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Ontario boosting minimum wage to $15.50 per hour

Ontario is raising its minimum wage to $15.50 per hour as of Oct. 1, 2022.

That’s an eight per cent increase over the current rate, something the province said will help workers keep up with rising costs and inflation.

“For many Ontarians, wages haven’t kept up with the increasing cost of living, making it harder than ever to make ends meet,” said Premier Doug Ford. “Ontario’s workers are the best anywhere, and they will be at the forefront of building the province. They deserve to have more money in their pockets and the increase we’re announcing today is one more way we are delivering for our workers.”

Minimum wage increased in January

In January, Ontario raised the general minimum wage to $15 and removed the lower minimum wage for liquor servers.

The government’s Working for Workers Act 2, if passed, would build on this action by expanding this minimum wage to digital platform workers for active hours worked – something no other province in Canada has done, it said in a press release.

“Our government is leading the country with unprecedented changes that rebalance the scales and help workers earn bigger paycheques,” said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development. “Raising the minimum wage is part of our workers-first plan to give hundreds of thousands of families a hand up as we build a stronger economy that works for everyone.”

Tied to CPI

The next increase this fall, which is tied to the Consumer Price Index, means that workers earning the general minimum wage and working 40 hours per week would see their annual pay rise by $1,768. Liquor servers who work 40 hours per week would see an annual raise of $5,512.

Quick facts

In October 2022, Ontario’s new minimum wage rates will be:

• General: $15.50 per hour, a raise from $15 per hour
• Students under 18: $14.60 per hour, a raise from $14.10 per hour
• Hunting, fishing and wilderness guides: $77.60 per day, a raise from $75, when working less than five consecutive hours in a day; and $155.25 per day, a raise from $150.05, when working five or more hours in a day
• Homeworkers (those who do paid work out of their own homes for employers): $17.05 per hour, a raise from $16.50 per hour