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Country Introduction – Canada
Capital – Ottawa
Currency – Canadian Dollar (CAD)
Population – 38.01 Million
GDP – $1.643 Trillion USD
Language – English & French
Major Religions – Christianity (Catholic)
Canada is the largest country in the Western hemisphere and the second largest country in the world after Russia and borders only one country, the United States of America. Canada has the longest coastline in the world with 202,080 km/ 125,567 miles.
More than half of all the lakes in the world are located in Canada! The country counts more than 3 million lakes and 31,700 big lakes with an area over 300 hectares. Canada also includes two of the biggest lakes in the world: Great Bear Lake and Great Slave Lake.
Three Canadian islands are among the top ten biggest islands in the world. They are: Baffin Islands (more than double the size of Great Britain), Victoria Island and Ellesmere Island (both are roughly the size of England).
Canada is a popular country for immigration. The country is said to have the largest population growth of the industrialised countries (G-7).
Canada is the world leader in uranium mining. Uranium is used in nuclear power plants for producing electricity. The largest uranium mine of the world is located at Cigar Lake in northern Saskatchewan/Canada. Canada is also the largest supplier of energy, also including oil and gas, to the USA.
Contract of Employment
Employment contracts do not legally have to put in writing in Canada, however it is highly recommended to document the terms of employment. The employment contract should outline all the terms of employment along with the compensation and termination periods. The employment contracts can be in English or French, except in the state of Quebec where employment contracts should be in French.
Probation Period
Up to a maximum of 6 months. Typically, the probation period is between 3 to 6 months depending on the state.
Termination
The notice period is stipulated within the employment agreements and is generally 1 month.
Working Hours
The working hours per week vary from state to state in Canada.
Alberta: 44 hours per week (Monday to Friday).
Quebec: 44 hours per week (Monday to Friday).
Ontario: 40 hours per week (Monday to Friday).
British Columbia: 40 hours per week (Monday to Friday).
Overtime
Overtime also varies state to state in Canada.
Alberta: Up to a maximum of 4 hours per day, paid at 1.5x the normal salary rate.
Quebec: Up to a maximum of 4 hours per day, paid at 1.5x the normal salary rate.
Ontario: Up to a maximum of 8 hours per week, paid at 1.5x the normal salary rate.
British Columbia: Overtime is paid at 1.5x the normal salary rate, after 12 hours of overtime the rate increases to 2x the normal salary rate.
Annual Leave
Annual leave is 2 consecutive weeks off after the first year of employment. This increases to 3 consecutive weeks off after five years of employment. This is the same across all states.
Sick leave
Sick leave varies vastly from state to state.
Alberta: Employees are entitled to 16 weeks of unpaid leave without risk of losing their employment.
Quebec: Employees are entitled to 26 weeks of sick leave provided they have worked for the employer for three consecutive months.
Ontario: Employees are entitled to 3 days of unpaid leave provided they have worked for the employer for three consecutive months.
British Columbia: Employees are entitled to 3 days of unpaid sick leave without risk of losing their job.
Maternity Leave
Alberta: Expecting mothers are entitled to 16 weeks of unpaid leave, which can start 13 weeks preceding the birth of the child. 6 weeks must be taken following the birth of the child.
Quebec: Expecting mothers are entitled to 18 weeks of unpaid leave, which can start 16 weeks preceding the birth of the child.
Ontario: Expecting mothers are entitled to 17 weeks of unpaid leave, which can start 17 weeks preceding the birth of the child.
British Columbia: Expecting mothers are entitled to 17 weeks of unpaid leave, which can start 13 weeks preceding the birth of the child.
VAT / GST:
The standard federal VAT rate in Canada is 5%.
Each state then has an additional state tax that is applied, with the exception of Alberta.
Alberta – 5%
Quebec – 5% rising to 14.98% after state tax.
Ontario – 5% rising to 13% after state tax.
British Columbia – 5% rising to 12% after state tax
Income Tax
Employees in Canada must pay both Federal Income Tax along with State Income Tax.
For more info read here
Employer/Employee Contributions
Employer and employee contributions vary from state to state.
Employer contributions in Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia are the same, while Quebec has higher contributions. Employees in Ontario will also have an additional contribution towards Ontario Health. The contribution is based on a percentage of earnings within a banded range. The range is subject to change based on the rules set out by the local government.
For more info read here
Public Holidays
Public holidays in Canada vary across all states.
Alberta: 9 public holidays
Ontario: 9 public holidays
Quebec: 8 public holidays
British Columbia: 10 public holidays
Severance Pay
As with the vast majority of employment regulations in Canada there is variance from state to state.
Alberta: Severance pay is mandatory and the payment is based on the Employment Standards Code.
Ontario: An employee must have completed 5 years of service to be eligible for severance pay. The payment is calculated based on 1 weeks pay per year of service.
British Columbia: Severance pay is mandatory. If an employee has been employed for at least 3 months then the employee is entitled to 1 weeks pay as severance. For employees who have been employed between 3 months and 1 year, 2 week of severance pay is due. For employees who have worked for over a year, then 3 weeks is due as severance pay, up to a total of 8 weeks (1 additional weeks severance per additional year up to 8 years).
Quebec: No severance pay
Work and Residence Permits (Expatriates)
Canada has 2 main types of work permits. Employer-specific work permit and open work permit. The employer-specific work permit allows an employee to work for a specific employer in only one specific location. An open work permit is for an employee to work for a fixed amount of time with an employer. Canada has a large immigration drive and is receptive of migrant workers who meet the needs set out by immigration.
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