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Wage Statements - Act Part 3, Section 27

Last updated on September 6, 2019

Contents:

Summary
Text of Legislation
Policy Interpretation
Related Information

Summary

This section requires an employer to provide an employee with a written wage statement every payday unless the statement is exactly the same as in the previous pay period. It also sets out the conditions under which an employer may provide the statement electronically.

Text of Legislation

27 (1) On every payday, an employer must give each employee a written wage statement for the pay period stating all of the following:

(a) the employer's name and address;

(b) the hours worked by the employee;

(c) the employee's wage rate, whether paid hourly, on a salary basis or on a flat rate, piece rate, commission or other incentive basis;

(d) the employee's overtime wage rate;

(e) the hours worked by the employee at the overtime wage rate;

(f) any money, allowance or other payment the employee is entitled to;

(g) the amount of each deduction from the employee's wages and the purpose of each deduction;

(h) if the employee is paid other than by the hour or by salary, how the wages were calculated for the work the employee is paid for;

(i) the employee's gross and net wages;

(j) how much money the employee has taken from the employee's time bank and how much remains.

(2) An employer may provide a wage statement to an employee electronically if the employer provides to the employee, through the workplace,

(a) confidential access to the electronic wage statement, and

(b) a means of making a paper copy of that wage statement.

(3) [Repealed 2002-42-8.]

(4) If a wage statement would be the same as the wage statement given for the previous pay period, another wage statement need not be given until a change occurs.

Policy Interpretation

Employers must provide employees with a written statement of wages to ensure that employees have received the correct wages and benefits under their employment agreement.

Subsection (1)

Employers must give employees a wage statement (paystub) for each pay period which contains all of the required information. Although most of the information is self-explanatory employers should be aware of the following:

(b) if an employee is paid by commission or piece rate, an employer is still required to keep track of the hours worked each day by the employee;

(f) any money, allowance, or other payment referred to in this subsection includes such things as a car allowance or shift differential. It also requires that payments not necessarily paid in every pay period, like statutory holiday pay, vacation pay and incentive-based pay, be noted in the pay periods where they are paid;

(h) if the employee is paid other than by the hour or by salary, for example by commission or piece rate, the employer must provide the employee with enough information as to how the wages were calculated that the employee can check the employer’s calculations and be satisfied that the payment amount is correct;

Subsection (2)

An employer may provide wage statements to an employee electronically if the employee has:

  • confidential access to the wage statement in the workplace;  and
  • a method of printing a hard copy of the statement.

An employee’s permission is not required as long as the above conditions are met.

Subsection (3) Repealed 2002

Subsection (4)

No wage statement is required when wages and deductions are identical to those given for the previous pay period.

If an employer provides a mid-month salary advance, a statement identifying the payment as an advance is all that is required. A full statement must be provided at month's end covering the full month's wages and deductions.

Employees covered by a collective agreement

Section 3 provides that parties to a collective agreement may not negotiate terms and conditions that do not meet or exceed the standards set out in section 27. Where there is a collective agreement, the enforcement of matters relating to section 27 is through the grievance procedure, not through the enforcement provisions of the Act.

Related Information

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