Ontario Minimum Wage: Employee Facts

The general minimum wage in Ontario is $16.55 per hour. The rate increased by 6.8 per cent from $15.50 per hour on October 1, 2023. The rate will increase to $17.20 per hour on October 1, 2024, as per an announcement by the Ontario government on March 28.

Ontario’s general minimum wage applies to provincially regulated employees working full-time, part-time, or hourly in the province, as well as bartenders and alcohol servers (who earned a separate, lower wage up until Jan. 1, 2022)

There are special minimum wages for jobs like homeworkers, students, and hunting, fishing and wilderness guides.

READ MORE
• Are Ontario businesses required to give pay raises?
• Statutory holidays in Ontario

What is Minimum Wage?

Minimum wage is the lowest hourly pay rate that an employer can pay an employee in Ontario. The province sets and enforces its minimum wage standards, which aim to provide a wage floor for workers and help ensure that workers receive fair compensation for their labor.

The Ontario Employment Standards Act (ESA) provides the legal basis for the province’s minimum wage rates. The ESA establishes the general minimum wage, as well as different rates for various categories of workers, such as students, liquor servers, hunting and fishing guides, and homeworkers. These special categories exist because of the perceived differences in the nature of these types of work or the work environment.

Employees eligible for minimum wage include full-time, part-time and casual employees, as well as those earning an hourly rate, commission, piece rate, flat rate or salary.

Do Salaried Employees Get Minimum Wage?

Yes, salaried employees in Ontario must be paid at least minimum wage. Employers must “top up” payment for their salaried workers if their pay dips below the minimum wage.

Special Minimum Wage in Ontario

The specialized minimum wages in Ontario, as of Oct. 1, 2023 through to Sep. 30, 2024, are:

• Student minimum wage: $15.60 per hour (up from $14.60)
• Hunting, fishing and wilderness guides minimum wage: $82.85 (for working less than five consecutive hours in a day) or $165.75 (for working five or more hours in a day, whether or not the hours are consecutive)
• Homeworkers minimum wage: $18.20 per hour

Changes to Ontario Minimum Wage

The general and special minimum wages in Ontario typically change on Oct. 1 every year. The new rates are usually announced in or around April of each year.

What is the Ontario Minimum Wage in 2024?

The minimum wage in Ontario in 2024 is $16.55 per hour, according to the Government of Ontario. This is a $1.05 increase from 2023. The 2024 minimum wage will increase on Oct. 1, 2024, potentially to $17.40 per hour.

What Will the Ontario Minimum Wage Be In 2025?

The Ontario minimum wage will be $17.20 per hour, up from $16.55 per hour, on October 1, 2024. This change was announced on March 28.

Ontario Minimum Wage Exemptions

Minimum wage does not apply to the following jobs or employment situations in Ontario:

• Federally regulated employees, such as those working for airlines, banks, federal civil service, post offices, radio, broadcasters (radio and TV), fisheries, and inter-provincial transportation. The federal minimum wage applies to employees in these industries.
• Students employed through programs managed by colleges of applied arts and technology or universities, as well as secondary school students participating in school board-approved work experience programs.
• Individuals engaged in community participation work under the Ontario Works Act, 1997.
• Police officers
• Inmates taking part in work or rehabilitation programs
• Young offenders who perform work as part of a sentence or court order
• Individuals in judicial, political, religious, or elected union roles
• Major junior ice hockey players who fulfill specific scholarship criteria

Additional Jobs and Industries

The Government of Ontario has an online guide to help employees and employers understand whether their industry or job is covered by special rules that alter how parts of the ESA apply:

• EMS, healthcare and health professionals (including dentists, firefighters, and paramedics)
• Manufacturing, construction and mining (construction workers)
• Hospitality services and sales
• Transportation
• Agriculture, growing, breeding, keeping and fishing
• Household, landscaping and residential building services
• Government employees and professionals
• Other industries and jobs

Do I Get Severance If I Am Fired From a Minimum Wage Job?

Yes. All non-unionized employees working a minimum wage job in Ontario are entitled to full severance pay when they are fired or let go. This applies to those working in full or part-time positions.

LEARN MORE
• Severance pay in Ontario
• How wrongful dismissal works in Ontario

How Does the Minimum Wage Stack Up Against a Living Wage?

According to a new report by the Ontario Living Wage Network (OLWN), workers residing in Toronto would need to earn $22.08 an hour to survive.

A living wage is defined as how much money an individual would need to cost of living in a given area.

These costs include:

• Housing
• Food
• Clothing
• Transportation
• Medical and childcare
• Recreation
• A modest vacation

In the 23 regions listed in the OLWN report, all require a living wage above $16.30 per hour.

Additional Resources

We have additional resources about your employment-related rights in Canada:

• Statutory Holidays: Find out when statutory holidays occur in Ontario, Alberta or B.C.
• Minimum Wage: We have guides to minimum wage for the federal, Alberta and B.C. jurisdictions.
• CPP: Find out when Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) payments are made.
• Vacation: Learn about vacation time and vacation pay in Ontario.