigration programs and provincial programs (Government of Alberta). In Alberta, the provincial program is called the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP). The Government of Alberta nominates individuals for permanent residence, but the federal government decides who becomes a permanent resident.   The AINP is an economic program, so Alberta nominates people to help meet the province’s needs for workers and entrepreneurs. The types of workers and entrepreneurs Alberta needs may change as the province’s economy changes.

VAT

General

The standard rate of VAT in Alberta Canada is 5.00%