Minimum Wage

If you are an employee under the Labour Standards Code, that is, if you are not a member of a labour union, or if you are an employer with employees who have no union, then the General Minimum Wage Order is important to you.This information sheet tells you about the General Minimum Wage Order.

What the Minimum Wage Order Does

First, the General Minimum Wage Order sets wage rates. A wage rate is the amount of money an employer pays an employee for each hour of work. The General Minimum Wage Order sets the minimum wage rate, which is the least amount of money an employer must pay an employee for each hour of work.

In Nova Scotia there are two wage rates, one for inexperienced employees and one for experienced employees. An inexperienced employee has done a kind of work for less than three calendar months. An experienced employee has done a kind of work for more than three calendar months.

Second, the General Minimum Wage Order sets employment standards for the following:

overtime, for some groups
partial hours
being called into work at times other than scheduled working hours
employees waiting for work on the owner's premises
piecework
the cost of uniforms
the cost of board, lodging, and meals

The New Minimum Wage Rate

Starting April 1, 2006, employers must pay inexperienced employees at least $6.70 per hour. They must pay experienced employees at least $7.15 for each hour of work. The minimum wage rate applies to a work week of less than 48 hours.

Overtime

The General Minimum Wage Order contains some overtime requirements for some groups. Overtime is also addressed in the Code and other special minimum wage orders. For more information see our section on Overtime.

Partial Hours

An employer who pays minimum wage and who pays employees by the hour must also pay employees for parts of hours worked after the first 15 minutes. If an employee works for between 15 and 30 minutes, the employer must pay for one half-hour (or for 30 minutes). If the employee works for between 31 and 60 minutes, the employer must pay the employee for one full hour (or for 60 minutes).

Here are some examples:

An employee who works for 7 hours and 10 minutes must be paid for at least 7 hours.
An employee who works for 7 hours and 20 minutes must be paid for at least 7 1/2 hours.
An employee who works for 7 hours and 40 minutes must be paid for at least 8 hours.

Even if the employee is paid more than minimum wage, the amount paid for partial hours cannot be less than the amount that would have been paid for the day at minimum wage. For example, if an employee works for 2.25 hours at $6.85, her wage would be $15.41. If she worked at minimum wage (currently $7.15/hour), she would earn $17.88, because the employer would have to pay her for 2.5 hours. She is, therefore, owed an additional $2.37 for this day ($17.88 - $15.41).

Call In

If you are an employee and you are called in to work outside your regular work hours, your employer must pay you for at least three hours of work at the minimum wage rate, that is, at least $21.45 ($7.15 x 3 hours). This is true even if you work only one or two hours. For example, if you make $9 per hour and you are called in for 1 hour's work, your employer must pay you at least $21.45.

Piecework

Many employers in Nova Scotia pay employees by the amount they produce and not by the hour. This arrangement is called "piecework." The Minimum Wage Order says that an employer cannot pay an employee less for piecework than that employee would have earned at the minimum wage for the number of hours worked. This does not apply to employees employed on a farm whose work is directly related to harvesting fruit, vegetables, and tobacco.

For example, an employee is paid $4 for each hat she sews. During a one-week period the employee produces 40 hats. The employee is entitled to be paid: $4 per hat x 40 hats, or $160.

To produce the 40 hats, the employee worked 30 hours. At the minimum wage the employee would have earned $214.50 ($7.15 x 30 hours of work).

The employee is entitled to be paid at least the same as if he or she was being paid the minimum wage for each hour worked. She is, therefore, owed an additional $54.50 ($214.50 - $160.00).

Deductions for Uniforms

If you are an employer whose employees wear uniforms, aprons, or smocks, you may not take the cost of the uniform from the employees' wages if doing so will take their hourly rate below the minimum wage.

For example, if an employee works 30 hours each week earning $7.15 per hour then the employee earns $214.50 ($7.15 x 30) each week. If the employer takes $20 off the pay for a uniform, then the employee will have earned $194.50 that week, or $6.48 per hour ($194.50 ÷ 30). Since $6.48 per hour is below the minimum wage, the employer cannot take that much from the employee's wages for the cost of the uniform.

The employer may take from the employee's wages the cost of dry cleaning a uniform that is made of wool or a heavy material. The employer may do this even if the employee's wages then fall below minimum wage.

Board and Lodging

The Minimum Wage Order tells employers how much they can take from an employee's minimum wage for board and lodging that the employer provides. As of April 1, 2004, these amounts are as follows:

For board and lodging, for each week: $59.80

For board only for each week: $48.45

For lodging only for each week: $13.50

For a single meal: $3.15

An employer cannot charge an employee for a meal not received.

Who Is Not Covered by the General Minimum Wage Order

certain farm workers
apprentices employed under the terms of an apprenticeship agreement under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualifications Act
anyone receiving training under government-sponsored and government-approved plans
anyone employed at a non-profit playground or summer camp
real estate and car salespeople
certain commissioned salespeople who work outside the employer's premises, but not those on established routes
insurance agents licensed under the Insurance Act
anyone working on a fishing boat
anyone who comes under the Minimum Wage Orders concerning Logging and Forest Operations and Construction and Property Maintenance
anyone employed in a private home by the householder to provide domestic service for a member of the employee's immediate family or for 24 hours or less per week