Alberta Minimum Wage Increases: Everything You Need to Know

This article is for educational purposes and does not constitute legal, tax, or financial advice. For specific advice applicable to your business, please contact a professional.

What is the minimum wage in Alberta for 2025?

As of March 2025, Alberta’s general minimum wage is $15.00 per hour for most employees, which is $2.75 less than the current federal minimum wage as of April 1, 2025. This doesn’t include tips or expenses. However, the federal minimum wage in Canada only applies to employees working in industries regulated by the government, such as banking and transportation. Provinces set the minimum wage for all other industries. Alberta’s $15.00 minimum wage became effective on October 1, 2018. However, there are exceptions and other considerations, such as with students under 18, salespersons and domestic employees.

Weekly minimum wage rates in Alberta 

Some employees – mainly people whose jobs involve sales – are paid based on weekly minimum wage rates. They must receive a weekly wage of $598 as of June 26, 2019. 

This includes the following professionals, according to the government of Alberta: 

• direct selling salesperson
• commission salesperson (other than a route salesperson) selling goods that will be delivered later
• car, truck, recreational vehicle, or bus salesperson
• manufactured home salesperson
• farm machinery salesperson
• heavy-duty construction equipment or road construction equipment salesperson
• residential home salesperson employed by builders
• land agent
• architect
• accountant
• chiropractor
• dentist
• engineer or other geoscientist
• lawyer
• optometrist
• podiatrist
• psychologist
• veterinarian
• agrologist
• denturist
• information systems professional

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Minimum wage for students under 18 in Alberta

For students under 18, the minimum wage is $13.00 for the first 28 hours they work in a week during the school year. Employers can choose to pay them more. 

Beyond 28 hours, the student must be paid $15 per hour, and overtime hours must follow applicable rules (more information in the overtime section below). So, if a student works 35 hours in a week, they will be paid at a minimum $13 for the first 28 hours worked, and at a minimum of $15 for the seven extra hours worked. 

These student wage rules apply whether school is in session or not, for any student under 18 who attends school up to grade 12, post-secondary or vocational school. It only applies to youth enrolled in an educational institution. 

Minimum wage rate for domestic employees in Alberta 

According to the Alberta government, a domestic employee is “a person employed to work in the employer’s residence, for the care, comfort and convenience of members of that residence.” This doesn’t include casual babysitting. 

Overtime compensation and restrictions on maximum hours of work don’t apply to domestic employees. 

Employees who live with their employer 

Domestic employees who live with their employer must receive a monthly wage of at least $2,848 as of June 26, 2019. This applies regardless of the number of hours worked. Pro-rating is allowed when the employee agrees to work for a portion of the month – say, afternoons only. Employers can make certain deductions for lodging and meals, but not more than $4.41 per night of lodging and $3.35 per meal consumed. 

Employees who don’t live with their employer 

Domestic employees who do not live in their employer’s home must receive the general minimum wage of $15. This wage applies for all hours worked. Meal deductions cannot exceed $3.35 per meal consumed. 

Alberta’s minimum wage requirements for short periods of work 

Three-hour minimum rule 

What about team members who only need to come in for short shifts? Employees must be paid for at least three hours of work at the minimum wage every time they report to work, unless they are unavailable to work the full three hours. But this doesn’t apply to employees who are paid more than the minimum hourly wage. 

Two-hour minimum rule 

In some cases, certain employees have to be paid at least two hours at the minimum wage: 

• school bus drivers
• part-time employees of non-profit recreation or athletic programs run by a municipality, Metis Settlement or community service organizations
• home care employees
• adolescents (13, 14 and 15 years of age) who work on a school day

Split shifts

If an employee is asked to work a split shift with a break longer than one hour between shifts, they must be paid based on the minimums above for each segment of their shift, whether the three-hour rule or the two-hour rule applies. 

When do Alberta minimum wage standards apply?

From attending a workplace training to waiting to be called into work, there are unique scenarios in which minimum wage standards may or may not apply. 

Compulsory meetings and training sessions

Employers who ask employees to attend meetings and training sessions on their day off must be paid minimum wage (and overtime if it applies). If the training is less than three hours, the three-hour rule applies. 

If an employee attends a workplace training after a shift, they must be paid the wages agreed or overtime, whichever is higher. Keep in mind that the pay for these professional development sessions cannot be lower than minimum wage. 

Employees on call/stand-by at home 

You may be wondering whether minimum wage standards apply to employees on call. No payment is required if the employee is waiting at home without working. Being on standby is not considered work. But if an employee is required to work during that time, the three-hour rule applies. 

