SURREY, B.C. - If you work for minimum wage in British Columbia, your floor is $18.25 an hour. The rate took effect on June 1, 2026, up from $17.85, and it is the highest general minimum wage of any province in Canada.
At 40 hours a week, $18.25 an hour works out to $37,960 a year before tax, and this year’s 40-cent raise is worth $832 a year to a full-time worker. In Surrey, the rate sets the pay floor in the shops, restaurants, care homes and warehouses where many residents hold first jobs or part-time work.
Who gets $18.25?
The general rate applies to most employees however they are paid: hourly, by salary, on commission or on an incentive basis. If a worker’s pay for the hours they worked falls below the minimum, the employer must top up the payment so it equals minimum wage. Liquor servers get the same $18.25 an hour, a rule in place since 2021, on top of any tips. There is no lower student or training rate in British Columbia.
The special rates
Some jobs carry their own minimums. As of June 1, 2026:
- Online platform workers (delivery and ride-hail): $21.89 an hour for engaged time, plus a distance expense allowance of at least $0.35 per kilometre for delivery work and $0.45 per kilometre for ride-hail.
- Live-in camp leaders: $145.64 for each day or part day worked.
- Live-in home support workers: $135.88 for each day or part day worked.
- Resident caretakers: $1,092.10 a month plus $43.75 for each suite in a building with 9 to 60 suites, and $3,719.96 a month in a building with 61 or more suites.
- Farm workers paid by the piece have separate set rates for hand-harvested crops.
When does it rise again?
Every June 1, each British Columbia minimum wage rises by the same percentage as the BC All-Items Consumer Price Index, with the general rate rounded to the nearest five cents. If the index falls, the wages stay the same instead of dropping. The next adjustment lands on June 1, 2027.
Think you are being paid less?
Employees must be paid at least minimum wage for the hours worked in each pay period. Workers who believe they are being paid below the minimum can contact the Employment Standards Branch or start a complaint through the province’s employment standards pages on gov.bc.ca.
Apna News
(Source: Government of British Columbia, Employment Standards, June 1, 2026)
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