Canadian Payroll Reporter

7 direct supervision or do not have source deductions taken from their earnings. On their own, it says these factors are not enough to determine that a worker is not an employee. Another type of work rela- tionship that employers should be aware of is that of a dependent contractor. These individuals are similar to independent contractors, but are economically dependent on the person or company that hired them. This can happen in situations where a contractor works exclusively for one person or business. While dependent contractors are not considered employees under most employment stan- dards laws, there have been cases where courts have ruled that they are entitled to notice of termina- tion because they have worked exclusively for one employer. An employment standards review in Ontario has asked for public feedback on whether dependent contractors should be included in the definition of "employee" in its employment standards law, with possible ex- emptions from some standards. At time of writing, the final report of the Changing Work- places Review was expected to be released shortly. It is not yet known if it will recommend add- ing dependent contractors to the act. Employers who are unsure of a worker's status should contact the applicable employment stan- dards board or consult a lawyer for more guidance. Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2017 Legislative Roundup PM #40065782 daily rate for live-in home-sup- port workers and live-in camp leaders, the minimum monthly rates for resident caretakers, and the farm-worker piece rates. The rate changes will be propor- tionate to the general minimum hourly wage increases. New Brunswick Reminder: Minimum wage increased April 1 The New Brunswick govern- ment raised the province's mini- mum wage rate on April 1 from $10.65 an hour to $11.00. The government has been studying proposals for index- ing the minimum wage rate and is expected to make legislative and/or regulatory changes this year to allow for it. Newfoundland and Labrador Reminder: Minimum wage increased April 1 The Newfoundland and Labra- dor government increased the province's minimum wage rate on April 1 from $10.50 an hour to $10.75. Gerry Byrne, the minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour, said the government will raise the rate again on Oct. 1 to $11.00. The government is also study- ing ways to index future mini- mum wage changes. It says it is looking at options such as using the consumer price index, av- erage weekly earnings, low in- come cut off, and market basket measures to set the minimum wage rate. Nova Scotia Reminder: Minimum wage increased April 1 Minimum wage rates in Nova Scotia went up on April 1. The province adjusts its minimum wage rates every year based on the previous year's national con- sumer price index. The rate for experienced workers (those with at least three months' experience) rose from $10.70 an hour to $10.85, while the rate for inexperienced work- ers (those with less than three months' experience) increased from $10.20 per hour to $10.35. Prince Edward Island Minimum wage increased April 1 The Prince Edward Island gov- ernment raised the province's minimum wage rate on April 1 from $11.00 an hour to $11.25. "Increasing minimum wage puts more money into the econ- omy and into the pockets of Islanders," said Sonny Gallant, Minister of Workforce and Ad- vanced Learning. The government previously raised the rate last year on Oct. 1, from $10.75 to $11.00. Quebec Stock option deduction going up The Quebec Finance Ministry is proposing to increase a de- duction that applies for stock option taxable benefits from 25 per cent of the value of the ben- efit to 50 per cent for shares of publicly traded large businesses that have a strong presence in Quebec. The change would harmonize the tax rules in Quebec with those allowed under the federal income tax system. Federal and Quebec tax law allow employees who receive a stock option taxable benefit from their employer or a per- son with whom the employer does not deal at arm's length to deduct an amount equal to a percentage of the value of the benefit when calculating their annual taxable income if certain conditions apply. For federal income tax, the deduction is 50 per cent. In Que- bec, the deduction is 25 per cent for large businesses and 50 per cent for small and medium-sized businesses carrying on "innova- tive" activities in the province. The Quebec Finance Ministry states that raising the deduction would enable Quebec to "offer the heads of large businesses a competitive fiscal environment compared to that in the rest of Canada." The new 50 per cent deduc- tion rate would apply to any transaction, event or circum- stance relating to stock options granted by a corporation that agrees after Feb. 21 to sell or is- sue a share of its capital stock or the capital stock of a corpora- tion with which it does not deal at arm's length to one of its em- ployees or to an employee of a corporation with which it does not deal at arm's length. To qualify for the new 50 per cent deduction, the stock shares must belong to a class of shares listed on a recognized stock exchange and the corporation must have a total annual Quebec payroll of at least $10 million. Payroll includes wages paid or deemed paid to employees who report to work at the em- ployer's establishment in Que- bec and to those who do not report there, but who are paid from the employer's establish- ment in Quebec. The Finance Ministry says to- tal wages paid or deemed paid would be calculated using the same rules that apply for deter- mining an employer's contri- bution to the province's Health Services Fund. Reminder: Minimum wage rates rising in May The Quebec government will raise minimum wage rates over the next four years, beginning with a rate hike on May 1, La- bour Minister Dominique Vien recently announced. On May 1, the government will increase the general mini- mum wage rate from $10.75 an hour to $11.25. The rate will also apply for employees in certain sectors of the clothing indus- try. Vien also said the govern- ment plans to raise the general minimum wage rate to $11.75 in 2018, $12.10 in 2019 and $12.45 in 2020. She said the rate for employ- ees who receive tips will increase from $9.20 an hour to $9.45 on May 1. The rate will rise to $9.65 in 2018, $9.80 in 2019 and $9.95 in 2020. The minimum wage rates for workers who pick berries will also go up on May 1. The rate for raspberry pickers will increase from $3.18 per kilogram to $3.33, while the rate for workers who pick strawberries will rise from 85 cents a kilogram to 89 cents. Vien did not specify future wage hikes for berry pickers. from MINIMUM on page 1 from page 2 CPR | April 2017

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