Employment Law

Employment Standards by Province in Canada

Updated October 20, 2026LawyerDirectoryCanada.ca Editorial Team

Employment standards laws set the minimum rights that most non-unionized employees in Canada are entitled to, including notice of termination, overtime, vacation, public holidays and leaves. Each province and territory has its own law, and federally regulated workplaces, such as banks, airlines, telecoms and interprovincial transportation, follow the Canada Labour Code instead. Employers can give more than these minimums, but contracts that give less are generally unenforceable.

This article is part of the guide to employment law in Canada.

The short version

The minimums apply to most employees, but many jobs have special rules or exemptions.
Minimum termination notice ranges from 1 to 8 weeks depending on service and province.
Ontario and federal workplaces also have statutory severance pay for some employees.
Overtime starts after 44 hours a week in Ontario and Alberta, and after 40 hours a week federally, in BC and in Quebec, with daily thresholds in some places.
Most employees get at least 2 weeks of vacation after a year, increasing with service.
Complaints go to the provincial or federal employment standards office, with strict deadlines.

Who Is Covered

Workplace	Law
Most employers in Ontario	Employment Standards Act, 2000
Most employers in British Columbia	Employment Standards Act
Most employers in Alberta	Employment Standards Code
Most employers in Quebec	Act respecting labour standards
Federally regulated employers	Canada Labour Code, Part III

Unionized employees generally rely on their collective agreement and grievance process, although the statutory minimums still apply as a floor.

Termination Notice by Province

Service	Ontario	British Columbia	Alberta	Quebec	Federal
Eligibility starts	3 months	3 months	Over 90 days	3 months	3 months
Under 1 year	1 week	1 week	1 week	1 week	2 weeks
1 to under 2 years	2 weeks	2 weeks	1 week	2 weeks	2 weeks
2 to under 3 years	2 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks
3 to under 4 years	3 weeks	3 weeks	2 weeks	2 weeks	3 weeks
4 to under 5 years	4 weeks	4 weeks	4 weeks	2 weeks	4 weeks
5 to under 6 years	5 weeks	5 weeks	4 weeks	4 weeks	5 weeks
6 to under 8 years	6 to 7 weeks	6 to 7 weeks	5 weeks	4 weeks	6 to 7 weeks
8 to under 10 years	8 weeks	8 weeks	6 weeks	4 weeks	8 weeks
10 years or more	8 weeks	8 weeks	8 weeks	8 weeks	8 weeks

These are minimums. Most non-unionized employees outside Quebec are also entitled to common-law reasonable notice unless a valid contract clause limits them to these amounts, and Quebec's Civil Code provides a similar right. See termination without cause.

Statutory Severance Pay

Jurisdiction	Who qualifies	Amount
Ontario	5 or more years of service, and employer payroll of at least $2.5 million or 50+ employees severed in 6 months due to a closure	1 week per year of service, up to 26 weeks
Federal	12 or more consecutive months of service	Greater of 5 days' wages or 2 days' wages per completed year
Other provinces	No separate statutory severance pay	Not applicable

See severance pay in Canada.

Overtime

Jurisdiction	Overtime threshold	Rate
Ontario	Over 44 hours a week	1.5 times regular pay
British Columbia	Over 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week	1.5 times, and 2 times after 12 hours in a day
Alberta	Over 8 hours a day or 44 hours a week, whichever gives more overtime	1.5 times regular pay
Quebec	Over 40 hours a week	1.5 times regular pay
Federal	Over 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week (standard hours)	1.5 times regular pay

Many jobs, including some managers, professionals and specific industries, have different overtime rules or exemptions. Some jurisdictions allow overtime averaging or banked time off by written agreement.

Vacation

Jurisdiction	Vacation time	Vacation pay
Ontario	2 weeks, 3 weeks after 5 years	4%, 6% after 5 years
British Columbia	2 weeks after 1 year, 3 weeks after 5 years	4%, 6% after 5 years
Alberta	2 weeks after 1 year, 3 weeks after 5 years	4%, 6% after 5 years
Quebec	2 weeks after 1 year, 3 weeks after 3 years	4%, 6% after 3 years
Federal	2 weeks, 3 weeks after 5 years, 4 weeks after 10 years	4%, 6% after 5 years, 8% after 10 years

Accrued, unused vacation pay must be paid out when employment ends.

Recent Ontario Changes

Ontario has changed its Employment Standards Act several times through its Working for Workers Acts. Recent changes include:

July 1, 2025: employers with 25 or more employees must give new hires written information including the employer's name and contact details, pay, pay period and anticipated hours. Employers must also give employees in a mass termination an Employment Ontario career supports information sheet.
June 19, 2025: a new long-term illness leave of up to 27 unpaid weeks for employees with at least 13 weeks of service.
November 27, 2025: up to three unpaid days of job-seeking leave during a mass termination notice period, and a process for extended temporary layoffs with a written agreement and government approval.
January 1, 2026: employers with 25 or more employees must include expected pay or a pay range in publicly advertised job postings, disclose the use of AI in screening, say whether the job is an existing vacancy, avoid Canadian experience requirements, and tell interviewed applicants whether a hiring decision has been made within 45 days.

Filing an Employment Standards Complaint

Jurisdiction	Deadline
Ontario	Generally within 2 years of the violation
British Columbia	Within 6 months of the last day of employment
Alberta	While employed, or within 6 months after the last day of employment
Federal unjust dismissal	Within 90 days of dismissal

In Ontario, an employee cannot file an employment standards claim and also sue in court for the same issue. Someone who files a claim and then wants to sue must withdraw the claim within two weeks of filing. Employment standards offices are a good route for unpaid wages, vacation pay and minimum termination pay. Larger common-law claims usually go to court. See wrongful dismissal in Canada.

Minimum Wage

Minimum wage rates change regularly, usually once a year, and several provinces index them to inflation. Check the official government website for the current rate in your province or territory and for federally regulated workplaces.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my contract give me less than employment standards?

No. A contract term that gives less than the statutory minimum is generally void, and the minimum applies instead. In some cases, an illegal term can also cause a whole termination clause to fail.

Do employment standards apply to managers?

Mostly, but managers are often exempt from some rules, such as overtime. Termination notice usually still applies.

Am I covered by provincial or federal law?

It depends on the employer's business, not your job title. Banks, airlines, telecoms, railways, interprovincial trucking and many federal Crown corporations are federally regulated. Most other private employers are provincially regulated.

Do these rules apply to contractors?

Genuine independent contractors are not covered, but many workers labelled as contractors are legally employees. If the employer controls the work, provides the tools and the worker cannot profit or lose like a business, they may be an employee.

Need help with an employment standards issue? Search LawyerDirectoryCanada.ca for employment lawyers by province and city, or see how much an employment lawyer costs.

Sources

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