LAWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Minimum Wage

Jun 1: British Columbia raised its general minimum wage 40 cents to $18.25 per hour. The same 2.1% increase applied to minimum wages for resident caretakers, live-in home-support workers, and live-in camp leaders. The app-based ride-hailing and delivery-service minimum wage increased to $21.89. Increases to minimum piece rates for hand-harvested crops will take effect on December 31.

Action Point: Find out how to avoid common payroll errors when adjusting to minimum wage increases.

Pay Equity

May 28: From 2020 to 2024, the proportion of racialized employees among hires and promotions in the BC Public Service increased, according to a new government anti-racism report. But there was also an increase in departures in that period. Overall hiring of Indigenous employees remained stable, with a decline in external hires, no notable change in movement to permanent roles, and an increase in promotions across ministries.

Action Point: Find out about pay equity laws and their practical impact on HR operations.

New Laws

May 26: BC launched public engagement on regulations to implement the new Construction Prompt Payment Act to ensure fair, on-time payment for contractors and subcontractors. Questions on the table include whether implementation should occur all at once or in phases, rules for when invoices, notices and payments are considered delivered or made, calculation of deadlines and business days, and interest rates for late payments. Deadline to comment: July 7, 2026.

New Laws

May 21: Royal Assent for Bill 14 authorizing BC Timber Sales (BCTS) to issue timber sales licences for a wider range for a wider range of fibre-generating and forest stewardship activities, including commercial thinning, wildfire risk reduction, and salvage of damaged trees. The government claims that the new licensing regime will create jobs and increase the province’s fibre supply by as much as 17,700 truck loads, or 800,000 cubic metres.

New Laws

May 29: The Governments of Canada and BC announced $236 million in co-funding for eight projects to bring high-speed Internet access to communities across the province. As of May 2026, 96.5% of BC households have access to high-speed Internet at speeds of at least 50 megabits per second download and 10 megabits per second upload (50/10 Mbps+), as compared to 92.3% in 2017.

Health & Safety

Jun 1: BC’s workers’ compensation time-loss claims rate for 2025 increased from 2.03 to 2.04 per 100 workers due to rising claims in two sectors: health care and social services, and transportation and related services. The increase was partially offset by a reduction in the general construction sector. WorkSafeBC’s target rate for 2026 is 1.99 or less and for 2027, 1.98 or less.

Action Point: Find out how to create a vibrant workplace health and safety culture to prevent injuries and workers’ compensation claims at your company.

Drugs & Alcohol

May 27: Although drinking has been trending down in recent years, people in BC are still consuming an average of 8.8 standard drinks per week, as of 2023. This is above the national average of 8.2 and well above the recommended one to two standard drinks per week to avoid most alcohol-related risks to health. The Interior, Northern, and Island Health regions have the highest levels of drinking per person.

Drugs & Alcohol

Jun 11: The BC Coroners Service reported that 119 people in the province died due to suspected use of toxic drugs in the month of April, roughly four deaths per day. Roughly 68% of drug death victims in the province in 2026 were between age 30 and 59, and 76% were male. Since 2021, the death rate among individuals 60 and older has remained relatively stable, while the death rate among those between 19 and 59 has declined significantly.

Action Point: Find out how to implement a naloxone opioid drug overdose plan that can help you prevent overdose deaths at your workplace.

CASES 

Discrimination: Stressed Out Employee Can Sue Company, Not Director for Discrimination

An insurance company promoted an employee to field claims adjuster in 2021. The employee was overwhelmed by the workload and sued the company and a director for mental disability discrimination, claiming that they misrepresented the responsibilities of the new position. The BC Human Rights Tribunal dismissed the claim against the director citing public policy that individual principals not be held liable for discrimination committed by their company when they’re not the directing mind and don’t personally influence or drive the alleged discrimination. The company, on the other hand, had no such defence and would have to stand trial [Crocker v. Gore Mutual Insurance Company and another, 2026 BCHRT 118 (CanLII), May 8, 2026].

Action Point: The scary part of Crocker is the implication that overworking or burning out employees may carry the risk of liability for mental disability discrimination. That’s one more reason it’s important to implement an effective workplace mental health policy for your employees.

Discipline: Photographing Supervisor’s Serious Safety Infraction Is Not Harassment

A railyard worker took photos of a safety-sensitive technician cutting a rail without a required face shield. Rather than thanking him for reporting a significant safety violation, the company put a disciplinary letter in his file for taking the photos without the technician’s consent, characterizing the action as bullying, harassment, and breach of confidentiality. The BC arbitrator ruled that the penalty was totally unwarranted and ordered the company to remove the letter from the worker’s file, noting the letter’s acknowledgement that he “acted correctly in reporting the infractions,” the absence of evidence of harassment, and the fact that the worker didn’t get a chance to answer the charges he was accused of [British Columbia General Employees’ Union v Protrans BC Operations Ltd., 2026 CanLII 48712 (BC LA), May 1, 2026].

Action Point: Although the employer won, companies should generally reward and not punish their employees for reporting serious safety violations by coworkers honestly and in good faith. It’s also important to keep your own remote monitoring of employees for safety purposes within privacy boundaries.