Commission-based work

What about incentive-based pay? It’s the employer’s responsibility to determine whether the minimum compensation entitlement has been met. Here’s how to calculate it: 

Total employee wages for the pay period set by the employer (maximum one month)/total numbers of hours worked in that pay period 

If the calculated rate is below minimum wage, the employee must be paid at least $15 for all hours. If it’s higher, the employee receives their incentive-based pay or commission. 

Note that this rule doesn’t apply to weekly wage workers whose hours aren’t recorded (see section above for more information on weekly minimum wage rates). 

Overtime

Most workers are entitled to overtime pay, but there are exemptions for certain industries and professions. To consult the list of non-eligible employees and industries that are subject to different overtime rules, check out Alberta’s employment standards rules for overtime hours and pay. 

Overtime entails all hours worked past eight hours a day or 44 hours a week (whichever is greater). The same overtime rules apply to employees who are paid a salary and those who are paid hourly. 

With the exception of cases that include a written overtime agreement, the overtime pay rate is at least 1.5 times an employee’s regular wage rate for all overtime hours. In some cases, an employer may give an employee time off work with pay – otherwise known as banked overtime – at the rate of at least one hour for each overtime hour worked.

Workers need to use banked overtime within six months of the end of the pay period in which it was earned (unless there is a collective agreement that allows for an extension). 

When can employers make wage deductions in Alberta? 

Employers can only make wage deductions for meals and lodging in Alberta – and only with the written authorization of the employee. The following limits apply: 

• $4.41 for each day the employer provides the employee with lodging
• $3.35 for each meal consumed by the employee; deductions can’t be made for meals not consumed

Can an employer deduct the cost of a uniform for an employee’s pay? Not in Alberta. This also includes costs associated with cleaning and repairs of a work uniform. 

Exempt occupations from minimum wage standards in Alberta 

Certain occupations in Alberta are exempt from minimum wage standards:

• real estate brokers
• securities salespersons
• insurance salespersons paid entirely by commission
• students in a work experience program approved by the Alberta government
• students in an off-campus education program provided under the Education Act
• extras in a film or video production
• counsellors or instructors at a non-profit educational or recreational camp for children, handicapped individuals, or religious groups
• municipal police service members
• post-secondary academic staff

How to assess your employees’ minimum wage entitlement 

The majority of employees in Alberta need to be paid the minimum wage of $15/hour. But if you employ students under 18, domestic employees, salespeople who are paid weekly, commission-based workers or people doing short shifts, you will need to pay closer attention to minimum wage rules. 

It’s also crucial to track all overtime hours carefully, as you will need to meet the required rates for hours that qualify as overtime. A tool like Square Shifts can take the guesswork out of tracking work hours, breaks and overtime so your business can stay compliant with Alberta’s minimum wage laws. 

What happens if you don’t comply with minimum wage requirements 

Failure to meet minimum wage requirements can lead to serious legal consequences. Employers may receive warnings, and repeated violations can result in penalties of up to $10,000 per day as well as prosecution and potential additional fines.

Is the minimum wage going up in Alberta?

Any updates to Alberta’s minimum wage legislation will be reflected in the Employment Standards Code. To stay up to date on current employment laws and regulations, you can sign up for updates.

Here’s a timeline of recent minimum wage increases in Alberta: 

Will Alberta raise its minimum wage in 2025 and beyond?

The province of Alberta does not currently have plans to increase the minimum wage as of March 2025. 

How should small business owners prepare for changes?

Minimum wage increases are great news for employees but not necessarily for business owners. If you’re worried about how changes might affect your business finances:

• Audit your expenses: Check your cash flow in detail to ensure you avoid common business mistakes and create a hiring plan that you can afford. In some cases, you may find that hiring temporary workers as needed is less expensive than taking on full-time regular staff.
• Make sure you hire and keep the right employees: Replacing an employee costs a lot. You decrease the total cost associated with recruiting by retaining valuable employees. Look for candidates who have good track records, come recommended, and fit in with the company culture. Once they’re onboarded, make sure you build a relationship and provide paths for your employees to grow and thrive; it makes it more likely they’ll stay in their roles.
• Increase prices: Increasing prices is a great way to boost your cash flow. According to Square’s 2025 Future of Retail report, given the current economic climate, 64% of retail leaders saythey plan to increase their prices over the next 12 months.
• Update tech: Consider automating certain aspects of the work and find ways to reduce production costs. Investing in small business team management software can help free up your time, better schedule your employees, and, best of all, is easy to learn.